U.S. and Allies Move Swiftly to Ban China’s DeepSeek AI from Government Devices Amid Security Fears
Washington, D.C., April 17, 2025 — In a sweeping response to escalating national security and privacy concerns, the U.S. government and several allied nations have enacted bans on the use of DeepSeek, a Chinese artificial intelligence platform, across government-issued devices. The move comes after mounting evidence that DeepSeek’s data collection practices could expose sensitive information to Chinese state surveillance, igniting bipartisan action and international coordination.
What Sparked the Ban?
DeepSeek, an AI startup owned by a Chinese parent company, burst onto the global tech scene in early 2025 with a new large language model rivaling industry leaders like ChatGPT—while operating on a fraction of the computing power. The platform’s rapid rise sent shockwaves through financial markets and drew immediate scrutiny from Western security experts.
Investigations revealed that all data processed by DeepSeek—including potentially sensitive government documents—was stored on servers in China, subject to Chinese data laws and possible government access. U.S. lawmakers and intelligence officials warned that this arrangement “poses an unacceptable risk” of surveillance and data exploitation by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
How Are Governments Responding?
The U.S. Department of Commerce led the charge, issuing a directive to all staffers to immediately cease using DeepSeek applications, websites, and services on government-furnished equipment. “To help keep Department of Commerce information systems safe, access to the new Chinese-based AI DeepSeek is broadly prohibited on all GFE,” read a department-wide email.
A bipartisan coalition in Congress, spearheaded by Representatives Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) and Darin LaHood (R-IL), introduced legislation to formalize a nationwide ban on DeepSeek for all federal government devices. Their efforts are backed by a coalition of 21 state attorneys general, who have urged Congress to act swiftly, describing DeepSeek as “a clear and imminent threat” to national security.
Multiple states—including Texas, New York, Virginia, and Tennessee—have already enacted bans at the state level, mirroring federal action. Internationally, Australia, Italy, and Taiwan have implemented similar prohibitions, while other countries such as France, South Korea, Ireland, and Belgium are actively considering bans.
Why Is DeepSeek Considered a Threat?
Security experts point to DeepSeek’s storage of user data in China as the core risk, warning that the platform’s compliance with Chinese data requests could enable the CCP to access proprietary, sensitive, or classified information. “By using DeepSeek, users are unknowingly sharing highly sensitive, proprietary information with the CCP—such as contracts, documents, and financial records,” lawmakers wrote in a recent letter to U.S. governors.
Australia’s Home Affairs secretary Stephanie Foster echoed these concerns, stating, “Entities must manage the risks arising from DeepSeek’s extensive collection of data and exposure of that data to extrajudicial directions from a foreign government that conflict with Australian law”.
The Broader Impact
DeepSeek’s meteoric rise and subsequent bans mark a pivotal moment in the global AI race. The platform’s ability to match industry leaders with lower computational costs has been described as “AI’s Sputnik moment,” highlighting both the promise and peril of rapid technological innovation from geopolitical rivals.
As governments worldwide grapple with balancing innovation and security, the DeepSeek episode underscores the growing importance of data sovereignty and the risks posed by foreign-controlled AI platforms in sensitive environments.
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