AI Prompt Protection: Catch Sensitive Data Before It's Sent
Employees don't just paste sensitive data into AI tools — they type it. ShadowLock detects sensitive data as it's entered into a prompt and redacts it from the request before the model ever sees it, without breaking the user's flow.
What is AI prompt protection?
AI prompt protection detects sensitive data as a user types it into an AI chat and removes that data from the request before it reaches the model. Unlike paste blocking, it covers text typed by hand — the most common way people feed data to a chatbot — and redacts only the sensitive value, so the rest of the prompt still works.
organizations have already had a data breach involving shadow AI. (IBM Cost of a Data Breach Report 2025)
Blocking pastes isn't enough
Tools that only watch the clipboard miss the most natural way people use a chatbot: typing. A support agent pastes nothing — they just describe the customer's account, by hand, in the prompt. That data leaves your environment the moment they hit enter.
ShadowLock classifies the prompt itself as it's typed and redacts sensitive values at the point of send. It works alongside ShadowLock's AI DLP, which guards pasted content and file uploads — together they close the typed-and-pasted gap.
How prompt protection works.
On-device classification, redaction at egress, no broken prompts.
Detection as the prompt is typed
ShadowLock classifies what the user types into an AI composer on-device — API keys, SSNs, card numbers, credentials, PHI, and source code — against the data types you have enabled. Nothing is sent anywhere to be scanned.
Redaction at the moment of send
In block mode, the exact sensitive value is stripped from the outbound request and replaced with a placeholder before it leaves the browser. The model receives the redacted prompt — the secret never reaches the AI provider.
The user keeps their flow
No full-page block and no lost work. The chat shows what the user typed, a brief "Redacted" confirmation explains what happened, and the conversation continues. Protection that does not get switched off because it gets in the way.
Audit first, enforce when ready
Start in audit mode to log every prompt that contains sensitive data without changing anything, so you can see real exposure before you turn on blocking. Then flip to block per tool, per organization, or per user.
AI prompt protection FAQ
What is AI prompt protection?
AI prompt protection detects sensitive data as a user types it into an AI chat and removes that data from the request before it reaches the model. Unlike paste blocking, it covers text the user types by hand — the most common way people put data into a chatbot — and redacts only the sensitive value, so the rest of the prompt still works.
How is this different from blocking pastes?
Paste blocking only catches data moved with copy-and-paste. But employees routinely type customer names, account numbers, and credentials straight into a prompt. ShadowLock classifies the composer text itself as it is entered, so typed sensitive data is caught alongside pasted data. It complements ShadowLock’s AI DLP rather than replacing it.
Do my prompts get sent to ShadowLock to be scanned?
No. Classification runs entirely in the browser on the local device. ShadowLock never receives the prompt text. When sensitive data is found, an event is logged with the data type and tool — not the content itself — so you get visibility without creating a second copy of the data you are trying to protect.
What happens to the prompt when sensitive data is detected?
In audit mode the prompt is sent unchanged and the event is logged. In block mode the sensitive value is replaced with a placeholder in the outbound request, so the model receives a redacted prompt while the user still sees what they typed. If a redaction cannot be applied cleanly, ShadowLock fails open rather than breaking the request.
Which AI tools does prompt protection cover?
Redaction happens at the network egress layer, so it is not tied to a per-site list — it applies across AI chat tools in the browser. The data it catches is limited to the classifier types you enable (API keys, SSNs, card data, PHI, credentials, source code, and more), so you control exactly what gets redacted.
How ShadowLock compares
Researching alternatives? Honest side-by-side comparisons against every MSP-channel shadow AI tool.
Stop sensitive data before it's typed into AI
Free 14-day trial. Audit mode shows your exposure before you enforce a thing.