How Do I Stay Safe When Using AI? 

It is important to understand that when you use generative AI tools, like ChatGPT or Gemini, all of the text you enter into your prompts and conversation with the system is sent outside of St. John Fisher's network, and will be included in the dataset that the tool uses to continue to learn and improve the quality of responses that it generates. If you are using generative AI tools that are connected with our Fisher licensed tools and you are logged in while using them, this may not be the case. It is important to be able to identify the tool you are using and how the data will be used by that system. Review the How to Access AI Tools page for a description of the protected Fisher AI tools and other generative AI tools you may be using. 

If you are using a tool that is not on the protected list there are certain kinds of data you should never enter into a generative AI tool. 

1. You should NOT enter any personally identifiable information (PII) into the prompt of any generative AI tool, including things like name, address, date of birth, etc.. This is sensitive information that should always be kept safe. This includes your own personal information and personal information of other people you may have access to as well. 

2. You may NOT enter any non-public University data into the prompt of any generative AI tool, including things like FERPA protected student information, employee data, IRB protected data, etc.. This data is protected and must be kept private at all times. 

3. You should be CAUTIOUS about entering any copyrighted material into the prompt of any generative AI tool. Here are a few scenarios to consider:

• If you are entering copyrighted material into any generative AI tool, you should be protected by Fair Use as long as you use the information for educational purposes and in a way that follows Fisher's Academic Integrity Policy.

• You should not enter any copyrighted material into the prompts of any generative AI tool if you are not doing so for educational purposes.  This may violate copyright.

• You should be cautious about entering any of your own work into a generative AI prompt, as that material may be shared with others without acknowledging your authorship.

These tools do not guarantee any level of protection for the data you enter. Please keep this in mind whenever you are using a generative AI tool. 

If you are using a protected tool and are logged in while doing so, it is safe to enter personal or University data, since this data will not be used outside our organization. If you are ever unsure about the safety of the tool you are using, please contact the OIT Service Desk for assistance (585-385-8016 or oitservicedesk@sjf.edu).