NBC reports:
Can an AI be convicted of illegal wiretapping?
That’s a question currently playing out in court for Gap’s Old Navy brand, which is facing a lawsuit alleging that its chatbot participates in illegal wiretapping by logging, recording and storing conversations. The suit, filed in the Central District of California, alleges that the chatbot “convincingly impersonates an actual human that encourages consumers to share their personal information.”
In the filing, the plaintiff says he communicated with what he believed to be a human Old Navy customer service representative and was unaware that the chatbot was recording and storing the “entire conversation,” including keystrokes, mouse clicks and other data about how users navigate the site. The suit also alleges that Old Navy unlawfully shares consumer data with third parties without informing consumers or seeking consent.
Old Navy, through its parent company Gap, declined to comment.