Securely Using Microsoft AI

Using Microsoft Copilot AI Tools Safely with University Data

1. Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat

Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat is an AI-powered web chat that allows university employees and students to unlock the benefits of generative AI today, such as better answers, greater efficiency, and new ways to be creative. The tool web helps users tackle everyday tasks such as drafting an email, summarizing PDFs and articles, generating images with DALL-E 3, learning new skills, and getting answers to complex questions.

Copilot combines the generative AI capabilities of Bing Chat with commercial data protection. It is approved for university use with public and confidential. This means user and business data is protected and will not leak outside your organization, prompts and responses are not saved, no one at Microsoft can view chats, and data is not used to train the underlying large language model (LLM). 

Microsoft ensures data protection is a top priority and the tool is approved for use with public, confidential and highly confidential data as defined in the university's data classification system.

The following guidelines must be followed in order to use Copilot Chat securely:

2. Microsoft 365 Copilot

Copilot for Microsoft 365 is an AI-powered productivity tool that coordinates large language models (LLMs), content in Microsoft Graph, and the Microsoft 365 apps that you use every day, such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams, and others. This integration provides real-time intelligent assistance, enabling users to enhance their creativity, productivity, and skills.

Copilot for Microsoft 365 uses a combination of LLMs, a type of artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm that uses deep learning techniques and vast data sets to understand, summarize, predict, and generate content. These LLMs include pre-trained models, such as Generative Pre-Trained Transformers (GPT) like GPT-4, designed to excel in these tasks.

Copilot Microsoft 365 is approved to be used with public, confidential and highly confidential data. Information about university data classifications is available on the CU Data Classification website. 

Microsoft AI Tools

Faculty and staff must follow and abide by university policy, and relevant state and federal law regarding protecting data and information systems, including but not limited to HIPAA, FERPA, GLBA, GDPR, FISMA (NIST 800-53r5), University HIPAA Policy, University Acceptable Use of Information Technology Resources Policy 5001, and Administrative Policy Standard 6005 Information Security Program. 

When using, storing, processing information, and accessing AI tools, please consider the following:

• Protect the privacy of others.
• Protect highly confidential or confidential information stored on devices.
• Protect highly confidential or confidential information from unauthorized physical access.
• Protect computing systems, workstations, and other computing devices.
• Protect passwords, identification cards and other access devices.
• Report security violations, malfunctions, and weaknesses to it.security@cuanschutz.edu or it.security@ucdenver.edu.
• Utilize information and information technology resources for authorized purposes only.

Get Started

Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat

The Microsoft Copilot Chat web app can be accessed from Microsoft Edge or Microsoft Bing. Make sure you are logged into your university account and then either:

1. Launch your browser and click the Copilot icon in the upper right-hand corner, or 
2. Go to copilot.microsoft.com and log in to begin, or 
3. Log in to web version of Office at https://www.office.com/ and click on Copilot from the left-hand navigation.

Additional information about Microsoft Copilot can be found on the OIT tools and services webpage.

Learn more about AI at the CU Anschutz and CU Denver campuses from Information Strategy Services. 

Microsoft 365 Copilot

Microsoft 365 Copilot has a cost associated with it. To purchase the application, visit the OIT Microsoft 365 Copilot webpage. 

If you have questions about using Microsoft Copilot AI tools, please contact the Service Desk.

Additional Microsoft Resources

• Microsoft Purview data security and compliance protections for generative AI apps
• Data, Privacy and Security for Copilot for Microsoft 365