Reliable or Risky: Assessing ChatGPT Plugins' Security

Reliable or Risky: Assessing ChatGPT Plugins’ Security

As ChatGPT’s popularity skyrockets, the sheer number of AI-powered chatbots rises with it. A lot of these chatbots label themselves “third-party ChatGPT apps,” and they are basically nothing more than clones. Both the Apple App Store and Google’s Play Store are flooded with them, and the same goes for the Chrome Web Store.

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So, are these third-party ChatGPT apps and extensions any good? And more importantly, are they safe to use?

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Fake ChatGPT Extensions

If you search for “ChatGPT” on the Chrome Web Store, you will be shown a plethora of ChatGPT extensions that wildly differ from each other. But the underlying premise is the same: to bring ChatGPT’s functionalities to a particular website. In an attempt to sound authentic, some of these shady extensions claim to provide oddly specific features.

For example, one may offer to assist you with Gmail replies, while another may summarize web pages. But what most of them are doing is simply using the GPT-3.5 API to conduct that specific task for you. Results will be similar with all different extensions, because again, the base technology is the same.

Despite being offered by different developers, many of these extensions have similar descriptions and user reviews made by the same Google accounts. This indicates that these so-called chatbots are mostly published by the same parent company. At best, they will redirect you to the original OpenAI’s ChatGPT page. At worst, they will lead you to a phishing site.

However, not all ChatGPT browser extensions are bad . Some of them actually do what they advertise. One such extension is Merlin ChatGPT. Once you have logged in, the extension does exactly what it says. It will summarize your Google searches automatically and bring up a chat window where you can ask the chatbot for more information.

Fake ChatGPT Apps

A similar story lies within both the App Store and the Play Store. A quick “ChatGPT” search will show many apps that claim to be your favorite AI assistant. However, looking at the reviews section shows that these apps are mostly using paid reviews. Such apps can easily exploit user data by selling it to third-party companies.

It might come as a surprise that ChatGPT apps on the Mac App Store are not any better . Some of these apps charge a non-refundable premium and claim to be the best chatbot. Once you have fallen for the trap and subscribed, there isn’t anything you can do.

Just like with ChatGPT extensions, most of these applications also send API calls to OpenAI’s ChatGPT . They might work exactly how you would expect, but the massive paywall and shady data practices can cost you an arm and a leg.

Most of these apps are now irrelevant, as ChatGPT has its own iOS app , with Android app to come.

Now that Bing has integrated GPT-4 into its search engine, there isn’t any need to go for these apps in the first place. You can instead download the new version of the Bing app to use Bing AI Chat on your Android or iPhone. Since Bing uses GPT-4 and can access information from the web in real-time, it’s a better alternative than any of the shady ChatGPT clones.

Privacy Concerns

Most shady third-party ChatGPT apps and browser extensions raise a ton of privacy concerns. Since they trace back to the same parent companies, they can log your searches, history, and web traffic to sell your data for targeted advertising .

These third-party apps, as mentioned above, can also lead to phishing websites to fool you into providing sensitive personal information. Then, they can also flood your browser with annoying pop-ups and malicious websites. Most of this malicious content will have lots of fake buttons, and clicking one can download malware on your system.

Some of these suspicious third-party apps also ask for random permissions on your phone that have nothing to do with their functionality. These permissions can be anything from call logs to phone media.

Legit ChatGPT Alternatives

OpenAI’s servers tend to get busy pretty quickly, and you’ll often find that ChatGPT is unusable because of it. If you’re looking for an alternative to rely on as your AI assistant, then there are quite a few legit chatbots that you can use.

1. Bing Chat

If you cannot access OpenAI’s ChatGPT, then the best alternative is Bing Chat . It is available on the desktop through the Microsoft Edge browser and on mobile via the Bing search app. Bing Chat is highly conversational and can provide sources from the web for all of its responses.

You can also switch between the conversation style to tune the responses according to your preference. Another benefit is that you get access to GPT-4 for free. This multimodal language model is more accurate and has better problem-solving skills than GPT-3.5.

2. Perplexity AI

Trained on OpenAI’s GPT-3 language model, Perplexity AI is a great research tool that scans the web to bring you results. It doesn’t require any sign-up or login, and the response timing is very good. The main difference between Perplexity AI and ChatGPT is that Perplexity can cite sources for its responses, making it more accurate.

But while Perplexity works well as a search-engine-cum-chatbot, its conversational abilities could be better. It works best as a research tool rather than an AI assistant. Still, the fact that you can download and use it without signing up is incredible, compared to other third-party apps that require your personal info one way or the other.

3. Nova AI

Available as a web, mobile, and watchOS app, Nova AI is a worthy ChatGPT alternative that you can use to have a friendly conversation, ask questions, and conduct research. However, you will have to sign up and log in before use.

The basic functionality is pretty much the same as ChatGPT. Type a prompt and Nova will respond back with a coherent and detailed response. What’s surprising is that the conversational abilities are on par with ChatGPT. It’s available on both Android and iOS, making it one of the best cross-platform chatbots out there.

Watch Out for Shady Third-Party ChatGPT Apps and Browser Extensions

Third-party ChatGPT apps and browser extensions are like a mixed bag. Some of them are sketchy and definitely scams, while others do their job as advertised. As such, it is important to exercise due diligence and research before installing anything new to your mobile or desktop devices.

Watch out for some common red flags like similar 5-star reviews, the number of downloads, and the developer’s lack of social media presence. The best practice is to stick to the legit and well-known alternatives such as Bing Chat, Perplexity AI, or Nova.