How To Protect Your Privacy When Using AI Meeting Assistants
Jan 20, 2026
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5
MIN READ
AI Summary by Fellow
Every meeting contains sensitive information: strategy discussions, personnel decisions, financial data, and customer details. As teams adopt AI to capture and transcribe these conversations, a critical question emerges: how do you get the productivity benefits of AI meeting notes without putting your organization's data at risk?
The answer isn't avoiding AI altogether. It's choosing an AI meeting assistant built with enterprise security from the ground up and implementing the right safeguards around it.
Already concerned about your current meeting tool's data practices? Fellow is SOC 2 Type II certified, HIPAA compliant, and never trains AI on your data.
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Why should you care about AI meeting privacy?
The productivity gains from AI meeting tools are substantial. Automatic transcription means everyone can stay engaged instead of frantically taking notes. AI-generated summaries and action items eliminate the post-meeting documentation burden. Searchable meeting libraries make it easy to find past decisions and commitments.
But these benefits come with a tradeoff: you're trusting a third party with recordings of your most sensitive conversations. And not all AI meeting tools treat that trust responsibly.
What happened with Zoom's privacy policy?
In March 2023, Zoom quietly updated its Terms of Service to grant itself broad rights over customer data. Under the new terms, Zoom could use audio, video, chats, and documents to develop new products and train AI models. Users who continued using Zoom without reading the updated terms unknowingly granted the company a perpetual, royalty-free license to their content.
Following public backlash, Zoom revised its terms, promising not to use customer data for AI training without consent. However, legal experts noted that the consent requirement only applied to "customer content," not "service-generated data" like usage patterns and metadata. This loophole meant Zoom could still use significant amounts of user data without explicit permission.
This wasn't Zoom's first privacy controversy. In 2021, Zoom settled an $85 million class action lawsuit for sharing user data with Facebook, Google, and LinkedIn without permission, and for falsely claiming it provided end-to-end encryption.
What this means for your organization
This illustrates a broader pattern: some technology companies can treat user data as an asset. When evaluating any AI meeting tool, you need to ask hard questions about data ownership, AI training practices, and security certifications.
The good news is that privacy-focused alternatives exist. Tools built for enterprise trust from the beginning take a fundamentally different approach to data protection.
If your current meeting tool lacks transparent data policies and enterprise security certifications, Fellow offers a privacy-first alternative trusted by Shopify, HubSpot, and Vidyard.
Visit Fellow's Trust Centre for more information →
What security features should an AI meeting assistant have?
The most important decision you'll make for meeting privacy is which AI tool you select. Here's what to look for:
SOC 2 Type II certification
SOC 2 Type II certification means an independent auditor has verified that the company's security controls work effectively over time (not just on paper). This certification requires ongoing compliance with strict standards for data security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy.
HIPAA and GDPR compliance
If your organization handles healthcare information or has European customers or employees, you need tools that comply with HIPAA and GDPR requirements. These regulations mandate specific protections for sensitive personal data.
No AI training on customer data
Many AI companies use customer data to train their models, which means your confidential meeting content could influence responses given to other users. Look for explicit commitments that your data stays yours and isn't used for model training.
Permission-based access controls
Your meeting recordings shouldn't be accessible to everyone in your organization. Look for tools that align access permissions with organizational roles, so only authorized team members can view specific recordings, transcripts, and notes.
Flexible recording options
Some meetings require discretion. Botless recording options let you capture conversations without a visible bot joining, which is especially valuable for sensitive discussions, client calls, or in-person meetings.
Pause and resume controls
Not every moment of a meeting should be recorded. Look for AI meeting assistants that let participants pause recording during sensitive portions of a conversation, then resume when ready. This gives teams flexibility to capture the information they need while protecting confidential discussions that arise unexpectedly mid-meeting.
Admin controls for automatic recording exclusions
Enterprise organizations need the ability to prevent certain meetings from being recorded automatically. The best AI meeting tools let administrators create rules that block recording based on specific keywords in meeting titles (like "confidential," "legal," or "HR") or based on attendee email domains (to protect meetings with external parties or specific clients). These controls ensure sensitive meetings stay private without relying on individual users to remember to disable recording.
