Snapchat warned by UK data watchdog over AI chatbot risks

cointelegraph.com:

The social media platform Snapchat has received a warning from the United Kingdom’s data watchdog over its new artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot known as “My AI,” according to an update posted by the regulator. 

On Oct. 6, the U.K. Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) issued a preliminary notice to Snap Inc. and Snap Group, the parent companies of Snapchat, for the potential failure to “properly assess the privacy risks” posed by the chatbot.

We have issued Snap, Inc and Snap Group Limited with a preliminary enforcement notice over a potential failure to properly assess the privacy risks posed by its generative AI chatbot ‘My AI’.

Read more about the case: https://t.co/MAuHAH0h8B pic.twitter.com/BawISttPJN

The notice is based on a provisional investigation of the company conducted by the watchdog, which said the risks to several million My AI users, including children aged 13–17, were not adequately identified before its launch.

John Edwards, the U.K.’s information commissioner, commented on the notice, saying:

According to the notice, if a final enforcement notice is issued, Snap may be forced to stop data processing in relation to My AI, which would prevent it from offering the service to U.K.-based users without an “adequate” risk assessment. 

Currently, ICO said a conclusion should not be made from the current stage of investigations.

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Snapchat’s AI chatbot was rolled out to users of Snapchat+ in the U.K. in February 2023, with wider availability beginning in April 2023. 

My AI is powered by OpenAI’s GPT-4 technology and, according to the data watchdog, was the “first example of generative AI embedded into a major messaging platform in