One of the breaking news today that the Italian data protection authority (Garante) has decided to block the use of ChatGPT and the related data processing activities in Italy with immediate effect. In connection with the use of ChatGPT, the star of artificial intelligence (AI) developments in recent months, several concerns have already been expressed, and a data breach concerning ChatGPT users has recently become known (the incident was also referred to by Garante in the press release issued in connection with the suspension of ChatGPT´s use).
The ban of ChatGPT in Italy came after the publication of an open letter calling for a moratorium on the developments of AI systems more advanced than GPT4 for at least 6 months until risks associated with such AI systems could be assessed and risk mitigation measures could be implemented. In the United States, there have also been reports of a complaint filed with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which also raises the possibility of suspending the releases of new versions of large language models.
Today, Garante has decided that OpenAI must immediately suspend data processing via its ChatGPT app for Italian data subjects until the conditions for lawful data processing are established. At the same time, Garante launched an investigation into data processing related to ChatGPT.