Shared AI Services and Your Data

This question determines whether your data will be processed by AI services that also handle other companies' data—shared, multi-tenant AI platforms. It's like asking whether your data goes into a private AI system just for you, or a communal AI service where many organizations' data flows through the same systems. This includes popular AI APIs, cloud AI services, or industry-specific AI platforms used by multiple customers.

Shared AI services introduce risks of data commingling, where your information might influence or be influenced by other organizations' data. This can lead to competitive intelligence leaks, cross-contamination of AI responses, or your data improving models that competitors also use. For regulated industries, shared processing might violate data isolation requirements. Understanding this helps you assess whether additional safeguards are needed or if dedicated AI instances are necessary for your security posture.

Many assume cloud-based means shared, but some enterprise AI services offer dedicated instances. Conversely, vendors might claim 'private processing' while using shared AI APIs in the background. Companies often don't ask about data segregation methods or whether their data could influence models used by others.