ChatGPT at work: risks, rules and secure alternatives
ChatGPT is already used daily in many companies across the DACH region – frequently without IT's knowledge and through private accounts. The productivity potential is real, and so are the risks: confidential data in someone else's systems, no control, no traceability.
The answer isn't a ban but a secure, centrally managed alternative. This article puts the risks in context and shows what matters when choosing one.
What happens to what you type into ChatGPT?
In consumer versions of AI chatbots, inputs can – depending on the settings – be used to improve the models. Processing also typically takes place on servers in the USA. That may be acceptable for private use; for customer data, contracts or personnel files it is not.
Business versions offer better contractual terms, but they resolve neither the question of where data sits nor that of central control over all users and models.
The typical risks in everyday work
Three risk areas come up again and again in practice:
- Data leakage: customer and business data ends up in third-party systems by copy and paste – a breach of the GDPR, the revFADP, contracts or professional secrecy
- Hallucinations: language models write convincingly but not always correctly – adopting output unchecked is risky
- Missing governance: without central administration there are no roles, no audit logs and no overview of who does what with which data
Why a ban doesn't work
Blocking AI tools across the board simply moves usage onto private devices and accounts – shadow AI grows, control shrinks. The productivity gains are lost, the risk stays. What works better is an official offering at least as good as the forbidden one: the same models, better terms.
What a secure ChatGPT alternative has to offer
An enterprise solution should meet these criteria:
- Access to every leading model (GPT, Claude, Gemini, Mistral) instead of dependence on a single provider
- Hosting and data residency in the EU or Switzerland
- Contractually assured: no training on company data
- Central administration with roles, SSO and audit logs
- A data processing agreement (DPA) for the GDPR and the revFADP
Frequently asked questions
May employees use ChatGPT for work?
That's for the company to decide. Without a rule, a grey area emerges along with real data protection risks. The recommended approach is an AI policy plus an official, secure tool – then there's no reason to use private accounts.
Isn't ChatGPT Enterprise secure enough?
Enterprise versions offer considerably better contractual terms, such as no training on your inputs. What remains open is the data location outside the EU and Switzerland, and being tied to a single model provider.
What does a secure AI platform cost?
Pricing models are usually based on the number of users and the feature set. What counts is the comparison: working time saved per employee against licence costs – and the cost of a data protection incident avoided.
Related reading
Bring AI into your company securely.
Try Vidimas with your team – and see how quickly secure AI becomes productive.
- Try it with the whole team
- Set up in minutes
- Productive from day one