Free checklist

What not to paste into an AI tool

Anything you paste into an AI tool leaves your own computer. Run this check before you hit send. It takes about thirty seconds once you know it.

Never paste

Passwords, PINs, API keys and recovery codes

An AI tool never needs these to help you. If one slips in, change it.

Full card numbers, bank account numbers, tax or ID numbers

Use a placeholder such as XXXX-1234 if the format matters.

Medical or health details about a named person

Describe the situation without the name, date of birth or record number.

Anything covered by an NDA or a client contract

Check what the contract says about third-party tools before you paste any of it.

Pause and strip first

Customer or staff names, emails, phone numbers and addresses

Swap them for Customer A, Customer B, [email]. Put the real ones back after.

Contracts, quotes and invoices with real prices or terms

Replace names and amounts, keep the structure.

Spreadsheets and exports

Delete the identifying columns, then paste a handful of rows, not the whole file.

Private emails and chat threads

Quote only the lines you need. Remove signatures and forwarded history.

Unpublished plans, pricing or financials

Ask yourself if a competitor reading it would matter. If yes, generalise it.

Usually fine

Public information, such as your own website copy or published prices

Already public, so nothing new is exposed.

Made-up examples that look like your real ones

Often the best way to get a useful answer.

Your own writing with identifying details removed

Good for edits, tone and structure.

Before you start using any tool

  1. Look at the tool's settings for anything about using your chats to improve the product, and decide if you are happy with it. Settings and defaults differ between tools and plans, and they change, so check the current ones.
  2. If you are paid by an employer or answer to clients, find out what the rule is before you paste. Ask once, in writing.
  3. Use the work or business version of a tool where you have one. Terms are often different from the free personal version. Read them rather than assuming.
  4. When in doubt, replace the sensitive part with a label and keep going.

This is general guidance, not legal advice. Rules differ by industry and country, and your own contracts come first.

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