DeepSeek AI gets hit with data privacy red flag by Italy and Ireland

DeepSeek, a Chinese AI chatbot, swiftly rose to the top of app stores this week, and it's just as swiftly rising in priority for data protection watchdog agencies worldwide. 

DeepSeek's privacy policy has many aspects that might concern users, but governments are particularly interested in the fact that the company's data is stored in China and, therefore, subject to Chinese data laws.

A data protection watchdog in Italy, Euroconsumers, comprising a coalition of consumer groups throughout Europe, filed a complaint to the Italian Data Protection Authority earlier this week that asks DeepSeek for more details about how the company will process its citizens' data, saying, in Italian, according to TechCrunch, "The data of millions of Italians is at risk." The Irish Data Protection Commission quickly followed suit.

On Wednesday, Reuters reported that DeepSeek could not be accessed in Apple and Google app stores in Italy.

"The Data Protection Commission (DPC) has written to DeepSeek requesting information on the data processing conducted in relation to data subjects in Ireland," a spokesperson for the Irish Data Protection Commission told TechCrunch.

DeepSeek collects information you provide, like your birthday and email address and anything you send in the chat; information like your IP address, keystroke patterns or rhythms, and payment information; and information from other sources, like if you sign in using Google or Apple. This information is stored "in secure servers in the People's Republic of China." This, of course, is all coming when TikTok is battling a ban in the U.S. due to ties with "foreign adversaries."