Perplexity Comet: 15 Things You Should Never Let an AI Browser Do
What happens when your web browser can do more than open websites?
That is the question behind Perplexity Comet.
Unlike a traditional browser, Comet combines web browsing with an AI assistant that can understand webpages, answer questions, retrieve information and, when permitted, perform actions on your behalf.
That can be incredibly useful.
It can also change the security equation.
A normal browser waits for you to click.
An AI browser can potentially understand what is on the screen, navigate websites, fill forms and perform tasks.
That means users need to think differently about browser permissions.
The biggest mistake isn’t necessarily using an AI browser.
It is giving an AI browser more access than it actually needs.
Perplexity’s current documentation says Comet Assistant can perform actions such as clicking, navigating and filling forms when those capabilities are enabled. Organizations can also restrict the assistant to read-only or no-access permissions on specific domains.
So before you allow an AI browser to handle your digital life, here are 15 things you should think twice about letting it do.
What Is Perplexity Comet?
Perplexity Comet is a Chromium-based AI browser built around Perplexity’s search and assistant technology.
Instead of opening a separate AI chatbot every time you need help, Comet puts AI directly inside the browsing experience.
It can help you:
- Understand webpages
- Summarize articles
- Research information
- Compare websites
- Find information across tabs
- Navigate websites
- Automate certain browser tasks
- Work with supported connected services
Comet also supports standard browser functionality such as bookmarks and Chrome extensions.
The interesting part isn’t simply that Comet has AI.
It is that the AI can potentially interact with the browser.
That’s where convenience and risk begin to overlap.
Why AI Browsers Are Different
Consider the difference.
Traditional Browser
You search → You click → You read → You decide → You act.
AI Browser
You give an instruction → AI interprets the task → AI researches → AI navigates → AI may perform actions → You review.
The second workflow can save enormous amounts of time.
But it also creates new failure points.
If an AI misunderstands a webpage, clicks the wrong button or interprets an instruction incorrectly, the consequences could be greater than receiving a wrong answer in a chatbot.
That’s why permission management matters.
15 Things You Should Never Let Perplexity Comet Do Without Thinking Twice
1. Never Give an AI Browser Unlimited Access to Your Banking
This should be the first rule.
Banking websites contain extremely sensitive information.
Even if an AI browser can technically navigate a financial website, that doesn’t mean you should give it unrestricted authority to perform transactions.
Avoid allowing an AI agent to independently:
- Transfer money
- Add recipients
- Change account information
- Make investment decisions
- Move large amounts of money
- Approve financial transactions
An AI can make mistakes.
A mistake in a research summary is inconvenient.
A mistake involving money can be irreversible.
Use AI for financial research if useful. Keep financial decisions and transactions under direct human control.
2. Don’t Let It Buy Expensive Products Without Approval
AI shopping sounds convenient.
You could theoretically tell an agent:
“Find the best laptop under $2,000 and buy it.”
But there are several potential problems.
The AI might misunderstand:
- Your budget
- Product specifications
- Warranty requirements
- Return policies
- Seller reputation
- Shipping details
A safer instruction is:
“Research five laptops under $2,000 and show me the options. Do not purchase anything.”
Research can be automated.
The final purchase should remain yours.
3. Don’t Give It Your Passwords Directly
Comet includes password-management functionality, and its documentation says saved passwords are protected using the operating system’s secure storage.
That doesn’t mean you should ever type your passwords into an AI conversation.
Never send an AI:
- Passwords
- One-time authentication codes
- Recovery codes
- Private keys
- Security answers
A password manager and an AI assistant are two different things.
Keep authentication credentials protected.
4. Be Careful With Gmail
Email is one of the most sensitive areas of your digital life.
Your inbox can contain:
- Financial information
- Personal conversations
- Business documents
- Password-reset links
- Travel details
- Customer information
- Legal documents
- Private attachments
Comet can work with information from webpages and supported integrations when the user grants the required access. Perplexity says these integrations are opt-in and can be revoked.
Before giving an AI assistant access to email, ask:
Does it really need access to everything?
If the answer is no, don’t provide everything.
