[Update] Dropbox responds to accusations of 'hiding' AI sharing button, data leakage
Some Dropbox users are accusing the file-sharing service of sharing their data and files with OpenAI.
The concern stems from the platform's collaboration with OpenAI to launch an AI feature for paying subscribers. However, Dropbox maintains that it's not sharing user data.
How it all started
Since Dropbox doesn't have a chatbot, the company has collaborated with OpenAI to help users "answer questions and summarize large files," according to the site's help page. To accomplish this, Dropbox must send your files to OpenAI so it can send ChatGPT's response back to you.
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This information is stored on OpenAI's servers for only 30 days. However, some users have expressed concern that this feature is toggled on automatically. On Dec. 13, Amazon CTO Werner Vogels posted on X (formerly Twitter), informing users how to disable the feature.
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Dropbox denies the accusations
Dropbox CEO Drew Houston responded to Vogels denying accusations that the company was sending users' data to OpenAI. In another post: "Third-party AI services are only used when customers actively engage with Dropbox AI features."
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Additionally, a spokesperson told CNBC that "customer data is not used to train or fine-tune OpenAI’s language models."
However, some Dropbox users have suggested that after this exchange, the option to turn off AI features was "hidden." Dropbox has denied these claims and a company spokesperson told Mashable that it's because some users just don't have access to the features.
"The AI third-party toggle is only visible to users who have access to our AI features," said a company spokesperson to Mashable through email. "To reiterate, neither this nor any other setting automatically or passively sends any Dropbox customer data to a third-party AI service."
UPDATE: Dec. 20, 2023, 9:23 a.m. CST This article and headline were updated to accurately reflect information from Dropbox's official statement.
Topics OpenAI
Chance Townsend is the General Assignments Editor at Mashable, covering tech, video games, dating apps, digital culture, and whatever else comes his way. He has a Master's in Journalism from the University of North Texas and is a proud orange cat father. His writing has also appeared in PC Mag and Mother Jones.
In his free time, he cooks, loves to sleep, and greatly enjoys Detroit sports. If you have any tips or want to talk shop about the Lions, you can reach out to him on Bluesky @offbrandchance.bsky.social or by email at [email protected].
