<p>Generative artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly changing education, creating opportunities and challenges. With this technology now widely available to secondary students, it is crucial to explore how they are using it. To explore secondary level students’ AI literacy, AI reliance, and ethical practices when using generative AI, the researchers collected data from a sample of 595 secondary level students from a private institution using an adopted 20-item Generative AI Literacy Assessment (GLAT) and a researcher made tool for AI reliance and ethical practices with 5-point rating scale. Findings revealed that the students’ mean AI literacy score was 8.71 out of 20, indicating a limited understanding of generative AI. The mean for AI reliance was found to be 2.91, while the mean for ethical practices was 3.88. Multiple linear regression analyses indicated that AI literacy and ethical practices significantly predict AI reliance, accounting for 6.02% of the variance in reliance (R² = 0.0602, p-value &lt; 0.001). Specifically, AI literacy was a significant negative predictor of AI reliance, suggesting that as students’ knowledge increases, their reliance decreases. However, ethical practices was a significant positive predictor of AI reliance, suggesting that more ethical students tend to also be more reliant on the technology. Furthermore, both AI literacy and AI reliance were found to be significant positive predictors of ethical practices, explaining 9.13% of the variance in ethical practices (R² = 0.0913, p-value &lt; 0.001). This suggests a direct link where higher AI literacy leads to more ethical behavior, and that students who are more reliant on AI also tend to exhibit more ethical practices. The findings highlight the complex relationship between students’ AI knowledge, reliance, and behavior, providing a foundation for targeted educational interventions.</p>