Sweden's Government Offices Block ChatGPT and Claude on Work Computers From Oct 26

What happened

The decision was first reported on Oct 23 by Ekot, the news service of Sweden's public broadcaster Sveriges Radio. The Government Offices (Regeringskansliet) are the administrative machinery behind the prime minister and cabinet; the block covers direct access from staff work computers and takes effect on Monday, Oct 26.

On approved tools, Microsoft Copilot was approved after an internal security review, during which its security settings were tightened; the specific adjustments were not disclosed for security reasons. The block does not cut off all access: some staff will still reach ChatGPT and Claude through a controlled platform built in-house by the Government Offices. The offices had previously imposed a similar restriction on DeepSeek.

The same trend has spread to other agencies: the Swedish Tax Agency (Skatteverket) and the National Board of Institutional Care (SiS) have imposed similar restrictions, and the Enforcement Authority (Kronofogden) is considering a decision. An internal audit this year at the Swedish Transport Administration found staff using about 10 open AI services, with cases including sensitive information entered into the systems and improper handling of generated answers. Government Offices digitalization director Mikael Wettercrantz wrote on the intranet that using AI services without an agreement could affect information security.

Key facts

1. Effective date and scope: from Monday, Oct 26, 2026, staff at Sweden's Government Offices cannot directly access ChatGPT or Claude from work computers; the blocked tools are OpenAI's ChatGPT and Anthropic's Claude.
2. Approved tool: Microsoft Copilot is the approved tool, cleared after an internal security review during which its security settings were tightened; employees are to use pre-approved AI tools.
3. Controlled exception: some staff will still reach ChatGPT and Claude through a platform built in-house by the Government Offices, with the access route under its control.
4. Spread across agencies: the Swedish Tax Agency and the National Board of Institutional Care have imposed similar restrictions, the Enforcement Authority is considering a decision, and the Government Offices had previously restricted DeepSeek.
5. Audit background: an internal audit this year at the Swedish Transport Administration found staff using about 10 open AI services, with problem cases including sensitive information entered and improper handling of generated answers; digitalization director Wettercrantz said using AI services without an agreement could affect information security.