Forget data privacy, AI chatbots already know more than your own mother
We’re freaked out by how tailored our advertisements on Instagram are, or how much Pinterest seems to anticipate our interior design taste — and yet we continue to spoon-feed AI chatbots heaping piles of intensely personal information.AI companies are now in possession of heaps of personal information that social media giants could only dream of.We aren’t just setting ourselves up for hyper-targeted ads.
We’re also making ourselves vulnerable to hacks and even blackmail.ChatGPT alone receives 3 billion messages from users daily.Every time we ask a bot for advice, vent to it, or emote at it, we’re contributing to a treasure trove of hyper-personal information, even though we should know better.Considerable proportions of Americans who use AI say they turn to it for frighteningly personal tasks: 20% for medical advice, 20% for diet information, 10% for emotional support, and 4% for companionship.
Those are just self-reported numbers; data from OpenAI itself is even more revealing.Their internal analysis of 1.1 million messages sent in 2025 found that 73% of chats were not work related. Eight-point-five percent of messages were seeking personalized how-to advice, 5.7% health, fitness, beauty, or self-care, 5.3% were considered “self-expression,” and 1.9% personal reflection or talking about relationships.Potential for rogue bots deciding they might exploit the data of users isn’t remote.During a 2025 test, one Anthropic model showed a real knack for blackmail.
Facing the fictional threat of being disconnected, the model went after a fake executive and threatened to expose email evidence of his marital affair unless he intervened to prevent the shutdown.We’re stuck in a fear-versus-behavior paradox.Half of US adults use AI as of this year, and a quarter use it every day.
And yet 7 in 10 Americans admit they believe using AI will make their data less secure.Perhaps we’re willingly baring it all to Big Tech because we’ve become so dependent on t...