🔍 Read the full analysis: The Fireworks Breach, Notion AI, And The Zero-Retention Promise on ThorstenMeyerAI.com
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TL;DR
Notion says data accessed in the Fireworks AI breach included Notion AI chat transcripts used for its Insights feature, affecting fewer than 1% of workspaces. The company says Fireworks had committed contractually to zero data retention, but its investigation found data had been retained; the system involved and retention period remain unknown.
Notion says chat transcripts from its AI Insights feature were included in data accessed during the Fireworks AI breach, and that Fireworks retained data despite a contractual zero-retention commitment. Notion estimates fewer than 1% of workspaces were affected and says it revoked exposed Notion API keys found in affected user messages on November 11.
Notion’s updated security advisory says the exposed dataset came from Fireworks’ work on Insights, a feature that gives workspace administrators information about how teams use AI. Notion says the data included transcripts of Notion AI chats used for that feature. For most affected workspaces, it says, the transcripts were not attributable to an individual or workspace: they did not identify who wrote them or which workspace they came from, and did not contain tool-call results.
That does not mean the messages were necessarily free of sensitive information. Notion defines a transcript as input to or output from the model written in the chat. It advises affected customers to review the data because a transcript may contain customer names, contract details, passwords or other sensitive material. The company says AI Meeting Notes were not affected unless audio, transcripts or summaries were subsequently used as input in a Notion AI chat. It says no other Notion features were affected.
Notion’s notice says it disconnected its systems from Fireworks on November 3, deleted its data from Fireworks’ system and stopped communications between the systems. It also says it halted training runs. On November 11, Notion said it revoked exposed Notion API keys that were found in affected user messages. It recommends that affected workspaces treat the data as exposed, conduct a security incident review and rotate credentials entered into Notion AI during the incident.
The Fireworks Breach and Notion AI
Notion says chat transcripts used for Insights were accessed after Fireworks retained data despite a contractual zero-retention commitment. The system involved and retention period remain unknown.
What the breach involved
The data accessed came from Fireworks’ work on Notion Insights.
AI chat transcripts
Inputs and outputs from Notion AI chats used for Insights were included.
Text could be sensitive
Most transcripts lacked user and workspace labels, but could still contain names, contract details or credentials.
Limited feature impact
Notion says other features were not affected. AI Meeting Notes were affected only if their content was later used in an AI chat.
What the zero-retention promise covered
Notion says stored requests and responses were sent to Fireworks for Insights analysis.
- Zero retention applied to live requests sent to generate AI responses.
- Stored information for features such as chat history and Insights could require retention.
- Notion says Fireworks had contractually committed to zero data retention.
- Notion found data retained from the endpoints it used; the system and retention period are unknown.
Response and customer action
Notion says it disconnected from Fireworks and deleted its data on November 3.
Affected workspaces should treat the data as exposed and conduct a security incident review.
Change passwords, API keys and other credentials entered into Notion AI during the incident.
Check with the workspace owner or Notion if you need to confirm whether the workspace was identified as affected.
What the Retention Finding Means
The disclosure raises a practical question for organizations using AI features: what does a zero-retention promise cover? Notion says its own zero-retention commitments for live requests to model vendors apply to requests sent to generate Notion AI responses. It separately says features that rely on stored information, including chat history and Insights, may require retention and are outside that commitment.
For Insights, Notion says it sent stored requests and responses from Notion AI use to Fireworks for analysis. Notion reports that Fireworks had given it a contractual commitment to zero data retention, but that its investigation found data had nevertheless been retained from the endpoints Notion used. This is Notion’s account of the vendor arrangement and investigation; the published notices do not identify the system that kept the data or explain how the retention occurred.
That distinction matters to business customers reviewing vendor assurances. A contractual promise, the configuration of a particular service and the data needed to run a product feature may have different scopes. The incident also shows why customers should review what employees enter into AI chats: even when records are not labeled with a person or workspace, the text itself may include identifying or confidential details.
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How Notion Used Fireworks
Notion says it used Fireworks for two purposes: classification jobs for Insights and as a general inference provider for open-weight models in its product. The exposed data described in Notion’s notice came from the Insights work, rather than from all Notion AI activity.
Fireworks’ own bulletin, last updated November 9 according to the source material, says it had not detected an impact to Inference, Training SDK and Nexus, which it describes as zero data retention by default. The company also lists datasets among the data accessed for certain customers. Those statements do not, by themselves, establish which Fireworks system retained Notion’s data or reconcile the difference between the vendors’ descriptions.
Notion’s published timeline says Fireworks notified it on 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, Notion says it disconnected from Fireworks and deleted its data there. Its later advisory updates on November 10 and 11 added the disclosure about chat transcripts and exposed API keys.
“Unfortunately, during our investigation we learned that data was retained from the Fireworks endpoints that we used.”
— Notion
Which Data Systems Retained Records
The specific Fireworks system involved is not identified in the published notices. Notion has not said how long the data was retained, how many individual users were affected, or whether the retention resulted from a system configuration, a separate data store or another process.
Notion estimates that fewer than 1% of workspaces were affected. It says that if neither a user nor the workspace owner has heard from the company, Notion has not identified that workspace as affected. The notices do not give a count of people or transcripts, or a detailed account of what credentials were found in messages beyond the exposed API keys Notion says it revoked.
Fireworks’ description of services that it says were not affected does not resolve the question of where Notion’s stored data was kept. The available statements also do not establish whether other Fireworks customers had similar retention issues. Those points remain unconfirmed.
Vendor Audit and Customer Reviews
Notion says it is auditing critical vendors, including inference providers and data processors, to check their data-minimization practices and zero-retention policies. It has not announced a completion date for that review or said whether it will publish further technical findings.
For customers notified that they are affected, Notion recommends reviewing the incident data and rotating any passwords, API keys or other credentials entered into Notion AI during the relevant period. The company says affected users should treat the data as exposed. Customers can also check with their workspace owner or Notion if they need to confirm whether their workspace has been identified.
The next material updates would be details about the Fireworks system involved, the retention period and the scope of affected records. Until either company provides those details, the precise cause and broader customer impact remain unsettled.
Key Questions
What Notion data does the company say was exposed?
Notion says the dataset accessed in the Fireworks breach included Notion AI chat transcripts used for the Insights feature. It says most affected transcripts were not labeled with a user or workspace, but their content could still contain sensitive information.
How many Notion workspaces were affected?
Notion puts the figure at fewer than 1% of workspaces. It has not provided a count of affected people or transcripts. The company says it has not identified a workspace as affected if neither the user nor workspace owner has received a notice.
Did zero data retention apply to these transcripts?
Notion says zero-retention commitments for live model requests do not cover data it retains for features such as chat history and Insights. It also says Fireworks had separately made a contractual zero-retention commitment for Notion’s use of its platform, but that Notion’s investigation found data had been retained.
What should a notified workspace do?
Notion advises affected workspaces to treat the data as exposed, review it through a security incident review and rotate credentials—including passwords and API keys—entered into Notion AI during the incident.
What remains unknown about the breach?
The companies have not identified which Fireworks system retained the data, how long it was kept, or whether other Fireworks customers faced a similar problem. Notion also has not published a count of affected individuals.
Source: ThorstenMeyerAI.com
