Hong Kong privacy watchdog flags ‘concerns’ over LinkedIn’s default use of data for GenAI

“LinkedIn’s privacy policy update has raised concerns of data protection authorities in other jurisdictions,” said the watchdog in a statement, noting the update allowed LinkedIn to automatically use the data and content of users to train its generative AI models for content creation.

“The PCPD is also concerned about whether LinkedIn’s default opt-in setting for using users’ personal data to train generative AI models correctly reflects users’ choices,” the watchdog added.

The privacy watchdog said it had written to LinkedIn to inquire further into the matter.

Generative AI, or GenAI, is a type of artificial intelligence that can be used to produce content such as text or images, with the technology gaining widespread popularity last year following advances in ChatGPT, the software developed by tech company OpenAI.

While it is unclear when LinkedIn introduced the feature, a blog post by the firm’s senior vice president and general counsel Blake Lawit on September 19 stated that the company had added language to clarify how the company would use users’ information to develop the products and services of LinkedIn and its affiliates, which included “training AI models used for content generation (“generative AI”)”.