# Know What Never Goes into AI: a Four-Level Data Cheat Sheet using ChatGPT > Sort office data into Public, Internal, Confidential and Restricted, with one AI rule each. Free hands-on lesson, real ChatGPT redaction and a cheat sheet. Source: https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/what-not-to-put-into-ai-data-classification · Updated 2026-10-15 · Free from Stepthrough (https://learn.ynteractive.com) ## Practice it step by step [Start the free practice](https://learn.ynteractive.com/modules/ai-data-classification) [Take the free module: why it matters, practice and a quick check →](https://learn.ynteractive.com/courses/ai-governance/3) You do every step yourself in a practice copy of ChatGPT. It checks your work as you go, and “Do it for me” finishes any step you get stuck on. Free, about 7 minutes, and nothing touches your real accounts. [Open full screen](https://learn.ynteractive.com/modules/ai-data-classification) Free · Live now · [AI Basics](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/course/ai-basics) · [ChatGPT](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/tool/chatgpt) · ~7 min · 17 steps · Beginner Updated October 15, 2026. Built against the tool’s current screens and checked step by step. [How we check this lesson](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/about#how-we-check) The problem: a new hire pastes a client's payroll file into a [chatbot](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/chatbot), because nobody ever said what can and can't go into AI. In a small office that one paste can mean a breach notice, an unhappy client and hours of cleanup. The fix is a one-page [data classification](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/data-classification) sheet: four levels (Public, Internal, Confidential and Restricted), each with one rule for AI. In this free, hands-on lesson you sort four everyday items for a six-person bookkeeping firm, take a Social Security number out by hand, then have [ChatGPT](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/tool/chatgpt) [redact](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/redaction) a client email in a Temporary chat and catch the mix-up it really made when we tested it. ## At a glance | Question | Answer | | --- | --- | | What you build | Sort office data into Public, Internal, Confidential and Restricted, take the Restricted part out by hand, then have ChatGPT redact a client email and catch the mix-up it makes. | | Tools | ChatGPT | | Time | About 7 minutes, 17 steps in 3 parts | | Level | Beginner, no coding needed | | Cost | Free | | Ways to learn it | [Practice it step by step](https://learn.ynteractive.com/modules/ai-data-classification) | ### The 3 parts, in short 1. Draw the line: Read the four levels, Sort the brochure, Sort the staff memo, Sort the payroll summary, and 1 more step. 2. Restricted comes out by hand: Open ChatGPT, Turn on Temporary chat, Click the message box, Paste the request, and 2 more steps. 3. Check the redaction: Spot the mix-up, Ask for a fix, Tell it what to change, Send it, and 2 more steps. **Start here first:** [Start Here: How Stepthrough Works](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/how-stepthrough-works) (module 1 of AI Basics) **Part of:** [AI at Work: Start Here](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/paths/ai-at-work-start-here) (step 2 of 14). Next up: [ChatGPT: Keep Client Data Safe, Set Up Your Team's Data Controls in 10 Minutes](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/chatgpt-data-controls-protect-client-data) **Part of:** [AI for Accounting & Bookkeeping Firms](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/paths/ai-for-accounting-firms) (step 2 of 24). Next up: [Someone Pasted Client Data into AI: Contain It in One Hour using ChatGPT](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/client-data-pasted-into-chatgpt-what-to-do) ## The data levels sheet This is the sheet the lesson opens on. level is one of four labels, from least to most sensitive. examples lists the kinds of documents that belong at that level. AI rule is the one thing staff need to remember for that level. You sort four items into it during the lesson: a brochure, a staff memo, a client's payroll summary and a client's Social Security number. | level | examples | AI rule | | --- | --- | --- | | Public | Website text, brochures, newsletters, job ads | Fine in any AI tool. | | Internal | Staff memos, office hours, meeting notes, templates | Approved AI tools only, with training turned off. | | Confidential | Client names, payroll totals, financial statements, contracts | Approved tools only, and swap names and numbers for placeholders first. | | Restricted | Social Security numbers, bank and card numbers, passwords, health details | Never goes into AI. Remove it by hand before you paste anything. | [Download the data levels sheet (CSV)](https://learn.ynteractive.com/templates/ai-data-levels.csv) To use it, open Google Sheets and choose File, Import, Upload, then add your own 20 most common documents under the right level. ## The printable cheat sheet The same four levels on one page, plus a 30-second before-you-paste check, the redaction prompt from the lesson and space for your own