Spain’s AEPD data protection agency has opened an investigation into the ChatGPT artificial intelligence application, owing to suspected breaches in the country’s data protection laws. Allegations have been made that the platform, which has gained considerable attention for its ability to produce essays, conversations and tasks emulating real human behavior, is harvesting sensitive data from users’ conversations and storing their payment information, as well as being vulnerable to potential hacking without an effective age filter. A working group has been established among the different agencies forming the European Data Protection Board, a body that includes the AEPD.
OpenAI, a company involved in the ChatGPT platform, is dedicated to creating advancements in artificial general intelligence (AGI) applying the best of machine learning and software engineering. Their main objectives include the creation of technologies to enable flexible and autonomous AI systems to be adapted to different environments, surpassing the current boundaries of AI technology.
In March, Italy decided to block ChatGPT until the company demonstrated that it was in compliance with Italian privacy laws, according to El Pais. It is also noted that the application gathers an enormous amount of information from the internet to train its algorithms and is able to answer questions and requests through conversation. Examples of its use include writing computer code, blog posts, translations and even songwriting.
The investigation comes as data privacy regulations are becoming increasingly important for organizations and data collection methods used for AI applications become more closely watched. As the authorities on data protection endeavor to ensure full compliance with the applicable laws, OpenAI may have a few challenges ahead in continuing to offer its AI services.
