Not everything is suitable for conversation with AI. Find out what information to avoid in AI chat, how to edit safe prompts, and how to protect your privacy while working with your AI assistant.
What not to paste into the AI chat: personal data, contracts, passwords.
Artificial intelligence can speed up work, organize notes, assist in writing prompts, and reduce research time. This offers real benefits, but only when used wisely. The biggest mistake users make today is not asking the wrong questions. The real issue is that AI tools receive content that should never leave a personal computer, corporate system, or protected email inbox.
If you are using AI chat as a tool for work, study, or organizing your life, you must remember one thing: not every piece of information is suitable for pasting. According to NIST, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, quality and effectiveness in AI are crucial, but so is risk management, privacy, and data security, NIST AI RMF, 2023. The European Commission, in their guidelines for trustworthy AI, emphasizes the importance of data oversight, privacy, and responsible use, 2019.
In practice, this means a simple rule. AI chat is not a place for everything. Even though the AI assistant operates quickly, politely, and seems safe, you are still responsible for what you input. Below, you will find a specific list of what not to paste into AI chat, as well as tips on how to create prompts so that artificial intelligence helps rather than increases risk.
Why caution with AI chat is necessary.
Many people treat AI like a personal notebook or a digital colleague to whom they can disclose everything. While this is convenient, it can be risky. Tools based on artificial intelligence may process submitted content at various stages of service. The specifics depend on the particular provider, its privacy policy, account settings, and subscription plan. Therefore, one must not assume that every AI chat operates like a local offline editor.
OWASP, in its report on threats to applications based on large language models, highlights issues such as the disclosure of sensitive data, unsafe model output management, and risks related to integrations and plugins, OWASP Top 10 for LLM Applications, 2025. ENISA, the European Union Agency for Cybersecurity, also points out that AI systems can increase the attack surface if organizations do not control data flow, 2023.
This does not mean you should stop using AI. It’s about changing habits. Well-written prompts and data minimization ensure that the AI assistant remains useful while enhancing AI security.
Personal data: don’t input this without necessity.
The most important rule is: do not paste full personal data unless absolutely necessary. This applies to both your own data and that of others. The Information Commissioner's Office, the UK supervisory authority, emphasizes in its materials on AI and data protection that organizations should adhere to data minimization and purpose limitation principles, 2024. The same logic applies to ordinary users.
The following should not be included in AI chat:
- full name combined with residential address,
- PESEL number, ID number, passport number,
- phone number and personal email address, unless absolutely necessary,
- data about children, students, clients, or patients,
- bank account numbers, payment card details, and billing information,
- scans of documents, photos of ID cards, driver’s licenses, or signed contracts.
If you want artificial intelligence to help you draft a letter, CV, or complaint, remove identifying data. Instead of pasting the full document, use neutral placeholders, like: [NAME], [SURNAME], [ADDRESS], [CLIENT NUMBER]. Such a prompt will still be effective, and the risk will significantly decrease.
A good example: “Write a polite complaint regarding a delayed delivery. Maintain a formal tone. Leave fields to be filled in for personal data.” This is better than pasting a ready letter with a full address and phone number.
Contracts, documents, and corporate files: exercise high caution.
The second category includes contracts, addendums, commercial offers, NDAs, HR documents, strategic presentations, and other confidential materials. Here, the risks involve not only privacy but also trade secrets and business relationships. Even if the AI chat is meant to help you 'just summarize the document,' you are submitting content that may include pricing conditions, contractor information, confidentiality clauses, or corporate plans.
The European Commission, in its guidelines for trustworthy AI, emphasizes the need for responsible data management and transparency in processes. Practically, this means that before using AI to work with a document, you need to ask yourself three questions:
- Does the document contain confidential information or personal data?
- Do I have permission and a basis to share this material with an external tool?
- Can I achieve the same effect after anonymizing or summarizing in my own words?
In many cases, the answer to the third question is yes. Instead of pasting the entire contract, write: “Explain in simple language what to look out for in a B2B collaboration agreement, termination periods, penalties, transfer of copyright, and party responsibilities.” Such a prompt allows you to obtain a useful checklist without disclosing the document's content.
If you need assistance with creating prompts or learning to work with AI safely, you can start with materials in the AI section and simple step-by-step implementations from the introduction..
Passwords, codes, and login data: an absolute no.
Passwords and access secrets are a category that should never be input into AI chat under any circumstances. This includes email, banking, social media, administrative panel, VPN, server, API passwords, and one-time codes. Do not input recovery account questions or complete seed phrases for cryptocurrency wallets.
This is also important when it seems to you that you're only asking the AI to organize your login information or create an access table for your team 'for a moment'. The same principle applies to AI security as it does to cybersecurity in general: a secret that has been unnecessarily copied is no longer secure.
