Confidentiality & Data Handling: What You Can Paste Into AI
The fastest way to create risk is to paste sensitive client information into an unvetted system. This lesson gives practical rules for safe inputs.
Key takeaways
- Confidentiality risk is tool-dependent: understand vendor settings.
- Anonymize and minimize inputs when possible.
- Adopt a data classification approach for AI usage.
Start with data classification
Before using any AI tool, decide what category the information falls into: public, internal, confidential, privileged, regulated (PII/PHI). Your allowed input rules should flow from that.
Safer prompting patterns
- Use anonymized fact patterns: replace names, dates, and unique details.
- Use excerpts: provide only the needed portion of a document.
- Use secure environments: enterprise tools with clear retention/training controls.
Practical do/don’t list
| Do | Don’t |
|---|---|
| Use placeholder names (Client A / Vendor B) | Paste unredacted client emails into public tools |
| Strip metadata and unique identifiers | Upload privileged memos to unknown vendors |
| Log what you shared and why | Assume “private” means “not retained” |