In recent days, some users of Samsung Health encountered a notification asking for permission to use their health data for artificial intelligence (AI) training and modeling. The wording of the prompt led some users to believe that declining would not only stop synchronization with their Samsung account but also cause their data to be deleted.
How the issue came to light
The message in the app was highlighted by SamMobile, which drew attention to the potentially alarming implication that refusing consent could lead to data deletion. That implication raised concerns among users about possible loss of health data if they opted out of AI-related data use.
Samsung's clarification
Samsung has posted a clarification within the app, stating that health information used for AI is kept separate from the data required for Samsung Health services and Samsung account synchronization. If a user withdraws consent for AI purposes, only the data collected specifically for AI use will be deleted; other data will remain and standard synchronization will not be stopped.
The company also acknowledged that the original message was poorly worded and said it will try to avoid similar misunderstandings in the future.
Why this matters
The episode highlights how important clear data-handling communications are for maintaining user trust, especially with sensitive information such as health data. Samsung's clarification makes the consequences of opting out of AI development clearer: refusing to participate in AI training does not automatically result in deletion of the health data stored in Samsung Health.