document list. [Download the four-level cheat sheet (.txt)](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/files/ai-data-classification/ai-data-classification-cheat-sheet.txt) Open it in any text editor, add your own documents, then print it. ## What you need before you start - Nothing for the practice copy in this lesson: it needs no account and sends nothing. - To do it for real: a ChatGPT account (a free one is enough) and a list of the documents your office handles most often. - Your company's AI policy, if it has one. It comes first. ## The four levels, and one AI rule for each Public is anything already on your website or in print: brochures, newsletters, job ads. It's fine in any AI tool. Internal is meant for staff but isn't secret: memos, office hours, meeting notes, templates. Use approved AI tools only, with model training turned off. Confidential is client and business data: client names, payroll totals, financial statements, contracts. It can go into an approved tool only after names and numbers are swapped for placeholders like [CLIENT] or [AMOUNT]. Restricted is the data that does real harm if it leaks: Social Security numbers, bank and card numbers, passwords, health details. It never goes into AI. When someone isn't sure, treat it as one level higher. ## Restricted comes out by hand, not by AI It's tempting to paste an email and ask ChatGPT to "remove anything sensitive". But to redact something, the AI has to receive it first. That's acceptable for Confidential details in an approved tool. It's never acceptable for Restricted ones. In the lesson the client email contains a Social Security number, and you replace it with [REMOVED] yourself before anything is sent. Then you turn on Temporary chat (the dashed circle at the top right of ChatGPT). A temporary chat doesn't appear in your history, doesn't use memory and isn't used to train the models, though OpenAI may keep a copy for up to 30 days for safety. It lowers the risk; it doesn't remove it. ## Check the redaction too: what ChatGPT really did We ran the lesson's request in ChatGPT on October 14, 2026, with made-up data. The redacted email looked clean, but the list of replacements showed a mix-up: Priya, the office manager the email was addressed to, became [CLIENT], and so did Marcus, the client who wrote it. Two people, one placeholder. Anyone reusing that copy later couldn't tell them apart. One short follow-up fixed it: "Priya is me, so keep my name. Give Marcus Hale his own placeholder, [OWNER]." The habit to keep is simple: always ask the AI to list what it replaced, and read the list, not just the clean text. Your result may differ, which is why you check every time. ## Make it your office's sheet Download the sheet above, add your own 20 most common documents under the right level, name an owner, and pin it next to every screen. To set the ChatGPT account controls behind these rules (training, memory, Temporary Chat), see [ChatGPT: Set Up Your Team's Data Controls in 10 Minutes](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/chatgpt-data-controls-protect-client-data). For the habits around a single prompt, start with [Use AI at Work Without Leaking Client Data](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/safe-ai-at-work-what-not-to-paste). The [data classification](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/data-classification) and [PII](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/pii) glossary entries have the short versions to send a colleague. ## How the interactive lesson works Each step is shown in the Watch panel with a short explanation, then you do it yourself in Your turn on a practice copy of a data levels sheet and of ChatGPT. No account is needed and nothing is sent. Every name and number in the example is made up. ## Try it yourself, free Reading the steps is a start. Doing them is how it sticks. The interactive module walks you through every click in a practice copy of ChatGPT, checks each step, and never touches your real accounts. [Start “Know What Never Goes into AI: a Four-Level Data Cheat Sheet using ChatGPT”](https://learn.ynteractive.com/modules/ai-data-classification) ## Step by step: Know What Never Goes into AI: a Four-Level Data Cheat Sheet using ChatGPT All 17 steps of the interactive module, in order. In the module you watch each one, then do it yourself in a practice copy that checks your work. ### 1. Draw the line 1. **Read the four levels.** This is Harbor & Pine’s data levels sheet: four levels, from **Public** to **Restricted**, each with examples and one AI rule. Click the **Restricted** row. You are Priya, office manager at Harbor and Pine Bookkeeping, a six person firm. Last month a new hire pasted a client's whole payroll file into a chatbot, because nobody had told her where the line was. This sheet draws that line. Four levels. Public, Internal, Confidential and Restricted. Each one has examples and one rule for AI. That's the one that never goes into AI. 2. **Sort the brochure.** Your first item is the **services brochure** from your website. Click **Public**. Now sort four things your office handles every week. First, your services brochure. It's already on your website, so anyone can read it. 3. **Sort the staff memo.