South Korean authorities have halted downloads of the Chinese AI app DeepSeek, pending a review of its data handling practices, officials announced Monday.
DeepSeek’s R1 chatbot has impressed investors and industry experts with its ability to compete with Western AI models at a significantly lower cost. However, concerns have emerged over its data storage practices, as the company states that user information is stored on “secure servers located in the People’s Republic of China.”
Seoul’s Personal Information Protection Commission announced that DeepSeek would remain unavailable for download until an assessment of its compliance with local data protection laws is completed. The Chinese firm has “acknowledged that considerations for domestic privacy laws were somewhat lacking,” the agency stated.
Regulators determined that aligning the app with South Korean privacy regulations “would inevitably take a significant amount of time.” To mitigate public concerns, they recommended that DeepSeek suspend its services while implementing necessary adjustments. The company has “accepted” this recommendation, leading to its removal from local app stores on Saturday at 6:00 pm (0900 GMT).
For users who have already installed the app, the AI chatbot remains functional. However, the data protection agency has issued a warning, advising users to “use the service with caution until the final results are announced” and to “refrain from entering personal information into the DeepSeek input field.”
According to data security expert Youm Heung-Youl, DeepSeek has yet to establish a privacy policy “specifically tailored” to South Korean users. “It has, on the other hand, disclosed a privacy policy for the EU and certain other countries, stating that it complies with the domestic laws of those nations,” he told AFP, stressing the need for DeepSeek to develop a privacy framework suited to Korea.
In response to the app’s suspension, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun urged “relevant countries” to “avoid taking measures that overstretch the concept of security or politicize trade and technology issues.” He also stated that China expects its companies to adhere to local regulations in overseas markets.
The controversy surrounding DeepSeek is not confined to South Korea. Italy has launched an investigation into its data practices and restricted its use, while Australia has banned the app from all government devices following security agency recommendations. US lawmakers have also introduced a bill seeking to prohibit DeepSeek on government devices over data security concerns.
Despite these global restrictions, the Chinese government maintains that it “has never and will never require enterprises or individuals to illegally collect or store data.”
AFP
