About Copilot

Generative AI models learn from the patterns and structures of their inputs (or prompts) to generate new data. Copilot is UTSA's only approved AI chat solution because it comes with a degree of built-in data protection. When you are logged in with your UTSA credentials, Copilot does not save prompts or answers, nor use them to train AI models. 

When you use Copilot, be sure you see the Green "Protected" symbol on your browser. If you don't see this symbol, your data could be used to train AI engines.

Note: Using non-approved AI web services like free or paid versions of ChatGPT, Claude, Google Gemini, etc. can put institutional data at risk.

In addition to making sure you have the Green "Protected" status when using Copilot, please be mindful about the type of data you include in your prompts. Never supply high-risk or private information, like Personally Identiable Information (PII).

Enterprise data protection for prompts and responses

Use of Microsoft 365 Copilot and Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat involves prompts (entered by users) and responses (content generated by Copilot). With EDP, prompts and responses are protected by the same contractual terms and commitments widely trusted by our customers for their emails in Exchange and their files in SharePoint.

• We secure your data: We help protect your data with encryption at rest and in transit, rigorous physical security controls, and data isolation between tenants.
• Your data is private: We won’t use your data except as you instruct. Our commitments to privacy include support for the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the EU Data Boundary[3], ISO/IEC 27018, and our Data Protection Addendum.
• Your access controls and policies apply to Copilot: Copilot respects your identity model and permissions, inherits your sensitivity labels, applies your retention policies, supports audit of interactions, and follows your administrative settings. The specific controls and policies will vary depending on the underlying subscription plan.
• You're protected against AI security and copyright risks: We help safeguard against AI-focused risks such as harmful content and prompt injections. For content copyright concerns, we provide protected material detection and our Customer Copyright Commitment.
• Your data isn’t used to train foundation models: Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat uses the user’s context to create relevant responses. Microsoft 365 Copilot also uses Microsoft Graph data. Consistent with our other Copilot offers, the prompts, responses, and data accessed through Microsoft Graph aren't used to train foundation models.

• • UTSA Data Classifications/Acceptable Use Policy

1. At present, any use of ChatGPT or similar AI Tools cannot use any personal, confidential, proprietary, or otherwise sensitive information unless a university contract is in place that explicitly protects such university data from being used by training models or otherwise isolates university data into a separate instance that is not accessible by parties external to the university. Student, health information, proprietary information, and any other information classified as Confidential or Controlled University Data must not be used with AI Tools.
2. Similarly, ChatGPT or similar AI Tools must not be used to generate output that would be considered non-public. Examples include, but are not limited to, generating proprietary or unpublished research, providing legal analysis or advice, making recruitment, personnel, or disciplinary decisions, completing academic work in a manner not permitted by the instructor, creating non-public instructional materials, and grading.

Copilot aims to base its responses on reliable sources, but AI can make mistakes, and third-party content on the internet may not always be accurate or reliable. Copilot (or any AI tool) will sometimes misrepresent the information it finds. 

Always check the sources before making decisions or taking actions based on Copilot's responses.

Copilot does not replace human judgment.

Using AI to generate content without citing the tool is cheating or plagiarism. Moreover, AI has occasionally been known to make up sources that don't exist (also called hallucination). Be sure you are only using AI as a creative tool to get you thinking or drafting, rather than presenting the work as your own. And again, always check your sources.