The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has launched a major investigation into OpenAI to determine whether its popular chatbot ChatGPT violated consumer protection laws, The Washington Post newspaper reported, as cited by Reuters.

The U.S. federal government this week sent OpenAI a 20-page subpoena about how it manages the risks associated with its artificial intelligence programs, according to a document obtained by The Post.

The FTC previously issued several warnings to the company, reminding it that existing consumer protection laws also apply to artificial intelligence, even as President Joe Biden’s administration and Congress have so far struggled to create an adequate regulatory framework for the new industry.

If the FTC finds that OpenAI violates laws that protect consumer rights, the agency could impose stiff fines or impose strict rules on how it must handle user data.

The FTC has previously levied large fines against some of Silicon Valley’s best-known companies — Meta, Amazon and Twitter — for violating consumer protection laws.

That US authorities are investigating ChatGPT

According to a document obtained by The Post, US authorities have asked OpenAI to provide a detailed description of all complaints received that ChatGPT and its other products contain “false, false, defamatory” statements or are harmful about people.

With this request, the FTC seeks to determine whether OpenAI engaged in unfair or deceptive practices that resulted in “reputational harm” to consumers.

The commission also asked the company to provide documents related to a security incident it disclosed in March, when a “bug” in OpenAI’s systems compromised the data of some users of the platform.

OpenAI said at the time that the number of affected users was “extremely small”, although Sam Altman, the company’s chief executive, acknowledged that the nature of the problem was “significant”.

OpenAI is accused of stealing personal data

The FTC’s move comes after a group of anonymous individuals sued OpenAI in late June, accusing the company of identity theft.

The complaint, filed by several people who spoke on condition of anonymity, alleges that the developer of ChatGPT, instead of following laws that protect people’s online privacy, chose to simply steal data available online to artificially train its AI-based solutions .

The complaint also states that OpenAI violated the law when it processed 300 billion words from the Internet, from books, articles and other materials that included personal information – without obtaining any consent.

But it is unclear whether the FTC’s decision to open an investigation against the company is now related to the lawsuit.