Should I give my AI agent my password?
Sharing your own login breaks the terms of many sites, and it gives the agent everything you can do. Shopify tells store owners they "shouldn't share their login credentials with anyone, including their staff" [1]. The IRS says only the taxpayer should sign in to an individual online account and that credentials should never be shared [3].
What is an agent seat?
It is a separate login that belongs to the agent, set up by you on the site, the way you would add a bookkeeper or an assistant. Sites call it different things: a staff account (Shopify), user permissions or an Authorized Partner (Amazon Seller Central), or an authorization (IRS). You choose what the seat can see and do.
Which sites offer a separate seat?
Many business tools do. A few documented examples:
- ›Shopify: staff accounts with specific permissions [1].
- ›Amazon Seller Central: user permissions for people in your business, and Authorized Partners for outside service providers, each with only the access you grant. Amazon staff tell sellers: "Do not share your password; use User Permissions to provide access instead." [5]
- ›IRS: authorization for tax professionals and other helpers, such as Tax Pro Account, power of attorney (for attorneys, CPAs, enrolled agents and others who can practice before the IRS) and tax information authorization [4].
- ›State tax portals: they differ. Arizona has primary and delegate users for business accounts; New York has tax professional authorization [6].
A seat that exists does not mean any kind of automation is allowed on it. Shopify's terms, for example, prohibit accessing its services by automated means [2]. Check the site's terms for what the seat may do, and use the site's own app connection where it has one.
How does runnerID use a seat?
Your runnerID identity holds the seat's login in its own vault, not yours. runnerID types it into the page so the model never sees it, makes or catches the codes, keeps the session, and asks you before risky steps. Site rules limit which sites the identity may use. Every action goes in a log you can read. Coming to runnerID: when your agent hands it a step it can't finish, runnerID will do that step through the identity's own seat and refuse work a site's terms forbid.
What if the site has no seat?
Use the site's own app connection if it has one; Gusto, for example, lets payroll admins connect it to Claude and ChatGPT, and your Gusto password is never shared [7]. If there is neither a seat nor a connection, use your own password only where the site's terms allow it, keep the agent on a short list of allowed sites, and require approval for anything that sends, pays or deletes. Where the terms forbid it, don't.
How do I take access back?
Remove the seat on the site, the same way you would remove an employee's account. In runnerID you can also revoke the identity with one switch, which shuts off its logins, codes and sessions at once.
Questions
Is it against the rules to share my login with an AI agent?
On many sites, yes. Shopify, Amazon and the IRS all tell owners not to share their login, and offer a separate seat or authorization instead. Read the terms of the site you have in mind.
What access should the agent's seat have?
Only what the task needs. A seat that pulls reports doesn't need to issue refunds or change settings. Start narrow and add access later.
Will the agent see the seat's password?
Not with runnerID. runnerID types the password into the page; the model never receives it.
Can I use this for my bank account?
No. runnerID is not for bank accounts. Banks keep credentials with the account owner and offer their own app connections.
Can I see what the agent did with its seat?
Yes. The site's own activity history shows actions by that seat, and runnerID keeps a log of every fill, code and approval.
Related guides
The four walls: credentials, codes, blocked browsers and the agent's own limits.
Read →Placeholders, saved sessions, vault autofill and agent identity.
Read →Site rules, approval by email link, the log and revoke.
Read →Sources, checked October 24, 2026
- ›1. Shopify Help Center, Account security: https://help.shopify.com/en/manual/privacy-and-security/account-security
- ›2. Shopify, Terms of Service: https://www.shopify.com/legal/terms
- ›3. IRS, Online account for individuals FAQ: https://www.irs.gov/payments/online-account-for-individuals-frequently-asked-questions
- ›4. IRS authorization options: https://www.irs.gov/tax-professionals/tax-pro-account and https://www.irs.gov/request-a-power-of-attorney-poa-or-tax-information-authorization-tia
- ›5. Amazon Seller Forums, staff posts on user permissions and Authorized Partners: https://sellercentral.amazon.com/seller-forums/discussions/t/c63f8fc4-c813-4ba2-a864-ff4eef117223 and https://sellercentral.amazon.com/seller-forums/discussions/t/78c10543-85e2-4f62-a124-631346c0cd29
- ›6. Arizona delegate users: https://azdor.gov/transaction-privilege-tax/tpt-license/aztaxes-user-access ; New York tax professional authorization: https://www.tax.ny.gov/online/tr-2000-1.htm
- ›7. Gusto, connect Gusto to Claude, ChatGPT and Slack: https://support.gusto.com/article/250715155353740/connect-gusto-to-chatgpt-claude-and-slack
Shopify is a trademark of Shopify. Amazon and Seller Central are trademarks of Amazon. Gusto belongs to its owner. Claude is a trademark of Anthropic. ChatGPT is a trademark of OpenAI. Other product names belong to their owners. This page is not legal advice. runnerID and Torchrunner are not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by any of them.