Check 1
Match each workplace situation with the data responsibility it most directly involves.
Privacy, confidentiality, and security are related but describe different responsibilities.
Lesson 5: Shield: What NOT to Share with AI
Step 5.11 of 6
Step 5.1 · Start here
AI can help with school and workplace tasks, but each use involves a choice about . A tool may collect, use, save, keep, review, share, or train on information. What happens depends on the tool, account, settings, contract, and workplace rules.
This lesson is about keeping information safe. You will learn about , , , ownership, permission, and removing personal details. You will track what happens to from the time it is collected until it is deleted. Then you will use the Scanner to check an AI task. You will choose a safe way to use AI or complete the task without it.
💡 Big Question and Core Rule
Big Question: How can people preserve the useful purpose of an AI task while protecting information throughout its lifecycle?
Main Rule: Use only the information you need. Make sure you have permission and follow the approved steps. An approved tool does not mean you may enter every detail.
🧠 Memory Phrase: When in doubt, leave it out.
🛡️ Use the Responsible AI Routine
Use this pathway whenever AI may support a task.
When to use this routine
Use it before AI supports a school, workplace, or personal task, especially when information, safety, fairness, or other people may be affected.
Your next move
Study the five steps in the image. Choose one step you think is easiest to forget and explain why it matters.
Goal → Protect → Use → Check → Own
- Goal: What useful study, work, or communication goal should be accomplished?
- Protect: What personal, confidential, sensitive, or proprietary must be protected or left out?
- Use: Is the tool, account type, and process officially approved for this level of information?
- Check: Have names and other identifying details been removed? Is the information protected from start to finish?
- Own: Who has final responsibility for approving, sharing, or removing the ?
🎯 Learning Goals
By the end of this lesson, students can:
- Explain how , , and are different.
- Explain why permission, fewer identifying details, and less can lower risk.
- Explain what happens when information is collected, used, saved, kept, reviewed, shared, used for training, or deleted.
- Find details that could identify someone, decide who owns the , and check whether the planned use has permission.
- Use the five-part Scanner to rate an idea as Clear, Warning, or Stop. Suggest a safety step or a way to do the task without AI.
- Explain why an approved tool or setting is not enough by itself. People must still use only the they need and get approval from a responsible person.
✅ You will show success by: identifying the task and proposed use; distinguishing , , and concerns; tracing the lifecycle; evaluating ; recommending a safeguard that preserves useful output; and identifying the responsible human decision-maker.
⏱️ Pacing at a Glance
| Lesson Step | Time |
|---|---|
| 5.2 Connect & Learn: What Information Is Safe to Share with AI? | 9 minutes |
| 5.3 Learn: Follow the Lifecycle | 6 minutes |
| 5.4 Learn: Use Approved Controls and Safeguards | 6 minutes |
| 5.5 Apply Your Learning: Scanner | 16 minutes |
| 5.6 Show What You Know: AI and Protection | 13 minutes |
| Total | 50 minutes |
📚 Key Words to Know
& Access Governance
: Information that is created, collected, processed, stored, kept, reviewed, shared, or deleted when technology is used.
: Proper control over how personal information is collected, used, shared, and kept.
: A duty to limit access to information because of school, workplace, contract, legal, or professional rules.
: Protection against unauthorized access, loss, alteration, or misuse of information and systems.
: Official permission from the person or organization that controls the information and how it may be used.
Safeguards & Minimization
: Direct identifiers name a person/account directly. Indirect identifiers are details that reveal identity when combined (e.g., unique condition, exact date, title, location).
: Removing or changing details that could identify someone. Removing only a name may not protect the person or grant permission to use the info.
: Using only the smallest amount of information needed for an approved purpose.
Step 5.2 · Learn and check
Connect & Learn: What Information Is Safe to Share with AI?
Estimated time: 9 minutes
Responsible AI Routine: Goal → Protect → Use → Check → Own
Read this scenario:
A student wants AI to help write a workplace message. They paste in a real person's name, contact details, account information, and problem. The student thinks that more details will create a better answer.
Reflect to yourself:
- What information creates a or concern?
- Could the student get the same type of help without using the real details?
- What rule from your program, another class, a job, or everyday technology use already applies to this situation?
Key takeaway: More detail may improve an AI answer, but having access does not mean you have permission to share. Private details are not always useful. Keep the goal, use only the information you need, and follow the approved steps.
Learn: What Should I Share with AI? (5 minutes)
▶️ Your next move: Watch for one type of information that should not be entered into an AI tool.
📖 Your next move: Continue with the short reading and examples below.
