Copyright & Privacy
The increased availability of generative AI tools has raised important questions about copyright, intellectual property, and privacy. Many of these questions are still being addressed in Canadian courts and legislatures. This page introduces the main concerns and points to further context.
Copyrighted information and GenAI
Copyright questions can arise both from the material used to train or prompt a tool and from the material the tool generates.
Who owns material generated by AI tools?
Authorship and ownership of AI-generated material remain developing areas of law and policy. These resources provide Canadian context:
Before pasting or uploading copyrighted material into a GenAI tool...
Many resources in the Robertson Library collection are protected by copyright and by licence agreements. Pasting or uploading all or part of someone else’s work into a generative AI tool may breach those terms. Exercise caution, review the relevant terms of use, and seek guidance before uploading material when you are unsure.
Your information and GenAI
Information entered into an AI tool may be stored, processed, or used in ways that are not immediately visible. Review a tool’s privacy terms before using it and avoid sharing information that you are not authorized to disclose.
Avoid entering anyone else’s personal information into a generative AI tool. Instructors should not ask students to enter their own or another person’s personal information.
Personal information includes identifying details such as names, addresses, contact details, health information, age, gender, race, religious or political beliefs, educational history, audio recordings, and photographs of identifiable people.
UPEI privacy responsibilities
UPEI must ensure the safe collection, use, and disclosure of personal information. All use of personal information must follow the UPEI Access to Information and Protection of Personal Information and Privacy Policy .
Instructors incorporating generative AI should review each tool’s privacy policy, explain relevant privacy implications to students, and follow UPEI’s privacy processes. For a short introduction, watch this video about personal information .
Further reading
These resources and introductions are for the education of the UPEI community and should not be construed as legal advice.