Massive Privacy Breach: Grok Chat Conversations Indexed on Google Search
In a major privacy scandal, Forbes has revealed that hundreds of thousands of user conversations with Grok, the AI chatbot developed by Elon Musk’s company xAI, have become easily accessible through Google search results — as well as other search engines like Bing and DuckDuckGo.
The “Share” Feature Behind the Leak
The issue stems from Grok’s built-in share feature, which generates a unique public link when users choose to share conversations via email, messaging apps, or social media. These links, however, have been indexed by search engines, making vast amounts of sensitive user content publicly available.
The exposed conversations include problematic and highly sensitive requests, such as attempts to hack cryptocurrency wallets, explicit sexual content, and even queries related to manufacturing drugs like methamphetamine. According to Forbes, some conversations went further, with Grok providing instructions on making fentanyl, methods of suicide, building explosives, and even a detailed plan to assassinate Elon Musk himself.
Clear Security Gaps
While xAI’s usage policies explicitly prohibit harmful activities or guidance on developing weapons of mass destruction, the breach highlights critical vulnerabilities in user interaction safeguards.
The news comes just weeks after a similar issue was reported with OpenAI’s ChatGPT, when some user chats briefly appeared on Google before the company described it as a “short-lived experiment.” The Grok incident is particularly striking, as the platform had previously emphasized that it prioritized privacy and did not offer a comparable sharing feature.
As of now, xAI has not issued an official statement clarifying why Grok conversations were indexed or when the issue first began.