Watch for examples of information that is generally safe, unsafe, or dependent on context.
Some information is general and does not identify a person. A broad interest, grade level, public fact, or fictional practice example may be safe when it does not reveal someone’s identity. Names, addresses, account numbers, photos, and voice recordings are direct identifiers. Other details, such as an exact date, rare condition, job title, location, or project name, may reveal a person when combined.
Information may belong to other people or organizations. Do not share a classmate’s photo, a customer record, an employer document, or someone else’s creative work just because you can access it. Access does not mean ownership or permission. Policies, contracts, and professional rules still apply.
A useful first decision is:
- Clear — The request uses an approved tool and only allowed, public, fictional, general, or minimum-needed information.
- Warning — The task may be safe after all identifying details are removed. Do not include protected records, passwords, private work, or restricted material.
- Stop — The request needs protected records, passwords, evidence, trade secrets, private code, confidential client work, or other restricted information without permission. Also stop when tool approval or user permission is unknown. Ask a qualified person before continuing.
Source Foundation
Questions can be found here:
Last Updated: August 4, 2026
Responsible AI Routine reminder: Goal → Protect → Use → Check → Own
For this step, focus on Protect: confirm permission and use only the information the task requires.
Check 2
A student can open an employer document. Does that access authorize uploading it to an AI tool?
Access to information does not automatically authorize disclosure or reuse in an AI tool.
Check 3
Categorize each proposed AI use as Clear, Warning, or Stop. Consider both the tool and the information being entered.
Clear uses follow approved rules. Warning requires guidance. Stop uses involve information that should not enter the proposed tool.
Step 5.3 · Learn and check
Learn: What Happens to Entered into AI
Estimated time: 6 minutes
Responsible AI Routine: Goal → Protect → Use → Check → Own
▶️ Your next move: Watch for what may happen to information after it enters an AI tool.
📖 Your next move: Continue with the short reading and examples below.
Watch what happens to at each step. may be entered, used, saved, kept, reviewed, or shared. A company may also use it to train or improve a product. At the end, the may be deleted, or a person may ask for it to be deleted.
Entering information is only the first choice. Follow the through each step: enter, use, save, keep, review or share, and delete. A company might also use the to train or improve a product.
Processing means the service studies the text, image, file, or recording you submit to create a result. Storage and retention describe where the information is kept and for how long. Employees, contractors, connected services, or organization leaders may review or receive it. Deleting a visible chat does not prove that saved or backup copies are gone.
Some services may use information for safety checks, product improvement, or model training. Approved school or workplace accounts may have different contract protections. The rules depend on the tool, account, settings, organization, contract, and policy. Do not assume every AI service handles the same way.
A safe workplace habit is to assume that information entered into a public or unapproved AI tool could leave the workplace. Do not rely only on a delete button, a promise from the chatbot, or removing a last name.
Source Foundation
Last Updated: August 4, 2026
Check 1
A career center uses an approved system to manage a student's appointment request. Put the information-handling actions in responsible lifecycle order.
Choose the steps in order, from first to last.
Information moves from collection through processing, storage, possible sharing or reuse, and deletion.
Check 2
Why might a deleted AI chat still exist?
Backups or retained copies may remain according to the provider’s policy or contract.
Check 3
Which details could combine to identify a person even after the name is removed? Choose all correct answers.
Exact dates, rare conditions, and specific workplace details can combine to reveal identity.
Step 5.4 · Learn and check
Learn: Control Your and Reduce Risks
Estimated time: 6 minutes
Responsible AI Routine: Goal → Protect → Use → Check → Own
▶️ Your next move: Watch for one action that can reduce a risk.
📖 Your next move: Continue with the short reading and examples below.
Watch for strategies involving controls, account management, and policies.
People cannot control every choice a technology company makes, but they can reduce risk.
controls may let you turn off access to your location, camera, microphone, history, or files. They may also limit how a company uses your . Protect your account with a strong password and two-step verification. Sign out of shared devices, keep track of your accounts, and delete accounts you no longer use.
policies explain what a tool says it collects, stores, shares, sells, or uses for training. They may explain how to request deletion, download your , opt out, or contact the company. School and workplace rules may be stricter than the tool’s public policy.
Settings do not make unsafe information safe. Private or temporary modes may save less history, but you must still use only the minimum needed , confirm permission, and follow the approved process. An approved tool is not permission to upload every record, file, or detail you can access.
Source Foundation
Last Updated: August 4, 2026
Check 1
What does it mean when an AI tool is approved by a school or employer?
Approval creates a controlled pathway for specific purposes and information.
Check 2
Which actions demonstrate data minimization? Choose all correct answers.
