Privacy
What happens to your data?
The data from almost all generative AI tools, such as the American ChatGPT or the Chinese DeepSeek, is processed and stored on servers outside Europe and must comply with the applicable privacy laws and regulations there. These laws are less strict than European laws and regulations and can sometimes be accessed by governments.The privacy policies of most GenAI tools state that information about you may be collected. Providers may collect information about your visit, how you use the services, and your interactions. Other details such as your IP address, location, and devices used are also recorded. Your information can (and will) be used for maintaining, improving, and analyzing the tools.Your input may also be used to further train the GenAI tools. There have been cases where privacy-sensitive data resurfaced as output for others. And in the summer of 2025, it was discovered that shared chats on ChatGPT were publicly searchable via Google 1 . Therefore, it is important not to provide any personal data, privacy-sensitive information, or copyrighted material to GenAI tools. This includes research data with personal data or student papers or theses.
Copilot Chat
Radboud University offers the AI-powered conversation assistant Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat: a conversation assistant focused on data security. If you'd like to use an AI tool, we recommend using Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat.
Tips
- Third-party AI tools can use an existing language model like ChatGPT in the background, although this isn't always immediately visible. Exercise caution when using third-party tools and check whether there is an option to opt-out of using your data for training purposes.
- In general; be cautious of the information you provide to digital tools. It can help to ask yourself: would it be a problem if I left this information on a scrap of paper on the train?