Chatbot Security Risks, Vulnerabilities, and Best Practices

Chatbots have become a standard part of how businesses interact with customers. From answering basic questions to supporting transactions and service requests, they’re now embedded across websites, apps, and internal systems.

Posted in Cyber Attacks and Data Breach

February 4, 20265 min read

As chatbot capabilities have evolved, many organizations have moved beyond simple rule-based tools and adopted AI-powered chatbots that rely on large language models (LLMs) to generate more natural responses. Recent industry data shows that 85 percent of enterprises and 78 percent of SMBs are already using AI agents, with 80 percent of customer support queries now handled by AI-powered bots. Companies report efficiency gains up to 55 percent and cost reductions of around 35 percent as a result.

That rapid adoption comes with new risks. As chatbots process more confidential information and connect directly to backend systems, they’ve become an attractive target for cybercriminals. Data breaches, unauthorized access, phishing, prompt injection, and API abuse are no longer edge cases; they’re real-world security threats that can expose personal data, compromise customer trust, and create serious compliance risks under regulations such as GDPR, CCPA, and HIPAA.

In this guide, we break down the most common chatbot security risks, the vulnerabilities attackers exploit, and the security measures businesses should put in place to protect customer data and prevent costly breaches.

What is a chatbot?

A chatbot is a software application designed to carry on conversations with users using artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, or predefined rules. Chatbots communicate with users through text or voice and are commonly used for customer support, lead generation, eCommerce assistance, and internal help desks.

Modern AI-powered chatbots can go way beyond simple scripted responses. They can analyze user intent, generate dynamic replies, integrate with backend systems, and process sensitive information such as account details, payment data, and support tickets, making chatbot security a real concern for many.

Are chatbots secure?

Whether or not a chatbot is secure depends on how it is built, configured, and maintained. There is no single answer because chatbot platforms vary widely in architecture, capabilities, and security controls.

Even well-designed and widely used chatbot systems can have vulnerabilities if they are misconfigured, poorly integrated, or not regularly updated. To better understand where things can go wrong, it helps to look at the specific security risks businesses should be aware of.

What are common chatbot security concerns?

As AI-powered chatbots become more deeply integrated into websites, apps, and backend systems, they introduce a distinct set of security concerns that go far beyond traditional live chat tools.

Chatbot security concerns fall into two categories: security risks, which are active threats attackers use, and security vulnerabilities, which are the weaknesses that make those attacks possible.

Security risks

Data breaches and data exfiltration: Exposure or theft of sensitive user data such as personal information, credentials, or payment details.
Injection attacks: Manipulating chatbot inputs to bypass safeguards, reveal internal data, or trigger unauthorized actions within connected systems.
Phishing and social engineering: Cybercriminals can use fake or compromised chatbots to impersonate legitimate brands and trick users into sharing sensitive information.
Malware and ransomware distribution: Delivering malicious links or payloads through chatbot interactions.
Backend system compromise: Exploiting chatbot integrations to access or manipulate connected systems.
Data poisoning and output manipulation: Corrupting training data or feedback loops to alter chatbot behavior or spread misinformation.

Security vulnerabilities

Poor coding practices and unpatched software: Insecure code or outdated components that expose known exploits.
Weak authentication and authorization: Insufficient access controls that allow unauthorized use or privilege escalation.
Lack of encryption: Unprotected chatbot data in transit or at rest that can be intercepted or stolen.
Inadequate input validation: Failure to sanitize inputs or outputs, enabling prompt and script injection attacks.
Insecure API integrations: Overly permissive or poorly protected APIs connected to chatbot systems.
Excessive data collection: Collecting more data than necessary and storing this data for too long.
Misconfiguration: Security gaps caused by misconfigured security settings, mismanaged permissions, or deployment mistakes.

Chatbot security best practices

Two of the most important security controls for chatbots are authentication and authorization. The former refers to user identity verification, while the latter refers to granting permission for a specific user to perform certain tasks and functions or access a portal. Below are cybersecurity measures businesses should consider when securing chatbots:

Multi-factor authentication: This time-tested method of security requires users to verify their identity using two or more authentication factors.
Use a Web Application Firewall (WAF): A WAF protects websites from malicious traffic and harmful requests. It can help prevent bad bots from injecting malicious code into your chatbot’s iframe.
Automatic vulnerability patching: Use automatic scanning and patching to keep software, APIs, and dependencies up to date. This reduces exposure to known vulnerabilities, exploits, and malicious code without relying on manual updates.
User IDs and passwords: Instead of allowing anyone to use your chatbot, require them to become a registered user to obtain login credentials. Criminals like easy targets. Therefore, just an additional step like registering with a website could deter a would-be bad actor.
End-to-end encryption: This can prevent anyone other than the intended receiver and sender from seeing any part of the message or transaction. For example, having an “HTTPS” website provides transport layer security or a secure socket layer that ensures encrypted connections.
Biometric authentication: Instead of user IDs and passwords, you would use things like iris scans and fingerprinting to grant access.
Authentication timeouts: This security practice places a time limit on how long an authenticated user can stay “logged in.” You’ve likely seen this on your bank’s website. A pop-up asks you to log back in, confirm you are still active, or simply tells you time has expired. This can prevent a cybercriminal from having enough time to guess their way into someone’s secured account.
Data minimization: Collect only the data necessary for the chatbot’s function, limit how long conversations and logs are stored, anonymize sensitive data where possible, and enforce secure deletion processes in accordance with privacy regulations.

While there is no doubt that chatbots are an innovative and exciting technology to engage with customers, they give hackers one more opportunity to gain access to personal data and sensitive information. Chatbot security, like all aspects of website security, is in your hands.

Chatbot security is part of your broader website security strategy. The more layers of protection you put in place, the harder it will be for cybercriminals to compromise your site or your visitors.

Learn how SiteLock’s website security solutions can help protect your site and the customers who visit it.