Fellow is designed around all of these principles:
With SOC 2 Type II certification, HIPAA and GDPR compliance, a commitment to never train AI on customer data, and granular privacy controls, Fellow operates as a company-wide system without compromising security.
Fellow's pause and resume functionality lets participants protect sensitive moments mid-meeting, while Fellow's granular recording controls can automatically prevent recording based on meeting title keywords or attendee domains. Teams can capture meetings across Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, in-person meetings, and Slack huddles, all with consistent security and governance.
How do you limit access to AI meeting platforms?
Even the most secure tool becomes a liability if unauthorized people can access it. Implement these access controls:
Require multi-factor authentication. Enable MFA for all employee accounts connected to your meeting platforms. This prevents unauthorized access even if passwords are compromised.
Use unique meeting passwords. Generate unique access codes for each meeting rather than using recurring links that could be shared inappropriately.
Screen participants in waiting rooms. Review attendees before admitting them to sensitive meetings. This prevents unauthorized parties from joining undetected.
Audit access logs regularly. Review who has accessed recordings, transcripts, and notes. Look for unusual patterns like access from unexpected locations or outside business hours.
Assign appropriate permission levels. Not everyone needs access to every recording. Configure your AI meeting tool to restrict access based on meeting participants, team membership, or organizational role.
How should you train employees on AI meeting privacy?
Technology alone can't protect your meetings. Your team needs to understand the risks and their responsibilities.
Establish clear data sharing guidelines
Define what information employees can and cannot discuss in AI-recorded meetings. Some conversations (like those involving personnel issues, legal matters, or unannounced acquisitions) may need to happen without AI recording enabled.
Require strong authentication practices
Train employees to use unique, complex passwords and enable multi-factor authentication. Weak credentials are one of the most common entry points for data breaches.
Conduct regular privacy awareness sessions
Schedule periodic training on data privacy risks and best practices. Cover topics like recognizing phishing attempts, protecting meeting links, and reporting suspicious activity.
Create reporting procedures for concerns
Give employees a clear process for reporting potential privacy issues. Quick reporting enables faster response to security incidents.
How do you monitor AI meeting platforms for security risks?
Proactive monitoring helps you catch problems before they become breaches.
Track login attempts. Monitor for failed login attempts, access from unusual locations, or logins at unexpected times. These patterns can indicate credential compromise.
Watch for unusual data access. Alert on bulk downloads of recordings or transcripts, access to meetings outside someone's normal scope, or other anomalous behavior.
Review third-party integrations. AI meeting tools often connect to other systems. Regularly audit which integrations are active and whether they still need the access they have.
Establish incident response procedures. Work with your IT team to create contingency plans for potential security incidents. Define who gets notified, what actions to take, and how to communicate with affected parties.
Why is keeping AI meeting software updated important?
Software updates often include critical security patches. Outdated software is one of the most common vectors for cyberattacks.
Enable automatic updates. Configure your AI meeting tools to update automatically whenever possible. This ensures you get security patches as soon as they're available.
Schedule regular update checks. For tools that don't support automatic updates, assign someone to check for new versions on a regular schedule.
Review update release notes. When updates include new features, evaluate whether they introduce new privacy considerations that require policy updates.
Test updates before broad deployment. For enterprise deployments, test updates in a limited environment before rolling them out organization-wide.
What data should you store from AI meetings?
Minimizing stored data reduces your exposure if a breach occurs.
Store only what you need. Not every meeting requires a permanent recording. Consider policies about which meetings get recorded and for how long recordings are retained.
Convert recordings to summaries. AI-generated meeting summaries and action item lists often contain the information you need without retaining full audio and video. Consider whether you can delete original recordings after extracting key information.
Encrypt stored data. Any meeting data you do retain should be encrypted both in transit and at rest.
Implement retention policies. Define how long different types of meeting data are kept. Automatically delete data that's past its retention period.
Restrict export capabilities. Limit who can download or export meeting recordings, transcripts, and notes to prevent unauthorized data exfiltration.
How do you keep up with changing privacy regulations?
The regulatory landscape for AI and data privacy continues to evolve. Stay current with these practices:
Monitor regulatory updates. Subscribe to updates from relevant regulatory bodies (like the FTC, EU data protection authorities, or industry-specific regulators) to learn about new requirements.
