Important: Free or discounted AI offers and Rutgers data

The following email was sent to Rutgers faculty and staff on Oct. 14, 2026.

Dear Colleagues:

I am reaching out about an important issue relating to AI, intellectual property, and Rutgers data. As you may know, AI companies are offering free or discounted software for educators. We want to urge you not to accept these offers for use with Rutgers-related work.

Promotional offers from AI companies may sound attractive, but an offer of free or discounted access almost certainly does not provide the same privacy, security, and data protections available through Rutgers-approved services. These services operate outside Rutgers’ institutional privacy and data governance controls and can put Rutgers research and other university data at serious risk.

Please keep the following in mind:

• Use only AI services approved and provided by Rutgers for Rutgers work.
• Do not enter confidential, sensitive, protected, or otherwise restricted Rutgers information into an AI service unless its use has been appropriately reviewed and approved.
• Be particularly careful with research data and information related to students, whose privacy must be protected.
• If you have questions or want to explore the use of AI tools in your work, please consult your department’s IT staff or the Office of Information Technology Help Desk.

We recognize that faculty and researchers may have legitimate reasons to use a range of AI tools, and Rutgers is working to expand access to AI services for teaching, research, and university operations. The goal of this guidance is not to discourage responsible use of AI, but to help ensure that the appeal of a “free” or “discounted” offer does not create privacy and security issues for you or the university.

Thank you for helping protect Rutgers information and research while making thoughtful use of these rapidly evolving technologies.

Michele Norin
Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer