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TL;DR
Notion says data accessed in the Fireworks AI breach included Notion AI chat transcripts tied to its Insights feature, affecting fewer than 1% of workspaces. The company says it had a contractual zero-retention commitment from Fireworks but learned that data was retained; it has revoked exposed API keys and is reviewing its vendors.
Notion says chat transcripts from its AI service were included in data accessed during the Fireworks AI breach, and that Fireworks retained data despite a contractual commitment to zero data retention. Notion estimates that fewer than 1% of its workspaces are affected and says it revoked exposed Notion API keys found in affected user messages on November 11.
The transcripts came from data used for Notion’s Insights feature, which gives workspace administrators information about team use of AI. Notion says Fireworks received stored requests and responses from Notion AI for analysis. The dataset Fireworks provided to Notion on November 8 included transcripts for Insights, according to Notion’s updated security advisory.
Notion says most affected transcripts were unattributable: they were not labeled with the author or workspace, and did not include tool-call results. That does not mean the content was necessarily harmless. Notion defines a transcript as input to or output from the model written to the chat, and advises affected customers to review the specific data because it may contain sensitive information.
On November 11, Notion said it had revoked exposed Notion API keys found in affected user messages. It says users and workspace owners who have not received a notice have not had their workspace identified as affected. Notion advises affected customers to treat the data as exposed, review it under its Security incident review guidance, and rotate passwords, API keys or other credentials pasted into Notion AI during the incident.
Notion’s zero-retention promise faces questions after breach
Notion says chat transcripts used for its Insights feature were accessed after Fireworks retained data despite a contractual zero-retention commitment. The incident highlights why businesses should review how vendors handle data across analytics and stored chat history.
What data was involved
The accessed dataset came from Insights, which helps workspace administrators understand team use of AI.
Notion AI chats
Inputs and outputs written to chats were included. Notion advises affected customers to review the data for sensitive information.
Limited, with exceptions
Notion says other features were not affected, except material used as input in a Notion AI chat transcript. AI Meeting Notes were not affected otherwise.
Most transcripts unlabeled
Most affected transcripts did not identify the author or workspace and did not include tool-call results.
How the data reached Fireworks
Notion says the exposed dataset came from its Insights work, which used Fireworks for classification jobs.
Fireworks notified Notion on the evening of November 2 that malicious actors had accessed a small set of data.
On November 3, Notion says it disconnected its systems, deleted data in Fireworks’ system and halted training runs.
Notion updated its advisory on November 10 and 11 as its investigation identified more information.
What the investigation leaves open
The published accounts have not established the system or circumstances behind the retention.
What this means for AI buyers
A zero-retention commitment may cover particular requests without covering every feature that stores or analyzes related data.
- Which data flows are covered by zero retention?
- Do analytics and chat history require storage?
- How are vendor commitments checked?
- What sensitive details might employees paste into AI chats?
- Who receives incident notices and reviews exposed data?
- How quickly can credentials be rotated?
Why Retained AI Data Matters
The disclosure raises a practical security question for companies using AI services: whether data-handling commitments cover every stage of a product, including analytics and stored chat history, or only live requests sent to models. Notion says its zero-retention commitments apply to API requests sent to vendors to generate Notion AI responses, but do not cover use cases such as chat history and Insights where data must be retained to provide the feature.
For customers, the distinction means a zero-retention statement should not automatically be read as a promise that no related data is stored anywhere in a service’s processing chain. In this case, Notion says Fireworks had separately made a contractual zero-retention commitment for Notion’s use of its platform, yet data was retained. The company’s account makes clear that the commitment did not prevent the retention it later discovered.
The incident also matters because chat inputs can include information users do not intend to share beyond their organization. Notion has not said what sensitive content appeared in the affected transcripts. Its recommendation to inspect affected data and rotate credentials reflects the possibility that people pasted secrets into chats, not confirmation that any particular password or key was misused.
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How Insights Data Reached Fireworks
Notion says it used Fireworks for two purposes: to run classification jobs for Insights and to provide inference for open-weight models in Notion’s product. The exposed dataset came from the Insights side, according to the company. Notion says AI Meeting Notes, including audio, transcripts and summaries, were not affected unless that material was used as input in a Notion AI chat transcript. It says no other Notion features were affected.
Notion’s published timeline says Fireworks first notified it on the evening of November 2 that a small set of data had been accessed by malicious actors. Notion initially understood that data to be synthetic testing data. On November 3, it says it disconnected its systems from Fireworks, deleted data in Fireworks’ system and stopped communications between the companies’ systems. Notion also says it halted training runs. It later updated its advisory on November 10 and 11 as its investigation identified additional information about the data.
Fireworks’ own bulletin, as described in the source material, was last updated on November 9. Fireworks said it had not detected an impact to Inference, Training SDK and Nexus, which it described as zero-retention by default, while listing datasets among information accessed for certain customers. The statements do not identify which Fireworks system retained Notion’s data.
“Unfortunately, during our investigation we learned that data was retained from the Fireworks endpoints that we used.”
— Notion, in its security advisory
What the Investigation Has Not Established
Notion has not identified which Fireworks system retained the data, how long it was retained, or why retention occurred. The available statements also do not explain how the retained data relates to Fireworks’ claim that certain services were zero-retention by default. The companies’ published accounts do not resolve that apparent gap, so the system involved and the mechanics of the retention remain unconfirmed.
Notion has not given an exact number of affected users or a count of affected workspaces. It says fewer than 1% of Notion workspaces are affected, but the source material does not provide a total or a more precise figure. It is also not clear whether other Fireworks customers experienced the same issue, what kinds of sensitive information appeared in the transcripts, or whether any credentials in the data were accessed or used.
Vendor Audit and Customer Reviews
Notion says it is auditing critical vendors and data processors to check their data-minimization practices, including zero-retention policies. The company has not provided a timetable or published the audit’s scope, so it is not yet clear when customers can expect further findings.
For customers who receive an incident notice, Notion’s stated next steps are to review affected data and rotate credentials that may have been entered into Notion AI during the incident. Workspace owners who have not been contacted are not currently identified by Notion as affected, according to the advisory. Further updates from Notion or Fireworks may clarify the retained system, the duration of retention and whether the issue extended to other customers.
Key Questions
What Notion data was involved in the Fireworks breach?
Notion says the accessed dataset included Notion AI chat transcripts used for its Insights feature. It says most affected transcripts were not labeled with the author or workspace. Notion says other product features were not affected, with an exception for material used as input in a Notion AI chat transcript.
How many Notion workspaces are affected?
Notion estimates that fewer than 1% of workspaces are affected. It has not published an exact count. The company says a workspace not identified in a notice to its owner has not been identified as affected.
What does Notion advise affected users to do?
Notion advises affected customers to treat the data as exposed, review it using its Security incident review guidance, and rotate passwords, API keys or other credentials pasted into Notion AI during the incident. It also says it revoked exposed Notion API keys found in affected messages on November 11.
Did Fireworks break its zero-retention commitment?
Notion says Fireworks had made a contractual zero-retention commitment and that its investigation later found data had been retained from the endpoints Notion used. The companies have not publicly specified which system retained the data or how the retention occurred.
Were Notion AI Meeting Notes affected?
Notion says AI Meeting Notes, including audio, transcripts and summaries, were not affected unless they were used as input in a Notion AI chat transcript. It has not reported that Meeting Notes data was otherwise included in the exposed dataset.
Source: ThorstenMeyerAI.com