** Next, the **staff memo** about holiday hours. Click **Internal**. Next, a staff memo about holiday hours. It isn't secret, but it's meant for staff only. 4. **Sort the payroll summary.** Next, a **client’s payroll summary** with names and pay. Click **Confidential**. Next, a client's payroll summary, with names and pay. That's client data. It can go into an approved tool, but only after names and numbers are swapped for placeholders. 5. **Sort the Social Security number.** Last, a **client’s Social Security number** on a W-9. Click **Restricted**. Last, a client's Social Security number on a W-9. Restricted never goes into AI. Not to summarize it, and not even to redact it. You take it out by hand first. ### 2. Restricted comes out by hand 6. **Open ChatGPT.** A client email just came in and you want a clean copy of it. Click the **ChatGPT** tab. Now use the levels on a real job. A client, Marcus at Hale Dental Studio, emailed about payroll. You want a clean copy of it to reuse. 7. **Turn on Temporary chat.** At the top right, click the **Temporary chat** icon (the dashed circle). First, turn on Temporary chat. A temporary chat won't appear in your history, won't use memory, and isn't used to train the models. OpenAI may still keep a copy for up to thirty days for safety. So it lowers the risk. It doesn't remove it. 8. **Click the message box.** Click the **message box**. 9. **Paste the request.** Paste in the request. Don’t send it yet. It asks ChatGPT to swap names, pay and phone numbers for placeholders. Don't send it yet. Read it first. ```text Redact this client email before I use it. Replace every person’s name, business name, phone number, pay rate and number of hours with placeholders like [CLIENT] or [EMPLOYEE]. Show the redacted email, then list what you replaced. Email: "Hi Priya, attached is our March payroll. Can you fix Tasha Greene’s overtime? She worked 6 extra hours at $28 an hour. Her SSN is 000-12-3456 if you need it for the W-2. Call me at (555) 010-4477 if anything looks off. Thanks, Marcus Hale, Hale Dental Studio" ``` 10. **Remove the Social Security number.** The email has a **Social Security number** in it. That’s Restricted. Click it to replace it with **[REMOVED]**. See the Social Security number? That's Restricted. Asking ChatGPT to redact it would mean sending it to ChatGPT. So you take it out yourself, before anything is sent. 11. **Send it.** Click the **send arrow**. Now the rest is Confidential, and placeholders are the rule. Send it. ### 3. Check the redaction 12. **Spot the mix-up.** Read the list of replacements. Two different people got the same placeholder. Click **Priya → [CLIENT]**. This is the answer ChatGPT really gave when we tried it. The email looks clean. But read the list. Priya became client. So did Marcus. Priya is you, not the client, and now two people share one placeholder. Anyone reading it later can't tell them apart. 13. **Ask for a fix.** Click the **message box**. Ask it to fix that. 14. **Tell it what to change.** Paste in the fix. Tell it Priya is you, and give Marcus his own placeholder. ```text Priya is me, so keep my name. Give Marcus Hale his own placeholder, [OWNER], so he isn’t mixed up with anyone else. Show the redacted email again. ``` 15. **Send it.** Click the **send arrow**. Send it. 16. **Read the clean copy.** Priya stays, and Marcus is now **[OWNER]**. Click the new email. Now Priya stays, Marcus is owner, and no name, number or rate is left. This copy is safe to reuse as a template. 17. **Back to your cheat sheet.** Click the **Data levels** tab. Here's your cheat sheet again, with your four items sorted. Download it from the lesson page, add your own twenty most common documents, and pin it next to every screen in the office. When someone isn't sure, the rule is simple. If in doubt, treat it as one level higher. ## Frequently asked questions **What should never be put into ChatGPT at work?** Restricted data: Social Security numbers, bank and card numbers, passwords, health details and ID scans. Delete them by hand before you paste. Client names and amounts (Confidential) should be swapped for placeholders first, and only in a tool your office has approved. **What are the four data classification levels?** Public (fine anywhere), Internal (approved tools with training off), Confidential (approved tools, with placeholders for names and numbers) and Restricted (never goes into AI). Small offices rarely need more than four. **Can I ask ChatGPT to redact sensitive data for me?** For Confidential details in an approved tool, yes, and Temporary chat lowers the risk. For Restricted data, no: to redact it, ChatGPT has to receive it first. Remove those items yourself, then ask ChatGPT to list every replacement it made and check the list. **Is Temporary chat private?** It doesn't appear in your history, doesn't use memory and isn't used for training, but OpenAI says it may keep a copy for up to 30 days for safety. Treat it as lower risk, not zero risk. **What if someone isn't sure which level a document is?** Treat it as one level higher. A payroll summary someone isn't sure about is handled as Restricted until the sheet's owner decides. **Is this lesson free?