We investigate Character AI’s privacy policy, the data it gathers, and if it is safe to use.
One of the most popular ChatGPT alternatives is Character AI, which allows you to create your own chatbots and connect with other users. You can even communicate with a chatbot that impersonates a celebrity or another well-known public figure. It’s gotten so popular that the firm was recently valued at $1 billion.
Although Character AI does save discussions, there are severe concerns regarding its safety. Many Character AI users participate in conversations that contain very private, sensitive, and secret material, and the privacy policy implies that Character AI personnel and developers may indeed monitor what you write.
This article will teach you all you need to know about Character AI so you can make educated decisions regarding the substance of your chatbot dialogues. We go over:
- Is it possible for Character AI to save chats?
- Privacy Policies for Character AI: What Information Does Character AI Save?
- Is it safe to use character AI?
- Can You Use Character AI on Your Own?
- Why is the AI for characters so slow?
- Should I Employ Character AI?
Is it possible for Character AI to save chats?
Yes, Character AI will store your chat history, and you may restart a discussion with any character you’ve previously interacted with.
Every conversation you have with a character on Character AI can theoretically be accessed and read by workers of the organisation. Character AI discussions are not protected in the same way that communications transmitted through applications like WhatsApp are.
This is mentioned in the Character AI privacy policy, which we’ll go over in more depth in the following section.
Privacy Policies for Character AI: What Information Does Character AI Save?
When creating a Character AI account, you must supply an existing email address and a password. Following that, you must validate your email address and establish a login. Other information collected by Character AI, according to the company’s privacy policy, includes:
Communication Data (such as support requests)
Data logging (IP address, device name, etc.)
Cookies on websites (including persistent cookies)
Usage Data (how you use the service)
Character AI describes “Usage Information” as “information about how you use our service.” Unlike the other parts, however, this is neatly packed into the “log data” paragraph rather than given its own area in the privacy policy.
The sorts of material you see or interact with, the features you use, the actions you perform, and the time, frequency, and length of your activities are all examples of use information.
According to Character AI, when you submit material into the Services, we may monitor what you write to ensure that it does not include improper content or Personal Information.
A confusing privacy policy for character AI?
To say the least, there are a few intriguing components to this privacy policy. Overall, it could be much clearer.
The first is the ambiguous wording “actions you take” in the usage information. Nothing defines what Character AI means by “actions.” Is the term “actions” used to refer to conversations or other activities? It is not readily apparent.
Comparing their privacy policy to ChatGPT’s privacy policy raises several concerns about Character AI’s use of conversation data. In the privacy policy of Character AI:
- It is not stated specifically whether bots are trained using conversation data.
- It does not state whether or if employees are taught using chat data.
- There is minimal information about encryption or how conversation data is protected.
Character AI appears to categorise all of the information categories indicated (log data, communication data, use data) as “Personal Information.” They are all contained in the privacy policy section headed “Personal Information We Collect,” which also contains the line in which Character AI explains that it may watch what you type.
The section headed How We Use Personal Information then states that the firm may use Personal Information for the following objectives… to maintain, develop, or repair any portion of the Services, It may be kept internal or shared with external parties if necessary.
Is it safe to use character AI?
It is impossible to establish whether or not Character AI is secure. It gathers a large amount of data on its users, and there is virtually little publicly available information regarding the security of its servers and networks. Because there are some issues about the platform’s security, you should use a VPN and register with a new email address to protect your privacy.
A user who has built a chatbot cannot watch talks that other users have with their chatbot, however as previously stated, Character AI’s staff may read whatever chats they want because they are not encrypted. Just keep this in mind while starting interactions with chatbots.
However, in November, one Reddit user noted that “there was a bug where people’s chats randomly leaked into other people’s chats.”
Tech.co was unable to independently verify this story, however ChatGPT has experienced difficulties with chat titles being disclosed, so it isn’t impossible.
Although Character AI employs strict NSFW filters to prevent chatbots from responding to improper requests, there have been incidents of characters sending people insane, violent, and nasty messages.
This appears to be an unusual occurrence, but users who find this type of content triggering should be cautious about the nature of the talks they initiate with characters on the site.
Many users seek to circumvent the chatbot’s censors; a petition to develop an NSFW option for the site has received over 5,000 signatures.
The (lack of) security settings in character AI:
Unfortunately, Character AI does not offer two-factor or multi-factor authentication, which would be a useful second layer of protection for users (albeit this would likely need the addition of a phone number to accounts).
Furthermore, it merely needs users to establish passwords that are 6 characters long, with no restrictions on special characters – a rather low bar for passwords.
We recommend that you choose a secure, unique, and suitably complicated password for your Character AI account, especially if you’re entering sensitive or confidential data into the chatbot, which we strongly discourage regardless of whose chatbot you’re using.
Can You Use Character AI on Your Own?
It should go without saying that you should never enter private, sensitive, or other confidential information into any AI chatbot, whether Bard, ChatGPT, or Character AI.
Character AI, unlike ChatGPT, does not request your phone number when you create an account. As a result, it may be utilised in a little more private manner than ChatGPT.
Character AI simply requires an email address and password to join up, so if you are concerned about privacy, using a new email address and then using a VPN to disguise your IP address will allow you to utilise the service as securely as possible.
It’s important to understand that attempting to use a VPN to bypass a site-enforced restriction or ban on your IP address will result in a violation of the Terms of Service.
However, as previously said, anything you write may be observed and recorded. As a result, having a really private conversation with a Character AI chatbot is difficult. People are also concerned about how OpenAI’s chatbot, ChatGPT, handles user data.
Why Is Character AI So Laggard?
Character AI may be sluggish for a variety of reasons.
Character AI, like any other website, may slow down if it receives a large number of queries to its servers (in other words, a large number of individuals utilising chatbots). This is hardly unexpected given that the mobile App had 1.7 million downloads in the first week after its release.
It might potentially be down for maintenance or technical reasons. Unfortunately, there isn’t much you can do about it — but you may check the website’s server status to see whether the server is down.
If Character AI is working properly, the issue might be with your device or internet connection. If you’re having trouble using Character AI because it’s too sluggish, check your internet connection first. A simple reboot may be required to get you back up and running.
If you’re using a VPN, proxy service, or any other tool that may be interfering with your device’s internet connection, quitting and reconnecting is suggested – just make sure you close any active browser windows first.
Should I Employ Character AI?
Character AI is a funny chatbot with which you may have a lot of fun. However, as you can probably see from reading this post, you need take some care when using it to safeguard your safety. These are some examples:
- For your account, use a lengthy, complicated, and unique password.
- Character AI should not be given sensitive information.
- Do not use your work email address or any other information while signing up.
- Keep in careful that Character AI employees may listen in on your conversations.
When utilising ChatGPT or Bard, or any other popular chatbot, we recommend taking the same precautions. They may be bright and valuable, but entrusting them with sensitive information is just not worth the risk.