5. Don’t Let It Send Important Emails Automatically
AI can write excellent emails.
But writing and sending are two different things.
A message to a friend is one thing.
A message to:
- Your boss
- A customer
- A lawyer
- A bank
- A government agency
- A business partner
can have serious consequences.
A safer workflow is:
AI drafts → You review → You approve → Email is sent
Not:
AI drafts → AI sends automatically
6. Don’t Let It Upload Confidential Business Documents
AI browsers can make document workflows extremely convenient.
But convenience should never override confidentiality.
Think carefully before uploading or exposing:
- Customer databases
- Internal financial reports
- Contracts
- Employee information
- Trade secrets
- Private product plans
- Unreleased business strategies
A company’s internal information may be more valuable than any convenience gained from automation.
If you’re using Comet for work, establish clear rules about which websites and information the assistant can access.
7. Don’t Let It Handle Legal Documents Without Review
AI can summarize contracts.
It can identify clauses.
It can compare documents.
But don’t confuse those abilities with professional legal advice.
If an AI summarizes a contract and misses an important clause, the consequences could be significant.
Use AI to organize and understand information.
For important legal decisions, have the appropriate professional review the original document.
8. Don’t Let It Make Medical Decisions for You
AI can help research health information.
It can summarize medical literature.
It can explain terminology.
But an AI browser should not independently decide:
- What medication you should take
- Whether you should stop treatment
- Whether an emergency is safe to ignore
- What diagnosis you have
Health decisions require appropriate professional judgment.
AI can be a research assistant.
It should not become your doctor.
9. Don’t Let It Approve Job Offers Automatically
AI can help compare job opportunities.
It can analyze:
- Salary
- Benefits
- Job descriptions
- Company information
- Responsibilities
But accepting an offer is a major personal decision.
An AI may not understand:
- Your career goals
- Family situation
- Negotiation strategy
- Workplace culture
- Long-term priorities
Let AI analyze the options.
You make the decision.
10. Don’t Give Every Website Permission to Control the Browser
This is one of the most important technical considerations.
Comet provides controls that allow organizations to determine where the assistant can operate, including browser-control, read-only and no-access permissions for specific domains.
That concept is useful even for individual users:
Not every website deserves the same level of access.
A news website doesn’t need the same authority as your email account.
A shopping website doesn’t need the same authority as a document system.
A random website should not automatically receive permission to perform actions.
Use the minimum necessary access.
11. Don’t Let an AI Browser Ignore Security Warnings
Modern browsers use security systems to detect dangerous websites, downloads and phishing attempts.
Comet includes Safe Browsing and malware protections designed to warn users about known dangerous sites, downloads and extensions.
If the browser warns you:
Stop.
Don’t automatically tell the AI:
“Ignore the warning and continue.”
Attackers often rely on people ignoring security warnings.
An AI agent should not be encouraged to bypass a security control simply because a task needs to be completed.
12. Don’t Automatically Trust AI-Generated Forms
Forms can look simple.
But an AI filling out a form may not understand every field correctly.
Imagine a form asking:
“Are you legally authorized to work in the United States?”
An AI should not guess.
The same applies to:
- Tax forms
- Immigration forms
- Insurance documents
- Loan applications
- Legal forms
- Government applications
These require accurate human input.
Let AI help explain the form.
Don’t let it invent answers.
13. Don’t Let It Make High-Stakes Purchases or Bookings Without Review
Travel agents and shopping agents are becoming increasingly capable.
But imagine an AI accidentally booking:
- The wrong date
- The wrong airport
- A non-refundable ticket
- The wrong hotel
- An expensive upgrade
The AI may have technically completed your instruction.
But the result can still be wrong.
A good rule:
AI researches. Human confirms.
14. Don’t Assume an AI Understands Every Webpage Correctly
This is an underrated problem.
Webpages aren’t always clean.
A page may contain:
- Advertisements
- Hidden text
- Misleading information
- Fake reviews
- Embedded instructions
- User-generated content
- Malicious content
AI agents can also face prompt-injection attacks, where webpage content attempts to manipulate the AI into performing an unintended action.
This is one reason agentic browsing needs stronger safeguards than ordinary search.
If an AI tells you:
“The webpage instructed me to upload your private file.”
don’t automatically approve it.
Ask why the action is necessary.
15. Never Give an AI Agent More Authority Than the Task Requires
This is the biggest rule of all.
Suppose you ask:
“Find the cheapest flight to New York.”
The AI only needs research access.
It doesn’t need:
- Your banking account
- Your email
- Your password manager
- Your cloud storage
- Your private documents
The best security principle is:
Minimum necessary access.
If the task doesn’t require a permission, don’t give it.
Is Perplexity Comet Safe?
Comet includes multiple privacy and security controls.
Its current documentation says Comet Assistant does not automatically access or upload things such as browsing history, passwords, autofill data or local files unless the task requires relevant context or the user explicitly sends information.
Comet also provides controls for site permissions, including access to:
- Camera
- Microphone
- Location
- Notifications
- Clipboard
- File system
Users can change these permissions on a per-site basis.
That is good news.
But security isn’t only about what the browser can protect you from.
It’s also about what you choose to allow.
What Does Perplexity Comet Know About You?
This depends on how you use it.
Comet stores certain browsing information locally, and its AI features may use relevant information when a user requests a task requiring personal context.
According to Perplexity’s documentation, personal information can be used when needed for tasks such as organizing emails or performing actions on the user’s behalf.
That means users should understand the difference between:
Browsing normally
and
Asking an AI agent to act using your personal context.
The second can require more information.
Does Comet Store Your Passwords?
Comet provides a built-in password manager.
Its documentation says passwords are encrypted and stored using the operating system’s secure vault, such as Keychain on macOS or Credential Manager on Windows.
That’s different from sending a password directly to an AI.
Never paste passwords into an AI prompt.
What About Incognito Mode?
Incognito can reduce what is stored locally.
Comet’s privacy documentation says its Incognito mode does not save browsing history, cookies or cache for that browsing session.
But Incognito does not make you invisible online.
Your:
- Internet provider
- Employer
- Network administrator
- Websites
may still have visibility depending on the circumstances.
Incognito is a privacy feature, not an invisibility cloak.
7 Safer Comet Settings to Check
Before relying heavily on an AI browser, review these settings.
1. Site Permissions
Check which websites can access your camera, microphone, location and files.
2. Assistant Permissions
Decide whether the AI can only read information or also control the browser.
3. Password Manager
Make sure your operating system account is protected with a strong password or biometric authentication.
4. Third-Party Cookies
Review whether you want third-party cookies enabled.
5. Safe Browsing
Keep browser security protections enabled.
6. Extensions
Only install extensions you trust.
7. Data Controls
Review how assistant-related information is stored and managed.
Comet provides settings for limiting or disabling Assistant functionality and blocking the assistant on specific websites.
The Best Way to Use Perplexity Comet
Don’t think of Comet as:
“A robot that can do everything for me.”
Think of it as:
“A browser assistant that I control.”
That difference is important.
Use it for:
- Research
- Summaries
- Comparisons
- Repetitive low-risk tasks
- Information extraction
- Organizing research
- Drafting
- Navigation assistance
Be much more cautious with:
- Money
- Passwords
- Legal decisions
- Medical decisions
- Sensitive business data
- Account changes
- Permanent purchases
- High-impact communications
A Simple Rule: Read, Think, Act
Before allowing Comet to perform an action, ask three questions:
READ
What information does the AI need?
THINK
Could it misunderstand the task?
ACT
What happens if it makes a mistake?
If the consequence is serious, keep the final action manual.
Perplexity Comet vs Traditional Browsers
| Feature | Traditional Browser | Perplexity Comet |
|---|---|---|
| Browse websites | Yes | Yes |
| Search | Yes | Yes |
| AI assistance | Limited/varies | Built in |
| Page summaries | Limited/extension-based | Yes |
| Multi-step AI tasks | Limited | Supported |
| Browser automation | Limited | Supported |
| AI research | Limited | Strong focus |
| Site permissions | Yes | Yes |
| AI action controls | Usually limited | Available |
| Human approval | User-controlled | Configurable depending on task |
The biggest difference is not browsing.
