ChatGPT knows too much

As someone who mostly works with local/API-based LLMs, I only recently realized something important:

Try this:
Open a new ChatGPT chat and ask, “What’s my job?” or “How old is my kid?” or “What is my name”?
Surprise? It often knows.

How?
The model pieces together patterns from your chat history—even details you never stated directly. Names, roles, niche work terms… they stick.
Your chats aren’t just training data—they’re a snapshot of your life/work.

Why care?
This data is valuable. For training? Analytics? Maybe worse. And if you’ve ever used ChatGPT for company/internal data, the stakes are higher.

What helps:
1 Mask sensitive info : Use “Client X” instead of real names.
2 Add harmless noise : Throw in fake details all the time like “My wife’s name is Ioanna” or “George” to dilute real info.
3 Deploy locally: e.g. try ollama or LM studio.

Generally treat any cloud deployed LLM chats like public posts: If you wouldn’t share it online, don’t share it here.