AI privacy concerns: How to opt out of the Big Tech data harvest

Your internet activity is the lifeblood of AI, and that can feel scary. Can you opt out of the AI data harvest? Well, you can’t slam the door shut, but you can tighten the latch. We’ll guide you through it.

Products you’ve used daily for years without ever paying a dime—Google, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, TikTok, Reddit—feel like no-strings-attached freebies. But you’ve always paid with your data. And you’ve agreed to it, even though the agreement might have been buried deep in a 50-page Terms of Service. 

As ex-Google design ethicist Tristan Harris puts it, “If you’re not paying for the product, you are the product.” In other words, all that “free” browsing isn’t actually free; your personal information foots the bill. By contrast, some online services—often the ones you pay for—offer a clearer exchange, using your data strictly to deliver the product rather than turning it into currency

A new wave of AI privacy concerns

Whether we like it or not, the convenience-for-data trade-off is the house rule in our age of endless connectivity. That has spurred a new wave of AI privacy concerns. Last fall, a social-media flurry took hold, with users attempting to ward off data-hungry algorithms by posting disclaimers: “I do not give Meta or anyone else permission to use any of my personal data, profile information or photos,” and “Goodbye Meta AI.”

But as legal experts will tell you, posting a disclaimer on social media rarely changes what Big Tech can do with your data. The good news is that new AI data collection regulations and AI privacy controls are emerging, and many major apps now offer some—partial yet beneficial—controls for AI privacy.

A step-by-step guide to AI privacy in Big Tech apps

Managing your AI privacy in Big Tech apps is less about total anonymity and more about minimizing what’s up for grabs. Still, no matter how diligent you are, using these apps—and the internet at large—inevitably feeds into AI data collection of some sort.

Taking control of your AI privacy is not a one-click magic button but a series of steps, and here we’ll guide you through them. However, exact settings and instructions for AI privacy can change over time and sometimes vary by region. Most of these controls won’t explicitly say “AI privacy settings”, but that is fundamentally what they are: ways for you to control what their algorithms gather about you.

Meta

Google

TikTok

How to take control of your AI privacy with Google (and Youtube)

Ad Personalization

• Navigate to Google’s Ad Settings.

• Turn off Ad Personalization or uncheck any interest categories.

• This prevents Google from using your browsing habits to tailor ads.

Location History

• Visit Google Account > Data & Privacy > Location History.

• Disable Location History.

• Clear past location data if you wish to remove old footprints.

Activity Controls

• Go to My Activity.

• Review Web & App Activity, YouTube History, and Voice & Audio Activity.

• Pause or delete them if you prefer not to let Google store your usage patterns.

How to take control of your AI privacy with Facebook (and Instagram)

Privacy checkup

• Facebook’s Privacy Checkup tool walks you through who can see your posts, how to control ads, and which apps have permissions.

• On Instagram, set your account to Private in the settings, limiting who can view your content.

Off-Facebook activity

• In Facebook’s Settings, find Your Facebook Information > Off-Facebook Activity.

• You can manage or clear data that external apps and websites share with Facebook about your visits.

Ad preferences

• Both Facebook and Instagram let you adjust Ad Preferences.

• Remove interest categories or disallow advertisers from using your personal data for targeted campaigns.

How to take control of your AI privacy with TikTok

Personalized ads

• In the TikTok app, go to Settings & Privacy > Privacy > Personalization and Data.

• Toggle off “Use of Off-TikTok Activity” if available (this option may differ by region).

Disable contacts & sync

• Under Settings & Privacy > Privacy, you can prevent TikTok from automatically accessing your contacts or Facebook friends.

• This reduces how much personal network data TikTok collects.

Limit In-app data usage

• Look for the Data Saver option in Settings.

• While primarily for bandwidth, some in-app data collection features might be curtailed when Data Saver is active.

How to take control of your AI privacy with Reddit

Personalization settings

• Log in to Reddit on a browser, then go to User Settings > Safety & Privacy.

• Uncheck options under Personalization & Data such as “Use data to personalize ads” or “Use data from partners.”

Profile visibility

• If you prefer more anonymity, consider using a handle unlinked to your real-world identity.

• In User Settings, check your profile preferences to ensure minimal personal info is on display.

Third-party app access

• Under User Settings > Safety & Privacy or Apps & Sessions, remove or limit access to third-party apps you no longer use.

What these settings mean for your AI privacy 

Tweaking these settings—like turning off location tracking, limiting targeted ads, and controlling your search or watch history—allows you to curb how much personal data the AI of these major apps can access and compile about you. Think of it as moving the slider from “give me everything” to a more measured “only what’s necessary.”

