AI and Your Privacy in Singapore: Chatbots, Opt-Outs, PDPA

By the WahLiao desk · Last verified 3 October 2026

Here’s the short answer. When you type into a Super Intelligence chatbot (the kind of AI behind ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini), your words go to the company that runs it, and it keeps them. On most consumer plans, your chats can also help train future models unless you switch that off. Each of the big three has a setting for this, and business plans generally don’t train on your content by default. Singapore’s Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) sets the rules for how organisations collect and use personal data, and that matters most at work: if you paste a customer’s details into a chatbot, your employer is still responsible for them.

If you remember one thing, make it this simple rule. Don’t type anything into a chatbot that you wouldn’t put in an email to a stranger: NRIC numbers, passwords, one-time codes, bank details, medical records or a client’s file.

AI and your data: quick facts

What is stored	Your chats and uploaded files, kept by the provider on its own servers
Training	Consumer plans may use your chats to train models unless you opt out
ChatGPT	Settings, Data Controls, turn off “Improve the model for everyone”; or use Temporary Chat
Gemini	Turn off “Keep Activity”; or use a temporary chat
Claude	Settings, Privacy, turn off “Help improve Claude”; or use an incognito chat
Business plans	Generally no training on your content by default
The law	The PDPA sets rules for organisations handling personal data

The WahLiao Verdict

Do today	Check the training setting on every tool you use. It takes a minute.
Never paste	NRIC, passwords, codes, bank details, health records, client data.
At work	Stick to the tool your employer approves, on its business plan.
Remember	Opting out stops future training; it doesn’t undo the past.
Deleting	Providers may keep deleted chats for a while, so check the privacy policy.

What happens to what you type

When you hit send, your message travels to the provider’s servers, usually overseas. The model reads it there and writes a reply. The conversation is normally saved to your history so you can come back to it later. Depending on the provider and your settings, it may also be reviewed for safety and used to improve future models. One thing worth knowing: once a chat has been used in training, switching the setting off later protects your future chats, not the ones already used.

How to switch off training

Tool	Where	What it does
ChatGPT	Settings, Data Controls, “Improve the model for everyone”	Stops your chats being used for training; your history stays, and the setting follows you across all your devices
ChatGPT Temporary Chat	Start a Temporary Chat	Not saved to your history and not used for training
Gemini	Activity settings, “Keep Activity”	With it off, future chats aren’t used to train Google’s models unless you send feedback, though Google still keeps them for up to 72 hours. Temporary chats aren’t used for training either
Claude	Settings, Privacy, “Help improve Claude”	Covers the Free, Pro and Max plans; incognito chats are never used for training, and Team and Enterprise plans aren’t trained on by default
Copilot	Profile, Privacy, “Training on conversation activity” and “Training on voice conversations”	Switching both off keeps your future conversations out of model training

Apps get updated and settings move around, so if a label has changed by the time you read this, search the provider’s help pages for “training” or “data controls”. If you spot a change before we do, tell us and we’ll fix it.

What the PDPA covers

The PDPA sets rules for organisations that collect, use and share personal data in Singapore. Broadly, they have to tell you why they want it, get your consent unless an exception applies, keep it safe, and let you see and correct what they hold. It doesn’t cover what you do as a private person in your personal or home life, so your own chats with a chatbot come under the provider’s terms and privacy policy instead.

In March 2024, the Personal Data Protection Commission issued advisory guidelines on how the PDPA applies when organisations use personal data in AI systems that make recommendations or decisions: when consent is needed, what customers should be told, and when the exceptions for business improvement and research apply. The guidelines aren’t legally binding, and they’re aimed at those recommendation and decision systems rather than at generative chatbots. Still, they’re a useful window into how the regulator thinks about AI and personal data.

At work: the risky shortcut

The most common data slip is a well-meant one: pasting a customer list, a patient note or a contract into a personal chatbot account to save a bit of time. Under the PDPA, the organisation stays responsible for protecting that personal data. So use only the tools your employer has approved, ideally on a business plan that doesn’t train on your content by default, and follow your company’s AI policy. No policy yet? Ask before you paste.

Photos, voices and your children

Uploading photos or voice recordings of other people, especially children, is worth a second thought. Images and audio can be kept, reused or leaked, and clips of voices and faces are the raw material of deepfake scams. Ask before you upload someone else’s picture, and keep children’s images off public accounts where you can.

If something goes wrong

If you think an organisation in Singapore has mishandled your personal data, raise it with the organisation first, then with the Personal Data Protection Commission. You can also ask an organisation what personal data it holds about you. To clear your chat history with a chatbot, use the delete or export options in its settings, and read its privacy policy to see how long deleted data is kept.

AI and your privacy: FAQ

Does ChatGPT use my chats for training?

On consumer plans it can, unless you turn off “Improve the model for everyone” in Data Controls. Temporary Chats aren’t used for training.

Is it safe to type my NRIC number into a chatbot?

No. Keep NRIC numbers, passwords, one-time codes and bank details out of chatbots altogether.

Does the PDPA apply to AI?

It applies to organisations using personal data, including in AI systems. The PDPC’s 2024 advisory guidelines explain how it applies to AI recommendation and decision systems.

Do business AI plans train on my data?

Generally not by default. Anthropic, for example, says Claude’s Team and Enterprise plans aren’t trained on by default.

If I delete a chat, is it gone?

It disappears from your history, but providers may keep deleted data for a while for safety or legal reasons. Check each provider’s privacy policy to be sure.