Find out how to Use AI and Not Get Sued (2025)

The opposite day, a doc shared that she’s been utilizing AI to assist script movies for her YouTube channel. One other stated it shaved hours off her evaluations. Another person even used it to map out a brand new enterprise concept.

These tales have gotten extra widespread. AI is right here, and it’s serving to physicians transfer quicker, suppose greater, and stretch past medical work.

However with each “wow” second comes a bit voice behind your head: Wait… is that this even authorized?

Copyright complications. Deepfakes. Affected person privateness issues. And let’s not neglect the positive print nobody reads on these AI platforms. It’s straightforward to really feel excited and uneasy on the identical time.

Right here’s the excellent news: you can use AI confidently with out placing your license, model, or enterprise in danger. You simply want a number of clear pointers.

Under are 5 golden guidelines that will help you use AI confidently whereas staying far-off from lawsuits.

Disclaimer: Whereas these are common strategies, it is necessary to conduct thorough analysis and due diligence when deciding on AI instruments. We don’t endorse or promote any particular AI instruments talked about right here. This text is for instructional and informational functions solely. It’s not supposed to offer authorized, monetary, or medical recommendation. All the time adjust to HIPAA and institutional insurance policies. For any selections that impression affected person care or funds, seek the advice of a certified skilled.

Rule 1: Personal (or Correctly License) What You Put Into AI

U.S. copyright legislation protects unique human-created content material. That features your images, movies, audio, slides, and written materials. When you feed content material into an AI system that you don’t personal or license, chances are you’ll be creating an infringing “spinoff work,” even when the ultimate output seems to be completely different.

The U.S. Copyright Workplace is actively finding out how AI coaching and use interacts with copyright and has confirmed that conventional copyright rules nonetheless apply to AI. You possibly can see this of their Copyright and Synthetic Intelligence initiative and associated coverage steering.

Dangerous examples:

• Importing an expert headshot of a well known doctor speaker into a picture generator to create “humorous” variations for advertisements.
• Coaching or fine-tuning a mannequin utilizing query banks, board supplies, journal PDFs, or textbook pages which might be underneath license.
• Feeding affected person images, movies, or voicemails right into a non-HIPAA-compliant AI software, even for “inside testing.”

Safer practices:

• Use solely content material you created or content material with clear licenses (public area, CC0, or correctly bought inventory).
• Use AI instruments that mean you can decide out of mannequin coaching in your inputs.
• Deal with something containing PHI as fully off-limits for client AI instruments.

If you wouldn’t add it to a public web site underneath your identify, don’t add it into an AI system.

Rule 2: Deal with AI Output as a Draft, Then Add Your Experience

One of many largest authorized questions proper now’s whether or not AI outputs could be copyrighted. The U.S. Copyright Workplace has repeatedly emphasised that human authorship is required for copyright safety, and that purely AI-generated works can’t be copyrighted underneath present legislation.

A federal appeals courtroom lately agreed, upholding the Copyright Workplace’s refusal to register a piece created solely by an AI system with out human involvement.

On the identical time, the Copyright Workplace has clarified that works created with AI help could be protected if there may be sufficient human creativity in the way you edit, choose, prepare, or modify the AI output. That’s summarized in its 2025 report on AI and copyright and echoed by authorized commentators. See, for instance, this overview from Wiley: Generative AI in Focus: Copyright Workplace’s Newest Report.

What this implies for you:

• Use AI to supply a primary draft, not a completed product.
• All the time revise, reorganize, and add your personal evaluation, examples, and medical perception.
• Be sure your contributions are substantial sufficient that the work is clearly “yours” and never simply the mannequin’s.

If you wish to construct a long-term model, course, or publication round your content material, that stage of human authorship is crucial.

Rule 3: Do Not Use AI to Impersonate Actual Folks’s Faces or Voices

Deepfake and impersonation legal guidelines are evolving shortly in america. A number of states have handed legal guidelines focusing on misleading AI-generated audio or visible media, particularly round elections and different delicate contexts, and extra are coming.

On high of that, the Federal Commerce Fee (FTC) has particularly warned in regards to the dangers of AI voice cloning, which is being utilized in scams the place criminals impersonate relations, bosses, or public figures. The FTC’s client alert, “Preventing again towards dangerous voice cloning”, highlights how sensible and harmful these instruments have change into.

Excessive-risk behaviors to keep away from:

• Cloning a colleague’s or mentor’s voice with AI to “shock” your viewers.
• Producing an AI video that intently mimics an actual particular person’s face, physique, or mannerisms with out consent.
• Utilizing AI to make it seem {that a} affected person, workers member, or one other doctor stated or did one thing they didn’t.

Even when your intent is instructional or humorous, you’ll be able to run into state “deepfake” legal guidelines, right-of-publicity claims, or common misrepresentation points.

Safer practices:

• Use AI instruments that create clearly artificial faces that aren’t based mostly on actual individuals.
• Use your personal voice and likeness, or an expert actor who has signed a transparent launch that features AI use.
• Clearly label any AI-generated media when it’d confuse viewers.

If the content material might make an inexpensive particular person suppose it’s a actual particular person talking or appearing, you need to have specific written permission.

Rule 4: Learn the AI Instrument’s Phrases Earlier than You Depend on It

That is the least glamorous however most sensible rule.

