OpenAI's ChatGPT macOS app was found to be storing user chats in plain text until recently, raising security concerns. The Verge reported that the AI firm has now released an update to encrypt conversations on macOS. The discovery was made by software developer Pedro Vieito, who noted that OpenAI was distributing the app exclusively through their website and bypassing Apple's sandbox protections.

Sandboxing, which isolates an app and its data from the rest of the system, is optional on macOS, but is commonly used by chat applications to protect sensitive information. By not adhering to this security measure, the ChatGPT app exposed user chats to potential threats. Vieito highlighted the vulnerability on social media, showing how easily another app could access the unprotected data.

OpenAI acknowledged the issue and emphasised that users could opt out of having their chats used to train the AI models. The ChatGPT app, which was made available to macOS users on June 25, now includes encryption to enhance user privacy and security.