WHAT GOES INTO AI: A FOUR-LEVEL CHEAT SHEET
From the Stepthrough lesson "Know What Never Goes into AI" (learn.ynteractive.com/modules/ai-data-classification)
Pin this next to every screen. If in doubt, treat it as one level higher.

PUBLIC  - fine in any AI tool
  Website text, brochures, newsletters, job ads, published price lists.

INTERNAL  - approved AI tools only, with training turned off
  Staff memos, office hours, meeting notes, blank templates, internal how-tos.

CONFIDENTIAL  - approved tools only, and swap names and numbers for placeholders first
  Client names and emails, payroll totals, financial statements, contracts,
  proposals, anything you promised a client to keep private.
  Placeholders: [CLIENT] [EMPLOYEE] [OWNER] [BUSINESS] [AMOUNT] [PHONE] [ADDRESS]

RESTRICTED  - never goes into AI, not even to redact it
  Social Security numbers, bank and card numbers, passwords and logins,
  health details, ID scans, tax forms with full numbers (W-9, W-2, 1099).
  Delete these by hand BEFORE you paste anything.

BEFORE YOU PASTE (30 seconds)
  1. What level is the most sensitive thing in here?
  2. Restricted? Delete it by hand first.
  3. Confidential? Use an approved tool, a Temporary chat, and placeholders.
  4. Ask the AI to list every replacement it made, and check the list.
     (In our test, ChatGPT gave two different people the same placeholder.)

PROMPT TO COPY
  Redact this before I use it. Replace every person's name, business name,
  phone number and amount with placeholders like [CLIENT] or [EMPLOYEE].
  Give each person their own placeholder. Show the redacted text, then list
  what you replaced.

YOUR OWN LIST
  Sort your 20 most common documents into the four levels and add them above.
  Who owns this sheet: ______________   Last reviewed: ______________