Totally different instruments deal with possession, coaching, and privateness very in a different way. Some provide you with broad business rights to make use of outputs. Others maintain extra management or retailer extra of your information. The FTC has repeatedly signaled that AI corporations should honor their privateness and confidentiality commitments and could also be required to delete fashions educated on unlawfully obtained information. See, for instance, the FTC’s steering to AI corporations on privateness and confidentiality commitments: “AI corporations: Uphold your privateness and confidentiality commitments”.

Earlier than you decide to a software for your corporation or content material, verify:

• Who owns the output? Do you’ve gotten full business rights, or is it restricted?
• Can the corporate practice in your information? Is coaching decide in, decide out, or necessary?
• How is your information saved and for a way lengthy? Particularly necessary for something remotely delicate.
• Is the software applicable for healthcare? For something involving PHI, you need to use HIPAA-compliant instruments and a Enterprise Affiliate Settlement.

Talking of HIPAA, the HIPAA Privateness Rule units nationwide requirements for shielding people’ medical data and different identifiable well being data. HHS summarizes these protections right here: HIPAA Privateness: For Professionals.

If the software’s phrases are unclear or really feel too broad, assume it isn’t the fitting place for any patient-related or delicate data.

Rule 5: When in Doubt, Get Written Consent or Stroll Away

Consent is your most secure authorized defend.

Even exterior of HIPAA, U.S. legislation more and more treats biometric identifiers like face and voice as delicate private information. A number of states have biometric privateness legal guidelines, and new federal legal guidelines have begun to handle non-consensual intimate deepfakes. As an illustration, the federal “Take It Down Act” signed in 2025 targets non-consensual intimate photographs, together with AI-generated ones, and requires platforms to take away them shortly.

Inside healthcare, HIPAA’s Privateness Rule requires lined entities to guard identifiable well being data and limits when it may be used or disclosed with out authorization.

Excessive-risk conditions the place you need to pause:

• You need to use a affected person’s story, voice, or picture in any AI-assisted content material.
• You might be contemplating importing clinic recordings, operative movies, or WhatsApp voice notes from sufferers into an AI software.
• You propose to generate or improve content material that features workers, colleagues, or relations.

Greatest practices:

• Use written consent varieties that explicitly point out AI instruments, artificial media, and on-line publication.
• When consent just isn’t doable or sensible, totally de-identify and keep away from any picture, voice, or video that might be linked again to an actual particular person.
• When you’ve got a lingering “this feels off” sensation, hearken to it.

When doubtful, it’s nearly at all times safer and simpler to create a de-identified instance or use a purely fictional state of affairs.

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Suggestions for AI Generated Photographs, Voice, Video, and Textual content

AI Picture Era

• Use descriptive prompts about ideas, not actual individuals.
• Keep away from recreating branded logos, sports activities staff marks, or copyrighted characters.
• Verify that the software’s license permits business use if photographs will seem in a guide, course, or paid program.

AI Voice Era

• By no means clone somebody’s voice with out written permission.
• Watch out utilizing artificial voices for any medical instruction. A human clinician ought to at all times evaluate the ultimate script and audio for accuracy and tone.
• Do not forget that voice could be handled as a part of an individual’s “likeness” for right-of-publicity claims.

AI Video Era

• Don’t feed affected person or workers movies into client AI platforms.
• Keep away from semi-realistic avatars that resemble particular people until they’ve given consent.
• Label AI-generated instructional movies clearly so learners perceive what’s actual footage and what’s simulated.

AI Textual content Era

• Truth-check each medical or monetary declare. AI can hallucinate citations or invent research.
• Add your personal perspective, nuance, and examples so the content material displays your actual experience.
• Keep away from pasting in giant chunks of licensed textual content from journals or textbooks and asking AI to “rewrite” them.

Ultimate Ideas

AI is usually a highly effective software for physicians. It might show you how to save time, generate concepts, streamline your work, and even open doorways to new earnings streams. However like every highly effective software, it comes with sharp edges.

If you wish to use AI with out placing your license, popularity, or enterprise in danger, follow the 5 golden guidelines:

• Personal or license what you set in
• Deal with the output like a primary draft and at all times add your experience
• Don’t impersonate actual faces or voices
• Learn the phrases and privateness insurance policies
• When doubtful, ask for consent (or stroll away)

And above all else, don’t skip a very powerful step: do your homework. Verify every thing. Confirm details. Cross-reference sources. Simply because a software is quick doesn’t imply you need to be. Due diligence will at all times be your finest safety.

You don’t should worry AI. You simply should respect the method. Use it correctly, keep curious, and keep in mind, your judgment remains to be your best asset.

Now go construct one thing superior!

By the best way! To make AI even simpler for you, we’ve put collectively one thing particular:

Obtain The Doctor’s Starter Information to AI – a free, easy-to-digest useful resource that walks you thru good methods to combine instruments like ChatGPT into your skilled and private life. Whether or not you are AI-curious or already experimenting, this information will prevent time, stress, and perhaps even a bit sanity.

Need extra tricks to sharpen your AI abilities? Subscribe to our e-newsletter for unique insights and sensible recommendation. You may additionally get entry to our free AI useful resource web page, filled with AI instruments and tutorials that will help you have extra in life exterior of medication. Let’s make life simpler, one immediate at a time. Make it occur!

Disclaimer: The data supplied right here is predicated on out there public information and might not be solely correct or up-to-date. It is really useful to contact the respective corporations/people for detailed data on options, pricing, and availability. All screenshots are used underneath the rules of honest use for editorial, instructional, or commentary functions. All logos and copyrights belong to their respective homeowners.

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