ENISA and OWASP regularly emphasize the importance of access control, secrets hygiene, and minimizing exposure in digital environments. In practice, this means that AI chat does not replace a password manager. If you need help, ask the AI to generate guidelines for creating strong passwords or to provide a checklist for implementing a password manager, but never paste real access data.
Sensitive content related to health, finances, and personal matters.
Another category consists of information that can be very delicate for you personally. This includes detailed medical test results, medical documentation, descriptions of mental health crises, debt information, legal matters, family conflicts, or children's situations. Such content can be highly sensitive, even if it does not always formally fall into the same risk category.
If you want to use AI assistance to organize your thoughts or draft questions for a specialist, do so cautiously and anonymously. Instead of pasting a complete medical history, it’s better to say: 'Help me prepare a list of questions for the doctor about my thyroid test results' or 'Help me organize questions for a lawyer regarding the rental agreement.' This can still be useful without requiring all the details.
You can also find educational content about AI and its supportive applications in tools such as Luna or Friend., but always remember that even the best AI assistant does not replace a doctor, lawyer, or security specialist. This article is for educational purposes and does not constitute legal, medical, or financial advice.
How to write safe prompts that still work.
The good news is that you don't have to give up AI to ensure your privacy. You just need to change the way you formulate your prompts. The most practical guidelines are:
- minimize data, providing only what is necessary,
- anonymize, replacing real data with placeholders,
- generalize, describe the issue instead of copying entire documents,
- break tasks into stages, starting with structure and then editing,
- check your account settings and the AI provider's policy,
- don’t assume every AI chat is private by default.
Example of a dangerous prompt: 'Analyze this contract with my data, personal identification number, and signature, then write a response to the contractor.'
Example of a safer prompt: 'Provide a checklist for analyzing the cooperation agreement. Focus on termination, penalty clauses, liability, payment deadlines, and copyright issues. Respond in simple language.'
The difference is huge. In the second case, the AI still assists, but it doesn't receive unnecessary data.
A simple checklist before sending a message to AI.
Before you hit Enter, pause for 10 seconds and do a quick review. This is one of the best habits if you regularly use AI chat.
- Check if the message contains personal data or company secrets.
- Remove names, addresses, identification numbers, and signatures.
- Replace specific amounts, account numbers, and contractor information with placeholders.
- Consider if you can describe the issue generally.
- Ensure you’re not pasting passwords, tokens, or access codes.
- If you're working professionally, check your company's AI policy.
This brief procedure significantly enhances AI security in everyday use. Over time, it becomes a habit and does not slow down work. On the contrary, it helps create better prompts by forcing precision and information organization.
The most common mistake: convenience triumphs over common sense.
The riskiest situations usually do not arise from bad intentions. They come from haste. Someone wants to quickly summarize a contract, improve an email to a client, clarify a test result, or restore order in notes and thoughtlessly copies everything into AI chat. It later turns out that the content included third-party data, confidential collaboration terms, or fragments that should not leave the organization.
If you want to use AI wisely, think of it as a very helpful tool but not as a safe. An AI assistant can streamline your work, inspire you, suggest structure, and save time. However, it should not become a storage place for sensitive content. That’s the difference between convenience and mature use of technology.
In summary, use AI but with a security filter.
What not to paste into AI chat? Primarily personal data, passwords, access codes, complete contracts, confidential documents, sensitive health information, and financial details. Instead, apply anonymization, data minimization, and prompts based on problem descriptions rather than copying entire texts.
Artificial intelligence is very useful, but AI security starts on your end. You decide what you input, what you remove, and how you formulate questions. The better you learn to write safe prompts, the more benefits AI chat will bring you, without unnecessary risks to privacy and data.
If you want to develop practical skills in working with AI, start with simple guidelines, test safe patterns, and use verified educational materials. This is the best way for your AI assistant to be supportive rather than a source of problems.
Sources
- NIST, Artificial Intelligence Risk Management Framework, 2023.
- OWASP, Top 10 for Large Language Model Applications, 2025.
- European Commission, Ethics Guidelines for Trustworthy AI, 2019.
- ENISA, Cybersecurity of AI and Standardisation, 2023.
- ICO, AI and Data Protection Guidance, 2024.
FAQ
Can I paste my CV with full details into AI chat?
It's better not to. It's safer to remove your address, phone number, and other identifying information and ask the AI to improve the style, structure, and professional summary.
Is AI chat suitable for contract analysis?
It can help with checklists and explaining terms, but it’s not advisable to paste a full contract with party details and confidential terms. First, anonymize the document or describe the issue generally.
Can I give AI my password to evaluate it?
No. Never enter your real password into AI chat. If you want to check the quality of a password, use a fictional example or ask for general guidelines on creating strong passwords.
How to create safe prompts for work?
It is best to minimize data usage by using placeholders like [NAME] and [COMPANY], and by describing the purpose of the task instead of copying full documents. This way, artificial intelligence can still assist, and the risk will be significantly lower.
