Italy Bans ChatGPT Citing Privacy Violations and Child Safety Risks
Italy's data watchdog temporarily bans ChatGPT over unlawful data collection and a lack of age verification. OpenAI faces steep fines if it fails to comply with the new privacy measures within 20 days.
Italy’s Data Protection Authority issues an immediate temporary ban on ChatGPT, citing unlawful data collection and serious privacy concerns. The watchdog states that OpenAI lacks a legal basis for the massive collection and processing of personal data required to train the AI platform's algorithms.
The authority also highlights the complete absence of an age verification system as a major child safety risk, exposing minors to inappropriate responses despite the service's terms of service. This regulatory action follows a reported data breach on March 20 that allegedly exposes user conversations and payment information.
OpenAI’s Europe-based representative has 20 days to implement the required corrective measures or face a fine of up to 20 million euros or four percent of global annual turnover under GDPR regulations. This ban mirrors recent actions by European and American regulators targeting data privacy and child safety issues on platforms like TikTok.