LinkedIn confirmed in a blog post on 18 September that data from UK users, along with those from other European areas, is not being used for AI training. The move was lauded by the UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office.

It noted it is not enabling training in the UK and other parts of Europe, though an opt-out setting is available elsewhere.

“When it comes to using members’ data for generative AI training, we offer an opt-out setting,” Blake Lawit, senior VP and general counsel at LinkedIn, wrote in the post. “At this time, we are not enabling training for generative AI on member data from the European Economic Area, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom, and will not provide the setting to members in those regions until further notice.”

TechCrunch reported that LinkedIn previously specified that data from users in the European Union, European Economic Area and Switzerland were being excluded from AI training, but not UK data. The UK is now included in countries where user data is not included in training.

The ICO said LinkedIn’s confirmation is a positive development.

“We are pleased that LinkedIn has reflected on the concerns we raised about its approach to training generative AI models with information relating to its UK users,” Stephen Almond, executive director of regulatory risk, at the UK’s ICO said in a statement on 20 September. “We welcome LinkedIn’s confirmation that it has suspended such model training pending further engagement with the ICO.”

Almond noted it is crucial that the public can trust their privacy rights will be respected at the outset.

“We will continue to monitor major developers of generative AI, including Microsoft and LinkedIn, to review the safeguards they have put in place and ensure the information rights of UK users are protected,” he said.

LinkedIn ranks as the largest provider of online job advertising based on revenue, according to SIA research. The company generated $9.07 billion in online job ad revenue in 2023 and had a 24.9% market share.