We took ChatGPT offline earlier this week as a result of a bug in an open-source library which allowed some customers to see titles from one other energetic person’s chat historical past. It’s additionally potential that the primary message of a newly-created dialog was seen in another person’s chat historical past if each customers have been energetic across the similar time.
The bug is now patched. We have been in a position to restore each the ChatGPT service and, later, its chat historical past characteristic, apart from just a few hours of historical past. As promised, we’re publishing extra technical particulars of this downside under.
Upon deeper investigation, we additionally found that the identical bug might have prompted the unintentional visibility of payment-related info of 1.2% of the ChatGPT Plus subscribers who have been energetic throughout a selected nine-hour window. Within the hours earlier than we took ChatGPT offline on Monday, it was potential for some customers to see one other energetic person’s first and final identify, electronic mail tackle, fee tackle, bank card sort and the final 4 digits (solely) of a bank card quantity, and bank card expiration date. Full bank card numbers weren’t uncovered at any time.
We consider the variety of customers whose information was truly revealed to another person is extraordinarily low. To entry this info, a ChatGPT Plus subscriber would have wanted to do one of many following:
- Open a subscription affirmation electronic mail despatched on Monday, March 20, between 1 a.m. and 10 a.m. Pacific time. Because of the bug, some subscription affirmation emails generated throughout that window have been despatched to the fallacious customers. These emails contained the bank card sort and final 4 digits of one other person’s bank card quantity, however full bank card numbers didn’t seem. It’s potential {that a} small variety of subscription affirmation emails may need been incorrectly addressed previous to March 20, though we’ve got not confirmed any cases of this.
- In ChatGPT, click on on “My account,” then “Handle my subscription” between 1 a.m. and 10 a.m. Pacific time on Monday, March 20. Throughout this window, one other energetic ChatGPT Plus person’s first and final identify, electronic mail tackle, fee tackle, the bank card sort and final 4 digits (solely) of a bank card quantity, and bank card expiration date may need been seen. It’s potential that this additionally may have occurred previous to March 20, though we’ve got not confirmed any cases of this.
We’ve got reached out to inform affected customers that their fee info might have been uncovered. We’re assured that there isn’t any ongoing threat to customers’ information.
Everybody at OpenAI is dedicated to defending our customers’ privateness and preserving their information secure. It’s a duty we take extremely severely. Sadly, this week we fell in need of that dedication, and of our customers’ expectations. We apologize once more to our customers and to your complete ChatGPT group and can work diligently to rebuild belief.
