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As a keen observer of the intersection of technology and business, I feel compelled to voice a truth that many may find hard to swallow: LinkedIn has significant flaws. The platform is an unfortunate amalgamation of the less appealing aspects of social media, job searching, and corporate culture — and it is on the verge of becoming even more cumbersome thanks to the rise of artificial intelligence.
In a trend seen across many major tech companies, LinkedIn is now integrating generative AI into its services. You might have noticed this feature through prompts designed to “assist” users in drafting posts or messages. However, the situation worsens as the platform begins to utilize personal user data for training its AI systems—without user consent or prior notification. This data collection operates under the radar unless you are situated in the EU, where such practices are scrutinized by the law.
Reports from 404 Media reveal that LinkedIn has been silently applying user data prior to a recent update of its obscured Privacy Policy. This policy revision includes a statement designed to cover its tracks:
“We may utilize your personal data to enhance, develop, and deliver our products and services, to develop and train AI models, to personalize our offerings, and to glean insights through AI and automated systems, thereby making our services more pertinent and valuable to you and others.”
According to The Verge, the data LinkedIn has already amassed is already being utilized for training models, and unfortunately, users have no way to retract this information.
Nonetheless, you do have the option to prevent your data from being leveraged for any future AI training. To do this, head over to your account’s Settings & Privacy section, click on the Data Privacy tab, find the Data for Generative AI Improvement option, and set it to Off. (You can also take a shortcut to this setting by clicking here.)
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