Is Character AI safe? Privacy, age checks and what to watch

Character AI is safe in the sense that matters for most adults: it is a legitimate US company, Character Technologies, Inc., with a firm content filter, age checks and a working account deletion. What to watch is privacy, because its help center says chats can help train its models unless you opt out, and its record with teens, which led to lawsuits it agreed to settle in January 2026.

By AI Girlfriends Guide editorial team Updated September 29, 2026 How we rank

Who runs Character AI

Character.AI safety and privacy facts, from its own terms and privacy policy
Company	Character Technologies, Inc., United States (Menlo Park, California address)
Payment methods	credit card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Stripe (web), Apple App Store billing, Google Play billing
Age check	In-house age assurance runs on all accounts using login info, platform activity and third-party signals. Users flagged as under 18 get the under-18 experience or can verify with a Persona selfie (ID only if the selfie is inconclusive). Open-ended chat for under-18 users was switched off in a rollout starting 24 November (announced late 2025).
Delete your account	Web: Profile, Profile Settings, Account, Manage Account & Data, Delete Account. App: Profile, settings icon, Remove Account. Deletion is permanent.
Chats used for training	Yes. Help centre: "we retain certain data that you share with us to help train and improve our AI models"; users in the EEA and UK can switch off "Improve the Model for Everyone" in Settings, and the July 2026 policy update says users can opt out of training.
Data sharing	Shares limited data with service providers; says it does not sell personal information. Google Play data safety: no data shared with third parties.
Refunds	Payments are non-refundable except where required by law; app store purchases are refunded through Apple or Google

Character Technologies, Inc. lists a Menlo Park, California address and is the seller on its App Store listing, which is rated 17+ with about 559,000 ratings (App Store). On Google Play the app is rated Teen (Google Play). On 18 September 2026 the company said its CEO is joining Disney and that the app stays live (Character.AI blog). Our Character AI review covers the product itself.

Billing and what shows on your statement

Character.AI takes cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay through Stripe on the web, and App Store or Google Play billing in the apps. Its pages do not publish the exact text that appears on a card statement, so check for Character.AI, Stripe, Apple or Google when you look for the charge. It does not advertise discreet billing, and our data lists no crypto or PayPal option.

Plans renew automatically. If you want to limit what can be charged, buying through Apple or Google lets you manage the subscription from your phone's settings, and a reminder before any yearly renewal avoids surprises. Prices are listed on our Character AI pricing page.

Privacy: who can see your chats

Chats are not private from the company in the way a message to a friend is. Character.AI's help center says it keeps certain data you share to help train and improve its AI models. Users in the EEA and UK can turn off "Improve the Model for Everyone" in Settings, and a July 2026 privacy policy update says users can opt out of training (model training settings).

On sharing, the privacy policy says it shares limited data with service providers and does not sell personal information, and its Google Play data safety label lists no data shared with third parties (privacy policy). Privacy questions go to privacy@character.ai. Our guide to whether companion apps read your chats explains what this means across the category.

Deleting your Character AI account

You can delete the account yourself, and deletion is permanent (help center):

On the web: Profile, Profile Settings, Account, Manage Account and Data, Delete Account.
In the app: Profile, the settings icon, Remove Account.

Cancel any c.ai+ subscription first, because deleting the account does not stop an App Store or Google Play subscription. Character.AI does not publish how long it keeps data after deletion, so if that matters, email its privacy address and ask.

Age checks and content rules

Character.AI runs an in-house age assurance model on every account, using login details, activity and third-party signals. Anyone flagged as under 18 gets the teen experience or can prove their age with a selfie through Persona, with an ID scan only if the selfie is inconclusive. Character.AI says it never sees those images and that Persona deletes them within 7 days (age assurance data).

Since late November 2025, users under 18 cannot have open-ended chats with characters, though they can still use Imagine Chat, the feed and past chats (announcement). For everyone, pornographic, vulgar and obscene content is filtered, and asking for the filter to be removed can get an account banned. Impersonation and trademark rules also apply to characters.

Reported incidents: lawsuits and an FTC inquiry

Two public events shape Character.AI's safety record:

Teen-harm lawsuits. In January 2026, Character Technologies and Google agreed to settle lawsuits from families in Florida, Texas, Colorado and New York who said their children were harmed after using the chatbots, including a 2024 wrongful-death suit (Bloomberg Law).
FTC inquiry. In September 2025 the US Federal Trade Commission sent letters to several companies, Character Technologies among them, asking how they test the safety of chatbots acting as companions for children and teens (Associated Press, via News4JAX).

The under-18 chat ban and the age checks above followed this pressure. Neither event involved a data breach. Our AI girlfriend data breaches guide tracks the leaks that have hit other apps.

How to use Character AI safely

Turn off training if you can. Check Settings for the model training switch.
Keep real details out. Do not share your full name, address, workplace or photos of real people in chats or character descriptions.
Use Apple or Google billing if you want to manage the subscription from your phone, and set a reminder before yearly renewals.
Set limits for teens. Parents should know the app is rated 17+ on the App Store and Teen on Google Play, and that under-18 accounts are restricted.
Treat it as fiction. Characters can state things confidently that are wrong, so do not rely on them for medical, legal or money advice.

Our general guide to whether AI girlfriend apps are safe applies the same checks to 18+ apps, and Character AI vs Nomi AI compares it with an adult companion app.

Frequently asked questions

Is Character AI legit?

Yes. It is run by Character Technologies, Inc., a US company with a Menlo Park, California address, official App Store and Google Play apps, and a public help center with its plans, rules and cancel steps.

Does Character AI read your chats?

Its help center says it keeps certain data you share to train and improve its AI models. EEA and UK users can switch this off in Settings, and a July 2026 policy update says users can opt out of training.

Is Character AI safe for kids?

It is not designed for young children. Since November 2025 users under 18 cannot have open-ended chats, age checks run on all accounts, and the App Store rates it 17+. Its maker agreed in January 2026 to settle lawsuits over harm to teens.

Has Character AI been hacked?

We found no reported data breach of Character.AI in the sources we track. Its public problems have been legal, not security: teen-harm lawsuits it agreed to settle in 2026 and an FTC inquiry in 2025.

Does Character AI sell your data?

Its privacy policy says it does not sell personal information and shares limited data with service providers. Its Google Play label lists no data shared with third parties.

Can Character AI see my age verification selfie?

Character.AI says no. Selfies and IDs go to Persona, its verification partner, which deletes them within 7 days, and Character.AI receives only the result.