Lesson 5 of 5 · about 5 min

Using AI responsibly at work

When you finish, you can read a workplace AI policy, know what never to paste into a chatbot, and disclose AI use sensibly.

Stuck? Ask the AI tutor

Start with the rules you already have

Many workplaces now have a policy about AI tools. It may list approved tools, banned uses and types of data you must protect. If you are not sure whether there is one, ask your manager or look in the staff handbook. Asking is a sign of good judgment, not weakness.

If there is no policy, use the rules you already follow for email and files. If you would not post it on a public board, do not paste it into a public chatbot. Your employer’s rules and the law where you work come first.

What never to paste

Be careful with anything that identifies a person or is confidential: customer records, employee files, health details, passwords, contracts, unreleased plans and anything under a non-disclosure agreement. Many consumer tools may store or review what you type, depending on settings and plan.

A safe habit is to remove names and details before you paste. Instead of “Maria Santos at Acme owes 4,500,” write “a client owes a late payment.” Better still, use a tool your employer has approved for that kind of information, since business versions often have different data protections.

Accuracy and ownership

AI can sound confident and still be wrong. It may invent a source, misstate a policy or get a date wrong. Anything with your name on it is your responsibility, so read, check and correct before you send.

Be open about your use where it matters. Some employers, schools and clients expect you to say when AI helped. A simple line works: “I used an AI tool to help draft this and I reviewed it.” When rules are unclear, ask. Also remember that the tool does not replace the judgment of the person who knows the people involved.

Worked example: a tempting shortcut

Imagine a coworker in Toronto wants to paste an entire customer complaint, with the customer’s name, address and account history, into a free chatbot to get a quick reply. It would be fast, but it shares personal data with a tool the company has not approved.

A better path: remove the identifying details, paste only the complaint’s main issue, draft a reply, then add the real name and details back in your own system. Or ask whether an approved tool exists. The shortcut was not worth the risk, and the safer way took only a minute longer.

Practice now

  1. Find your workplace or school AI policy, or ask a manager if one exists. Write down three rules that apply to your daily tasks in your own words.
  2. Take a real work message that contains names or numbers. Practice rewriting it with identifying details removed so it would be safe to paste, and note what the AI would still need to help you.

Use any AI assistant you have. Do not paste private, client or patient information into it.

Check yourself

1. If your workplace has no AI policy, what is a sensible rule?

2. Which is the safest way to get help with a customer complaint?

3. Who is responsible for the accuracy of a message you send?

Ask the AI tutor

Ask anything about this lesson, in any language. The tutor is an AI: it can be wrong, and it never needs your personal details.

Take the final exam

AI-drafted. Checked by an automated validator and a separate AI reviewer; a person has not read every lesson. Translations and tutor answers are AI-made. Found a mistake? Tell us. AI can be wrong. General information only, not professional advice. Not affiliated with any AI company named. Current University is not accredited.