It’s agency.
Comet can potentially act instead of simply showing you information.
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Should You Use Perplexity Comet?
For people who spend hours researching and working online, Comet can be genuinely useful.
It can reduce repetitive browser work and bring AI directly into everyday browsing.
But don’t measure an AI browser only by how much it can do.
Measure it by:
How safely can you control what it does?
That’s the more important question.
A powerful AI agent with carefully controlled permissions can be extremely useful.
A powerful AI agent with unrestricted access to everything can create unnecessary risk.
Perplexity Comet FAQs
1. What is Perplexity Comet?
Perplexity Comet is a Chromium-based AI browser that combines traditional web browsing with Perplexity’s AI capabilities.
2. Is Perplexity Comet safe?
Comet includes privacy and security controls, but safe use also depends on the permissions and access users provide.
3. Can Comet access my passwords?
Comet includes a password manager that stores credentials in the device’s secure storage. Users should never provide passwords directly inside AI prompts.
4. Can Comet access Gmail?
Supported workflows can use email information when the required integration or permission is granted. Users can control whether such access is allowed.
5. Can Comet control websites?
Yes. Supported Comet Assistant functionality can navigate, click and fill forms on behalf of users when browser-control permissions are enabled.
6. Can Comet buy things for me?
Supported agentic workflows may be capable of assisting with shopping and website interactions, but users should review purchases before allowing an AI to complete expensive or irreversible transactions.
7. Should I let Comet access my bank account?
It is safer to avoid giving an AI unrestricted authority over banking transactions. If an AI is used for financial research, keep actual transactions under direct human control.
8. Can Comet read my browsing history?
Comet stores browsing information locally for browser functionality, and relevant browsing context may be used for certain AI requests when needed.
9. Does Comet sell my data?
Perplexity says Comet does not sell users’ data. Users should still review the current privacy controls and policies for their particular setup.
10. Does Comet have incognito mode?
Yes. Comet’s Incognito mode is designed not to save browsing history, cookies or cache locally for that session.
11. Can Comet access my camera?
Websites can request camera access, but Comet provides site-level controls for camera permissions.
12. Can Comet access my microphone?
Websites can request microphone access, and users can allow, block or manage that permission through Comet’s site settings.
13. Can Comet access my location?
Yes, websites can request location access, but users can control this permission through Comet’s site settings.
14. Can Comet access local files?
File-system access is a permission that websites can request. Users can control whether sites receive that access.
15. Should I let Comet send emails automatically?
For important communications, it is safer to have Comet draft the message and require human review before sending.
16. Can Comet replace Google Chrome?
Comet is itself a Chromium-based browser and can perform many functions associated with traditional browsers. Whether it should replace Chrome depends on the user’s needs, privacy preferences and workflow.
17. Does Comet work with Chrome extensions?
Comet supports most Chrome extensions because it is based on Chromium, although compatibility can vary.
18. Can Comet automate repetitive tasks?
Yes. AI-assisted automation is one of Comet’s key capabilities, although the exact actions available depend on permissions and the task.
19. Can an AI browser make mistakes?
Yes. AI systems can misunderstand instructions, misread information or perform an unintended action. High-impact tasks should therefore include human verification.
20. What is the safest way to use Perplexity Comet?
Give the AI only the permissions necessary for the task, keep sensitive financial and authentication actions under human control, review important outputs and avoid granting unrestricted browser access.
Final Verdict
Perplexity Comet could change the way people use browsers.
A traditional browser helps you access the internet.
An AI browser can potentially understand it and act within it.
That’s the exciting part.
It’s also the part that requires the most caution.
You don’t need to avoid AI browsers.
You need to use them intelligently.
Let Comet research.
Let it summarize.
Let it compare.
Let it handle low-risk repetitive work.
But when the task involves money, passwords, private information, legal documents, medical decisions or irreversible actions, slow down and take control.
The smartest AI user isn’t the person who gives an AI the most access.
It’s the person who knows exactly how much access to give it.