In this episode of Razorwire, we’re looking into the contentious realm of AI and data privacy. This week, I’m joined by Amy Stokes Waters, CEO of The Cyber Escape Room Company, and Ryan Mangan, a chartered IT professional and Microsoft MVP, to explore the ethical implications of feeding our personal data into AI systems.
Join our discussion on recent controversies, including Adobe's T&C changes and Clearview's facial recognition technology, while questioning who truly benefits from AI data collection. We debate the balance between technological advancement and personal privacy rights, highlighting the disparities in how different organisations handle consent and transparency.
From medical research to creative rights, this episode addresses how AI development is outpacing both regulatory frameworks and organisational policies. As businesses increasingly rely on AI-powered tools, what safeguards should we demand, and how much of our digital footprint are we willing to sacrifice?

3 Key Talking Points:

1. The Opt-Out Illusion: Discover how major tech companies are quietly changing their terms of service to automatically opt users into AI training programmes using your data. We reveal the hidden challenges of truly removing your information once it's been absorbed into AI systems and what this means for your digital privacy.
2. Policy vs. Protection Gap: Learn why most organisations lack proper AI usage policies, leaving customer data vulnerable. Our experts discuss how even well-intentioned employees are likely uploading confidential information to ChatGPT without realising the risks and what safeguards businesses should implement immediately.
3. The Jurisdictional Minefield: Understand the complex legal landscape where regulations like GDPR and HIPAA struggle to keep pace with AI development. Our conversation explores the dangerous territory of international data jurisdiction and how conflicting regulations create loopholes that affect your privacy rights.

In this episode, we covered the following topics:
Spot stealth data collection – Identify how companies like Adobe and LinkedIn are changing their terms of service to automatically opt you into AI training programmes
Protect your creative work - Understand the risks to your intellectual property when uploading content to cloud services with AI features
Navigate consent manipulation - Recognise the tactics used to hide opt-out options and how to find them
Safeguard sensitive information - Prevent employees from inadvertently exposing confidential data through ChatGPT and similar tools
Understand data sanitisation - Learn what proper data anonymisation actually means and why it matters for your privacy
Balance innovation with privacy - Discover how organisations can ethically use AI for advancements in healthcare while protecting personal data
Create effective AI policies - Develop clear guidelines for your business on appropriate AI usage before data breaches occur
Recognise AI's limitations - Identify when AI might present biased or false information, particularly in specialised fields like law
Prepare for international data conflicts - Navigate the complex landscape of competing regulatory frameworks affecting your data (GDPR, HIPAA, etc.)
Anticipate future privacy challenges - Get ahead of emerging concerns as AI technology continues outpacing regulatory frameworks

Meet our guests

Amy Stoke-Waters
Amy has a decade of experience in sales and marketing and now acts as CEO at The Cyber Escape Room Co and CCO at Yellowstone Security. She is a founding member of RINA's Maritime Cyber Security Task Force and an active advocate for gender diversity in the industry. As a regular guest on podcasts and panels, Amy talks on a variety of topics including security culture and awareness, personal branding, and women in tech.

Ryan Mangan
Ryan Mangan is the CEO of EfficientEther Ltd, a Microsoft Startup focused on AI-driven IT solutions and cloud cost management. With a strong background in managed services, Ryan previously founded and led Systech IT Solutions, building successful technology businesses focused on Managed Services. A Microsoft MVP and Chartered Fellow of the British Computer Society (FBCS CITP), he is a recognised industry expert, author, and public speaker. Ryan is also an Editorial Advisory Board member for TechTarget, contributing to thought leadership in enterprise IT. His work has been featured in publications such as Computer Weekly, TechTarget, and BCS IT Now, and he regularly speaks at industry events, sharing insights on AI, cloud, and other IT topics.

Other episodes you'll enjoy
Humans vs AI: Building a Security Culture That Actually Works
YouTube: https://youtu.be/SNcpKrsWniY
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/53PxszWM34ZrpA9EnSHuJf

Hacking Cybersecurity Training: Escape Rooms & Entrepreneurial Thinking with Amy Stokes-Waters
YouTube: https://youtu.be/dpn8N4xfojA
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5TWqagRzQdKZDQIxRjDOaP