South Korea Accuses Chinese AI Firm DeepSeek of Unauthorized Data Transfers
South Korea’s data protection authority has accused Chinese artificial intelligence service DeepSeek of illegally transferring Korean users’ personal information to companies in China and the United States without consent. The accusation was made public on Thursday following an investigation by the Personal Information Protection Commission (PIPC).
According to findings reported by Seoul-based Yonhap News and cited by international media, DeepSeek transferred user data to three Chinese companies and one American firm before the service was suspended in South Korea on February 15. The commission also found that text inputs submitted by users while interacting with DeepSeek’s AI tools were shared with a Chinese firm, raising further concerns over privacy breaches.
The commission noted several flaws in DeepSeek’s data handling practices. The company’s information policy was available only in Chinese and English, lacked clear procedures for data destruction, and failed to specify adequate security measures. DeepSeek has since halted its operations in South Korea amid the growing controversy.
One of the recipients of the data was reportedly a Chinese cloud service provider named Volcano. DeepSeek admitted to transferring data to this company, stating that the move was intended to fix security vulnerabilities and improve the user experience. However, authorities said this was done without prior user consent, which violates South Korea’s data protection laws.
The commission confirmed that DeepSeek ceased new data transfers starting April 10, following official intervention. South Korean regulators said the transfer of user input data was unnecessary and unjustified, prompting the crackdown.
In response, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Guo Jiakun said that he was not aware of the specific situation mentioned by the reporter. “We have never — and will never — require companies or individuals to collect or store data through illegal means,” Guo stated.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun
While China’s Foreign Ministry responded to the incident by emphasizing the country’s commitment to data privacy and legal compliance, South Korean officials remain firm in their stance that DeepSeek’s actions breached national regulations. – News Agencies