In short. ChatGPT Search excludes account, device, session, and IP identifiers from documented provider requests, while approximate location may be shared.
Definition: OpenAI documents ChatGPT Search provider requests as excluding your IP address itself and your ChatGPT account information. For Enterprise and Edu workspaces, OpenAI lists user or account IDs, device IDs, assigned session IDs, and IP addresses as excluded from data sent to Bing and other data providers.
Key facts
- ChatGPT Search can rewrite a prompt into one or more targeted search queries and send them to other search providers, according to OpenAI's ChatGPT Search help.
- The general help article records the IP address itself and ChatGPT account information as excluded from third-party search-provider requests.
- ChatGPT can use an approximate location inferred from an IP address and may share that approximate location to improve local results.
- OpenAI's Enterprise and Edu search documentation says data sent to Bing and data providers is disassociated from a user's account.
- That documentation names user or account IDs, device IDs, assigned session IDs, and IP addresses as absent from the data sent to those providers.
What identifiers does OpenAI exclude?
OpenAI's Enterprise and Edu documentation gives the clearest list for search requests made in those workspaces. It says the data sent to Bing and other data providers excludes these identifiers:
user or account IDs
device IDs
assigned session IDs
IP addresses
The same documentation says requests are sent on behalf of OpenAI and are disassociated from a specific customer or user account. It describes the search data as disassociated from a user's account, which explains why an account identifier is absent from the provider request.
The general ChatGPT Search help uses broader wording. It says ChatGPT excludes any ChatGPT account information from third-party search-provider requests. The Enterprise and Edu list makes that statement concrete for the identifiers it names.
What information can influence the request?
ChatGPT Search sometimes works with other search providers. OpenAI says it typically rewrites a question into one or more targeted queries. After reviewing initial results, it may send additional, more specific queries to other providers. The provider therefore receives a search query produced for the search task, rather than a request tied to a ChatGPT account identifier.
Location is a separate category. OpenAI says ChatGPT collects general location information from an IP address and may share that general location with third-party search providers to improve result accuracy. The general help gives a local-search example in which a question about restaurants near the user is rewritten with San Francisco as the location. The IP address itself remains outside the shared data.
If memory is enabled, OpenAI says ChatGPT may use relevant saved memories when rewriting a search query. Its example uses a saved vegan preference and San Francisco location to produce a more specific restaurant query. This describes information that can affect the query text, while the identifier list above describes account and request identifiers excluded from the provider data.
Does this apply to every search surface?
The general help article describes ChatGPT Search and its third-party search-provider process. The detailed identifier list comes from OpenAI's documentation for Enterprise and Edu workspaces, where the providers named are Bing and specialized data providers. OpenAI also describes a separate Healthcare workspace configuration.
Provider-side request logs and a complete field-by-field schema for every ChatGPT Search request are undocumented in these pages. The published statements establish the excluded identifiers and the possible sharing of approximate location, while the exact query sent depends on the search task.
Related terms
FAQ
Does ChatGPT send my IP address to a search provider?
OpenAI says ChatGPT may use the IP address to estimate a general location and may share the approximate location. The IP address itself stays outside third-party search-provider requests.
Does a search provider receive my ChatGPT account ID?
OpenAI's Enterprise and Edu documentation says data sent to Bing and data providers excludes user or account IDs, device IDs, and assigned session IDs. It also describes the request as disassociated from a specific customer or user account.
Can saved memory affect a search request?
Yes. When memory is enabled, OpenAI says relevant saved memories may be used when ChatGPT rewrites a search query. The help article gives a saved dietary preference and location as examples.
Sources
- OpenAI Help Center, "Searching the web with ChatGPT", null
- OpenAI Help Center, "ChatGPT search for Enterprise and Edu", null
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