ChatGPT can now lock your chats, but it's not a safe

OpenAI has added a "Locked Chats" feature to ChatGPT. You can protect chosen conversations with a four-digit PIN, or with Face ID or Touch ID on supported devices. Locked chats sit in their own section, away from your normal history and search results, and they get their own separate memory so details don't leak into your other chats.

It's available on most plans, from Free through to Business and Enterprise, and began rolling out on Tuesday, so it may take a little while to appear for everyone.

The catch is what it doesn't do. OpenAI says locking is not encryption, doesn't change how long a chat is kept, and doesn't alter whether your conversations can be used to improve its models. It also doesn't erase anything ChatGPT had already remembered. Group chats, archived chats and chats with scheduled tasks can't be locked. And if you reset your PIN, everything in your locked chats is permanently deleted.

The feature is aimed at moments when someone else might see your screen, such as handing your phone to a friend or leaving a laptop open in a shared office.

What this means for your business

Locked Chats is a handy privacy screen, but it isn't a safe, so customer details and confidential figures still don't belong in ChatGPT. If you or your staff use it, check the data settings and agree a simple rule about what can and can't be pasted in.