** Yes. Stepthrough is completely free and the practice copy needs no account. [Start this module free](https://learn.ynteractive.com/modules/ai-data-classification) - Previous in AI Basics: [Roll Out a Team AI Policy in One Afternoon using Claude](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/ai-acceptable-use-policy-claude) - Next in AI Basics: [Someone Pasted Client Data into AI: Contain It in One Hour using ChatGPT](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/client-data-pasted-into-chatgpt-what-to-do) ## More in AI Basics - [Start Here: How Stepthrough Works](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/how-stepthrough-works): Try the practice in under two minutes: watch a step, click, type, get unstuck with Do it for me, and finish. - [AI Agent vs Chatbot vs Automation: One Job Done Three Ways](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/ai-agent-vs-chatbot-vs-automation): Chase six unpaid invoices three ways: a chatbot writes a template, an automation follows a rule, and an AI agent works out the steps and flags the tricky one. - [What Is a Webhook? Send a Test and Watch the Data Arrive](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/what-is-a-webhook): Point a plumber's website contact form at a free webhook tester, send a test and a real message, and watch the data arrive the moment it's sent. - [Use AI at Work Without Leaking Client Data using ChatGPT](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/safe-ai-at-work-what-not-to-paste): Turn off model training, strip a tenant's bank details and address out of a prompt, then catch the two promises ChatGPT made up before the reply goes out. - [Choose the AI Assistant Your Team Should Use, Tested on ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Copilot](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/chatgpt-vs-claude-vs-gemini-vs-copilot-same-task): Give one real office task to ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Microsoft Copilot, check each answer on the facts, and pick the one to use at work. - [ChatGPT: Keep Client Data Safe, Set Up Your Team's Data Controls in 10 Minutes](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/chatgpt-data-controls-protect-client-data): A client asks if their files go into ChatGPT. Answer with confidence: set the data controls, memory, Temporary Chat and shared links, then hand your team a one-page AI… [All 10 modules in AI Basics](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/course/ai-basics) ## More ChatGPT tutorials - [Get On-Brand Social Posts Every Time using a ChatGPT Custom GPT](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/custom-gpt-social-media-assistant): See why generic prompts give generic results, then build a Custom GPT loaded with your brand voice and watch the output transform. - [Prompt Writing 101: Role, Context, Task, Format](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/prompt-writing-101-role-context-task-format): Ask ChatGPT for the same customer email twice, once vaguely and once with a four-part prompt, and see exactly why structure gets a better answer. - [Send a Same-Day Follow-up After Every Discovery Call using ChatGPT](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/chatgpt-discovery-call-follow-up-email-sales): Turn a discovery call transcript into the decisions, the next steps with owners and dates, deal notes for your CRM, and a follow-up email the prospect gets the same… - [Hold Your Price When a Prospect Asks for a Discount using ChatGPT](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/chatgpt-reply-to-discount-request-sales): A prospect wants 30% off and a free month to sign this week. Give ChatGPT the thread and your pricing rules, catch the discount you can't approve, and send a reply that… - [Get Your Business Recommended by ChatGPT](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/get-recommended-by-chatgpt): Ask ChatGPT who it recommends in your town, see which pages it trusts, then use it to write an FAQ page and Business Profile copy that answer real customer questions. - [Run a Weekly Ops Review Where Every Task Has an Owner using ChatGPT](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/chatgpt-weekly-operations-meeting-recap): Turn a weekly operations and vendor review into the decisions, the next steps with owners and dates, the risks to watch and a team recap, without turning a vendor's… ## Terms in this lesson Plain-English definitions, each with an example from a free lesson. [Chatbot](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/chatbot) · [Data classification](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/data-classification) · [Redaction (masking private details)](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/redaction) · [Temporary Chat](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/temporary-chat) · [AI policy](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/ai-policy) · [Approved AI tools list](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/approved-ai-tools-list) [The full AI glossary](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary) ## Browse related tutorials [AI Basics (10)](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/course/ai-basics) · [ChatGPT tutorials (50)](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/tool/chatgpt)