Review vendor policies periodically. AI meeting tool providers may change their terms of service or data practices. Review their policies at least annually, or whenever you receive notification of changes.
Update internal policies as needed. When external regulations or vendor policies change, assess whether your internal privacy policies need corresponding updates.
Engage legal counsel for complex situations. For questions about compliance with specific regulations like HIPAA, GDPR, or industry-specific requirements, consult with legal experts who specialize in data privacy.
Frequently asked questions
What is the most secure AI meeting assistant?
The most secure AI meeting assistants combine SOC 2 Type II certification, HIPAA and GDPR compliance, and explicit commitments not to train AI models on customer data. Look for tools that offer permission-based access controls aligned to organizational roles, flexible recording options (including botless recording for sensitive meetings), and encryption for data in transit and at rest. Fellow meets all these criteria while providing organization-wide meeting intelligence through features like Ask Fellow, which lets teams query their meeting history without compromising security.
How can I prevent sensitive meetings from being recorded by AI?
Enterprise AI meeting assistants offer multiple layers of protection for sensitive conversations. Look for tools with pause and resume functionality so participants can stop recording during confidential portions of a meeting. More importantly, administrators should be able to create automatic exclusion rules based on meeting title keywords (like "legal," "HR," or "confidential") or attendee email domains (to protect client meetings or external discussions). Fellow provides both capabilities, giving organizations granular control over which meetings get recorded without relying on individuals to remember to disable recording manually.
Can AI meeting assistants access my recordings after I delete them?
This depends on the tool's data retention and deletion policies. Reputable enterprise AI meeting assistants permanently delete recordings when you remove them and don't retain copies for AI training. Before selecting a tool, review its privacy policy to understand what happens to deleted data and whether backups are retained. Fellow's data deletion is permanent, and meeting content is never used to train AI models.
Is it legal to record meetings with AI without consent?
Recording laws vary by jurisdiction. Some places require all-party consent (everyone must agree to be recorded), while others allow single-party consent (only one participant needs to consent). Most AI meeting assistants notify participants when recording begins, which helps establish consent. However, you should consult with legal counsel about the specific requirements in your jurisdiction and the locations of your meeting participants. Always be transparent with participants about when and why meetings are being recorded.
How do I evaluate an AI meeting tool's security before adopting it?
Start by reviewing the tool's security certifications (SOC 2, ISO 27001, etc.) and compliance status (HIPAA, GDPR). Read their privacy policy to understand how they handle, store, and potentially use your data. Ask specifically whether customer data is used for AI model training. Review their data retention and deletion policies. Check whether they offer the access controls your organization needs. For enterprise deployments, request a security assessment or penetration test results. Companies serious about security, like Fellow, publish detailed security documentation and make their certifications easily verifiable.
What should I do if I suspect a privacy breach in my AI meeting tool?
Immediately report the suspected breach to your IT security team following your organization's incident response procedures. Document what you observed and when. If the breach involves the AI tool provider, contact their security team directly. Depending on the nature and scope of the breach, you may need to notify affected individuals, regulatory authorities, or law enforcement. After the incident is resolved, conduct a post-mortem to identify how the breach occurred and implement measures to prevent similar incidents.
Keep your meetings private and productive
Protecting meeting privacy doesn't mean sacrificing the productivity benefits of AI. It means choosing tools built with enterprise security as a foundation, implementing appropriate access controls, training your team on best practices, and staying vigilant about emerging risks.
Every meeting without proper privacy protection is a potential data exposure waiting to happen. The sensitive discussions, strategic decisions, and confidential information your team shares deserve protection from a tool designed with security in mind.
Fellow is the secure AI meeting assistant built for organizations that refuse to compromise on privacy. With SOC 2 Type II certification, HIPAA and GDPR compliance, and a commitment to never train AI on your data, Fellow turns your meetings into searchable intelligence without putting your organization at risk. Teams at Shopify, HubSpot, Vidyard, and Motive trust Fellow with their most important conversations.
Record, transcribe and summarize every meeting with the only AI meeting assistant built from the ground up with privacy and security in mind.