Data minimization limits information to what the approved task actually requires.
Check 3
A student does not know whether a tool is approved or whether information may be disclosed. What should happen?
Unclear authorization or tool approval requires a pause and qualified guidance.
Step 5.5 · Practical application
Apply Your Learning: Scanner
Lesson 5 — Practical Application
Estimated Time: 15–20 minutes
What you will do: Review one fictional workplace scenario and make a safer information-sharing plan.
What you need: The worksheet and the scenario for your program.
What you will submit: One completed Privacy Scanner worksheet.
Start here: Make a worksheet copy, find your program, and write the program name in Step 1.
Learning Objectives
- Identify the specific scenario for your program.
- Work through the five Privacy Scanner evaluation steps in order.
- Formulate a safer AI request or determine a safe non-AI alternative.
- Save your completed worksheet and submit it to your course.
⚠️ Critical Thinking Check
Do not enter real private, restricted, or identifying information into an AI tool while completing this activity.
📖 Privacy Scanner Quick Guide (Click to expand)
| Category | Guidance |
|---|---|
| Rating | CLEAR: Safe as planned | WARNING: Pause and check | STOP: Do not enter the information |
| Information | Look for names, contact details, records, images, passwords, private work, or other clues that reveal a person or workplace. |
| Permission | Ask who owns or controls the information and whether its use is allowed. |
| AI Tool | Check whether the tool may store, review, share, or reuse what is entered. |
📋 Program Scenarios (Click to locate your program)
Locate your program below. Keep this page open while you work and write only the program name in Step 1 of your worksheet. You do not need to copy the full scenario.
| Program | Fictional Workplace Scenario |
|---|---|
| Agriscience – Veterinary Medicine | A student wants a public AI chatbot to write a pet-owner follow-up. The plan includes the owner’s name, phone number, payment record, the pet’s health history, and clinic notes. |
| Automotive – Medium Heavy Diesel | A student wants a public AI tool to explain a repair. The plan includes the customer’s name, phone number, vehicle number, payment record, and the shop’s full work order. |
| Aviation | A student wants a public AI tool to review a maintenance concern. The plan includes an aircraft number, owner name, location, and private maintenance records. |
| Computer Science | A student wants a public AI chatbot to fix an app error. The plan includes private source code, a working access key, customer email addresses, and a full employer error log. |
| Construction Trades | A student wants a public AI tool to suggest job-site storage ideas. The photo shows a worker’s name badge, street address, and building door code. |
| Cosmetology | A student wants a public AI tool to make a salon post. The plan includes a client’s photos, name, phone number, skin notes, and payment history without the client’s permission. |
| Culinary | A student wants a public AI tool to organize a customer menu. The plan includes the customer’s name, allergy records, signed contract, payment details, and a private restaurant recipe. |
| Education | A student wants a public AI chatbot to suggest reading support. The plan includes a child’s name, grades, behavior notes, disability plan, and private family messages. |
| Forensic Science | A student wants a public AI tool to summarize an active case. The plan includes names, addresses, witness statements, evidence photos, and notes that have not been released. |
| Health Science – Medical Careers | A student wants a public AI chatbot to create care instructions. The plan includes a patient’s name, birth date, medicine list, test results, insurance number, and chart notes. |
| Marketing – Graphic Design | A student wants a public AI tool to improve an unreleased flyer. The plan includes a private price, a product launch date, and company material that is not approved for outside AI use. |
| Mechatronics | A student wants a public AI tool to solve a machine problem. The plan includes private machine drawings, control settings, a network address, and a work-site password. |
| Public Safety | A student wants a public AI chatbot to summarize an incident report. The plan includes a victim’s name, address, medical details, witness notes, and the location of secured evidence. |
| US Army JROTC | A cadet wants a public AI tool to organize a trip plan. The plan includes cadet phone numbers, health needs, emergency contacts, and exact travel times. |
| Welding | A student wants a public AI tool to suggest changes to a job. The plan includes a customer’s name, the company’s private price, and an unreleased blueprint. |
Student Action Steps
Step 1: Open Worksheet Template
Make a copy of the Lesson 5.5 AI Privacy Scanner Student Guide.
Step 2: Choose Your Program Scenario
Find your program in the table above. Keep this page open and write the program name in Step 1 of the worksheet.
Step 3: Complete Worksheet Steps 1–5
Complete every part of the document. Find the risks and write a safer choice.
Step 4: Save & Submit
Submit your completed worksheet to your course.
Step 5.6 · Lesson assessment
Show What You Know: AI and Protection
Your place in this lesson is saved automatically on this device.