How OpenAI is responding to The New York Times’ data demands to protect user privacy

How we’re responding to The New York Times’ data demands in order to protect user privacy

OpenAI says a court order requiring indefinite retention of new consumer ChatGPT and API content ended on September 26, 2025, and it has restored its standard 30-day deletion policy. The update says deleted ChatGPT chats, Temporary Chats, and API data are auto-deleted within 30 days, but a limited set of April-September 2025 historical data remains under legal hold, accessible only to a small audited legal and security team. The key scope detail: Free, Plus, Pro, Team, and non-ZDR API users were affected; Enterprise, Edu, and ZDR API customers were not.

Why it matters: Official OpenAI disclosure with direct user impact. HKR-H lands because the NYT data-demand order is unusual; HKR-K lands on the dates, 30-day deletion rule, and carve-outs; HKR-R lands because API users and buyers care about retention and ZDR exposure.