South Korea is banning DeepSeek, due to privacy concerns
But if you already have it, you can still use it, at least for now.
Remember DeepSeek? The Chinese AI company that's been giving Elon Musk and Sam Altman sleepless nights since it released its R1 model last month.
But while Silicon Valley is scrambling, South Korea is shuttering the app, like literally banning it, citing privacy concerns. The East Asian's privacy watchdog, the Personal Information Protection Commission (PIPC), took a closer look at how DeepSeek handles user data. And what it found was unsettling.
Loy Okezie
It has been alleged that user data was being transferred to ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok. This is particularly interesting because ByteDance has been at the center of global data security debates for years. DeepSeek has admitted that when it launched in South Korea in January, it didn’t fully understand local privacy laws.
It you ask me, that's not exactly reassuring for a company that handles, collects and processes tons of user data.
While PIPC has temporarily banned new downloads of the chatbot as it investigates further, it doesn’t mean the app is completely gone. If you already have it, you can still use it, but regulators are strongly advising against entering any personal information until a final decision is made.
DeepSeek is scrambling to get on the right side of South Korean regulators, hiring a local representative and promising to address concerns. But fixing these issues won't happen overnight. The PIPC warns it'll take "a significant amount of time." And given the current scrutiny around AI and data security, that’s not an exaggeration.
Emmanuel Oyedeji
DeepSeek's troubles don't stop at South Korea's borders. The AI Chatbot has been facing regulatory pushback in multiple countries. Australia banned it on government devices, Taiwan completely blocked its use in government departments, and Italy’s data protection authority ordered DeepSeek to limit how it processes user data until it proves it’s following local laws. The pattern here is pretty clear, governments don’t fully trust a Chinese AI company that funnels data back to China, and they’re acting fast to protect their citizens.
This global pushback against DeepSeek raises important questions about the balance between innovation and security. Governments are rightfully concerned about the potential risks of AI companies handling sensitive user data. However, overly restrictive policies could stifle the development of AI technology and limit access to its benefits.