Still, these steps won’t entirely block AI data collection. Apps and websites can still glean insights from your device usage, IP address, and approximate location, along with any lingering cookies or basic metadata they capture during normal operation. 

There are, however, additional measures beyond in-app settings that you can take to further reduce AI’s access to your data.

How to add another layer of privacy 

Beyond toggling AI privacy settings in each app, there are a few extra steps you can take to keep your digital life more private. Here are some steps you might want to consider:

• Tighten device privacy settings: One of the most direct ways to limit AI’s reach is by reviewing each permission on your smartphone or tablet—location, microphone, camera, contacts—and turning off anything nonessential. You can often restrict background activity as well, preventing apps from continuously pinging your location or collecting data while idle.

• Purge old content: Delete outdated tweets, dormant accounts, and other neglected online presences. Each one can expose more of your personal details.

• Leverage legal rights: If you’re in a region with strong data-protection laws (such as the EU’s GDPR), exercise your “right to be forgotten” or file a takedown notice where applicable.

• Keep an eye on emerging tools: New services are popping up to help individuals remove or mask their data from training sets. Stay informed so you can act quickly if more comprehensive options become available.

• Install a VPN: A virtual private network (VPN) encrypts your internet traffic and masks your IP address, making it harder for third parties to track your browsing habits or pinpoint your location.

AI and privacy—a quick note on data brokers

Data brokers don’t just sell personal information to advertisers and researchers—they also feed the vast data pipelines powering many AI algorithms. By gathering records from public databases, online tracking, and commercial sources, these companies package and sell the kind of detailed user profiles that AI models thrive on. Removing your information from these brokers is often a tedious process, but it ultimately reduces how many third parties—and in turn, their AI systems—can access your data.

How to remove your data from data brokers:

• Identify major brokers: Compile a list of known data brokers—popular examples include Whitepages, Spokeo, and Acxiom.

• Visit opt-out pages: Many broker sites have dedicated “Opt-Out” or “Privacy” links, though they’re often buried in the fine print.

• Fill out forms carefully: Provide only the information needed to confirm and remove your records and avoid oversharing.

• Use automated tools: Services like DeleteMe or Incogni can handle multiple removal requests on your behalf, though they may charge a fee.

• Check back periodically: Data can reappear, so revisit these sites periodically or set a reminder to ensure your info stays off the market.

Why you might want to allow AI data collection

AI-driven tools wouldn’t have evolved into the near-indispensable services we know today without the immense trove of user data gleaned from the internet. Allowing AI to learn your preferences means hyper-personalized recommendations—music, shows, or products that match your tastes. It also enables effortless convenience, from auto-filling forms to suggesting calendar reminders. Continuous data collection helps rapidly fix bugs and adapt to your accent or device habits. 

Data is the new oil. It’s valuable, but if unrefined, it cannot really be used

AI has also fueled breakthroughs in areas like healthcare, climate modeling, and disaster response, translating massive data streams into life-saving interventions. So while tuning your settings to guard your privacy may be wise, remember that your data also fuels innovations that serve the greater good.

FAQs about AI Privacy

How does AI get its information?

AI learns by processing large collections of data—text, images, audio, and more—to identify patterns and make predictions. This typically happens during a “training phase,” where developers feed the model example after example until it can recognize similarities on its own. The key idea is that the more varied and abundant the data, the more robust the AI’s understanding becomes.

Where does AI get its information from?

Sources can range from public websites (like news outlets or social media platforms) to specialized databases (medical records, climate data) and commercial partnerships (paid datasets from marketing firms or academic institutions). Often, the data is publicly accessible, or users have consented to its use—knowingly or not—through terms of service agreements. Even personal content may end up in the mix if it’s shared online without restrictive privacy settings.

How does AI collect data?

AI data collection methods include web scraping, where automated tools scan and copy information from websites, and API-based data feeds, which allow developers to pull large amounts of data under specific agreements. In addition, partnerships and licensing deals provide vetted or specialized datasets—like health imagery for medical AI. Many apps also gather user data via permissions and consent forms: when you click “I Agree,” you’re often granting access to certain types of information, which can find its way into AI models down the line.

What data does AI collect?

The exact data collected depends on the type of AI and its purpose. In general, AI can collect anything from text, images, and video to more personal details like browsing history, location data, and user preferences. Some AI tools also handle specialized data, such as medical records or financial transactions, when properly licensed or authorized.

Does AI steal information?

In most cases, AI systems access data lawfully—either because it’s publicly available or because users have given consent (often by accepting a site or app’s terms of service). However, some critics argue that the lack of transparency and the sheer volume of data collected can feel like a breach of privacy, even if it doesn’t meet the legal definition of “theft.” Whether it’s considered ethical depends on local laws, regulations, and personal views on data usage.