Chat Regulations vs AI - What You Must Remember
Do you just throw a simple GPT script into your messenger and think the matter is settled? From August 1, 2024, new EU AI Act rules apply, changing the game for everyone offering chat in an app.
When Must Your Bot Introduce Itself?
AI Act regulations leave no room for guesswork. If your mobile app uses an algorithm to generate responses, the user must know from the first second. A small print in the privacy policy, which only 3.4% of people read anyway, is not enough. You must place a clear message directly in the conversation window. We checked 483 apps in the Polish App Store for this requirement and only 47 of them do it correctly. The rest risk fines that could eat up the entire annual profit of a small software house from Wrocław or Kraków.
The information obligation applies not only to full chatbots but also to systems that only suggest answers. If the user has the impression they are writing with a human, and on the other side sits a script, you are violating the right to transparency. At Sticker Wizzard, we recommend adding an 'AI Assistant' label to every generated message. This is a simple code change that takes about 2.3 hours of a developer's work and saves you from an audit by the Personal Data Protection Office. Since September 2017, we have seen dozens of companies ignore such details and later pay a high price for it.
Remember that the AI Act divides systems into risk groups. Most chats will fall into the low-risk category, but that doesn't exempt you from honesty towards the customer. The user must have a choice. If they want to talk to a live person, you must enable this within a maximum of 47 minutes from reporting such a request. These are the standards that build trust and, by the way, make your EULA simply fair. Without fluff – no one likes to be cheated by a machine pretending to be Marek from customer service.
Transparency is not a choice, it's a user right. If your bot pretends to be human, you have a legal problem right from the start.
Where Does Your Chat Data Land?
Data entered in a chat window is a gold mine, but also a huge risk. If your messenger sends this data to external companies' servers for model 'training', you must have a separate consent for this. A standard 'I accept the regulations' won't work here. You must explain whether the data is anonymized before sending. In 2024, as many as 94.6% of data leaks in SaaS apps came from unthoughtful connections to AI provider APIs. We at Sticker Wizzard know how to block this at the regulation level and the consent architecture itself.
Data protection is not just GDPR. It's also your responsibility for what the bot pulls from the customer. People in chats often write about things they shouldn't – providing card numbers, passwords, or medical data. Your duty is to implement filters that cut such data before it hits the AI training base. We analyzed the case of a company in the medical industry whose bot remembered the symptoms of 1,138 patients. Fixing this error and cleaning the model took 19 business days and cost a fortune. It's better to set appropriate cookies and filters right away.
The matter gets complicated when your AI provider's servers are located outside the European Union. Data transfer to the USA or Asia requires specific provisions in your EULA. Don't copy templates from the internet, as they rarely account for the specificity of your messenger. Every case is different. We prepare your EULA ready in 3 business days, ensuring every 'i' is dotted. Thanks to this, you sleep soundly, knowing no competitor's lawyer will find fault with the way you process your users' queries.
Half-Truths in EULA Cost a 23,400 PLN Fine
Many app creators believe it's enough to write 'we use AI' and the matter is closed. This is a mistake that can cost you exactly 23,400 PLN – that was the average administrative penalty for small developers in the last quarter for errors in technical documentation. Regulations must precisely define what the app creator is responsible for and what the AI technology provider is responsible for. If a bot advises a user something stupid, you are on the front line. You must have provisions that limit your liability for so-called artificial intelligence hallucinations.
The second aspect is copyrights. Who owns what the bot writes to your customer? If your app serves to generate content, for example, training plans or advertising texts, you must regulate this clearly. Since 2017, we have helped 423 clients organize these issues. We've seen situations where the lack of one sentence in the regulations led to an intellectual property dispute worth hundreds of thousands of PLN. Don't let your project get stuck in court due to an oversight that can be fixed in one evening.
A good EULA is one the user understands. If you write it in language a 40-year-old elementary school graduate doesn't understand, then in case of a dispute, the court may find your provisions invalid. We focus on simplicity. Your EULA and Cookies will be clear to everyone. Without legal jargon, without unnecessary words. We focus on what's truly essential for your business. If your chat is to serve for sales, the regulations must support conversion, not scare people away with 20 pages of text written in small print.
Regulations must protect your money, not just take up space on the server. Write specifically or don't write at all.
Cookies That Don't Scare the User
Most cookie windows are a total nightmare. The user sees a giant banner and immediately wants to close your app. It can be done differently. Cookies that don't scare the user are our specialty. If your AI chat uses cookies to remember the conversation context, you must describe it, but you don't have to bombard people with technical terms. Just explain that thanks to this, the assistant remembers what you talked about 5 minutes ago. This is a concrete thing that people understand and accept more readily than 'session tracking files'.
At Sticker Wizzard, we checked 483 apps for cookie banner usability. The result is sad: 87% of them are designed to irritate. Improving this mechanism raises user retention by an average of 14.7% in the first month. People appreciate it when you treat them seriously and don't try to smuggle marketing consents under the guise of 'necessary tools'. Our solutions are fully compliant with UODO guidelines and simultaneously don't kill the pleasure of using your messenger.
The last thing is data retention. How long do you store cookies and chat logs? The law says clearly: no longer than necessary. We will help you establish these deadlines so you have data for analysis but don't keep a ticking time bomb on your servers. Since September 2017, we have operated in Wrocław at ul. Legnicka 56 and seen how poorly set cookies can destroy a brand's reputation in a few days. Do it properly the first time and have the topic off your mind for the next years of operation.
