Australian Government Warns Doctors Over AI Scribe Privacy Risks

The use of artificial intelligence (AI) to assist doctors during medical appointments is growing at a remarkable speed. These new tools, known as AI scribes, record, transcribe, and summarize conversations between doctors and patients to create medical notes automatically. While the technology is designed to help doctors manage their heavy paperwork, the Australian federal health department has recently issued a formal warning about the risks these tools pose to patient privacy and data security.

According to an online poll by the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP), the number of doctors using AI scribes in Australia nearly doubled between August 2024 and November 2025. Companies that sell these services claim they have been used hundreds of millions of times across the world in just the last 18 months. These businesses argue that the technology is essential for doctors who want to spend less time typing and more time talking to their patients. However, the rapid adoption of these tools has caught the attention of government regulators who worry that the technology is moving faster than the rules meant to control it.

In February 2026, internal government documents obtained by The Guardian Australia revealed that the health department is concerned about the lack of oversight for these digital tools. Many of these AI products are not classified as medical devices, which means they do not have to follow the same strict safety rules as other medical equipment. The department noted that some companies market their products as being private and secure, but they often lack transparency. More worryingly, the government warned that some of these cloud-based platforms may send sensitive patient data to servers located outside of Australia, which creates significant risks for data security.

Beyond privacy, the government is also looking at the financial impact of these tools. Some companies promise that using their AI scribes can increase a doctor’s revenue by 30% without requiring extra hours or more patient visits. The health department noted that this claim has serious implications for the costs of the Medicare Benefits Scheme, the national health insurance program in Australia. While the department’s AI advisory group acknowledged that these tools could help reduce doctor burnout and improve productivity, they also warned that the AI programs have the same limitations as other language models. This means they can sometimes make mistakes, which could affect patient safety and the accuracy of national health records.

Another major issue is how doctors obtain permission from their patients. The health department stated that “informed consent”—which means patients must fully understand the benefits and risks of the technology before agreeing to it—is currently inconsistent across the country. Dr. Elizabeth Deveny, the chief executive of the Consumer Health Forum, said that the government’s concerns match what many patients are feeling. She emphasized that the public needs to know if these tools are actually leading to better care or if they are simply being used to increase the number of billable appointments.

Reports suggest that some patients are being put in difficult positions. The Guardian Australia has previously reported on cases where doctors failed to ask for proper consent before turning on the AI recording tools. In one notable case in Melbourne, a psychiatrist reportedly refused to see any patients who did not agree to the use of an AI scribe. Dr. Deveny confirmed that her organization is hearing from more patients who have been told they must find a different doctor if they do not want their conversations recorded by an AI.

As the health regulator continues to look into the need for new safeguards, the future of AI in medicine remains a subject of intense debate. The core question is whether current rules are strong enough to handle the rapid changes in medical technology. For now, the government is urging both doctors and technology suppliers to be more careful. As the industry continues to grow, patients and policymakers alike are calling for clearer rules to ensure that personal health information remains private and that the quality of medical care does not suffer in the pursuit of efficiency.