01 April 2024 – The US government is becoming more cautious about AI. The US government has blocked ChatGPT on government-issued computers and is now prohibiting Microsoft’s Copilot AI because it raises serious security concerns.
Recently, US Congressional staff members have been forbidden from using Microsoft’s Copilot on their government-issued smartphones, according to a report from Axios. House Chief Administrative Officer Catherine Szpindor issued the decision in a letter, citing worries expressed by the Office of Cybersecurity about the possibility that House data will be exposed to unapproved cloud providers. Congress has restricted the use of Copilot on all of its Windows devices, but staff members are still allowed to use it on their phones and computers.
Because of its more stringent privacy safeguards, the prior prohibition permitted the commercial version, ChatGPT Plus, to be used for research and evaluation. Furthermore, the White House recently released laws that describe how government agencies would employ generative AI, emphasizing the need to protect Americans’ rights and safety.
Conclusion
Microsoft addressed the issues raised and said that government users should implement more stringent security procedures. An upgraded version of Microsoft 365’s Copilot assistant and an Azure OpenAI service for classified workloads were among the tools and services the firm had previously said it intended to provide for government usage.
