People should avoid using ChatGPT as a “friend” for conversation or a counseling tool, due to risk of breaching their personal privacy, an academic has said.
People have been using ChatGPT to help gather information and write articles, but some have been treating it as a confidant or counselor to help resolve personal issues, said National Changhua University of Education professor Wang Chih-hung (王智弘), who specializes in cybercounseling, group guidance and counseling ethics.
People should not disclose their identity when using the chatbot to avoid their personal information being used by machine learning algorithms, Wang said.
Photo: Reuters
The artificial intelligence (AI) technology is not mature enough to allow the use of ChatGPT in psychotherapy or counseling, he said, urging people with mental health issues to seek help from a psychiatrist or therapist.
“Some people who are going through a stressful time might not want to share their problems with family or friends, and instead seek help from ChatGPT or another AI tool,” Wang added.
ChatGPT is currently free to use by the public and any data entered to the chatbot would be compiled for machine learning, Wang said.
If someone enters their real name into the chatbot, it is not certain when, where and how those data would be utilized, he added.
“ChatGPT is a new technology, whose AI database and parameters are still incomplete. It is a tool, and not an expert to provide advice or counseling to people. It could mislead people into making poor decisions,” Wang said.
“People must use their own judgement and ignore any misguided advice provided by the chatbot,” he added.
Another issue is cultural differences, Wang said.
ChatGPT was developed in the West, where cultural norms are different to those in the East, and it uses an English-language database, he said, adding that, as a result, the chatbot might not “reconcile with the experiences of Taiwanese and the situation they are in.”
“When ChatGPT offers advice, people must consider whether it takes cultural differences into account,” Wang said.
“Many suggestions that can apply to people from the US might not be suitable for Taiwanese,” he said.
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