- LinkedIn uses customer data to train its AI models from November 2025
- EU, EEA, Switzerland, Canada and Hong Kong users affected all
- Users will be selected by default
LinkedIn has said it will start using some member profiles, positions, resumes and public activity to train its AI models from November 3, 2025.
Users are rightly frustrated with the change, with the biggest concern is not the business network platform will do it, but that it is set to be activated by default where users must instead opt out of actively opt out.
Users may choose to opt out of the ‘Data to generative AI improvement’, but they only apply to data collected when they opt out, with data up until the time is still preserved in the training environment.
Stop LinkedIn using my data for AI training
“If you wish to object to our processing of your data or content for training generative AI models that do not generate content or for training of other AI or machine learning models, you can submit an objection through LinkedIn data processing form,” LinkedIn noted on a support page.
It is not only British customers that will be affected by the change -the EU, EEA, Switzerland, Canada and Hong Kong profiles all will see that their data is used to train LinkedIn AI tools.
Deselecting is relatively easy compared to overly complex social networking settings we are used to. ‘Data for generative AI improvement’ can be found in ‘How LinkedIn uses your data’ under the ‘Data Privacy’ section.
Microsoft is able to get away with enabling this setting by default because it is framed as ‘legitimate interest’ in the eyes of the law.
Data from the less than the 18s will be excluded from training, confirmed LinkedIn.
However, LinkedIn is not alone in his decision to train in British user data. In September 2024, Meta announced that it would start doing the same through its Facebook and Instagram platforms, and after keeping this in response to an information commissioner’s office complaint, it has now resumed user data-based training with clearer opt-out options.
