S. Korean government ministries and tech firms move to ban DeepSeek

Access to Chinese AI service DeepSeek is being restricted by government organizations and major companies here in Korea over data security concerns.

Our Moon Hye-ryeon has the details.

South Korean government agencies have restricted access to DeepSeek – a Chinese AI service accused of excessive data collection.

On Thursday, the Ministry of Environment revealed that it blocked DeepSeek on all online computers as of 9 AM, while the Ministry of Economy and Finance stated its plans to restrict access on computers connected to external networks.

These measures come a day after the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced that access to DeepSeek on computers connected to external networks had been banned.

These ministries handle a significant amount of classified information related to diplomacy, national security, and trade.

A Defense Ministry official told reporters that the decision was made due to widespread concerns about the AI platform.

This comes after the Ministry of the Interior and Safety issued an advisory to central government ministries and 17 metropolitan and provincial governments, urging officials to be cautious when using generative AI services like DeepSeek and ChatGPT.

While the advisory did not explicitly call for a ban, it warned against entering sensitive or personal information into AI platforms, citing potential security risks.

South Korea's Personal Information Protection Commission sent an inquiry to DeepSeek's headquarters requesting details on its data collection and storage practices, but the company has yet to respond.

The private sector is also taking action, with major Korean tech companies restricting the use of DeepSeek.

Kakao, an official partner of OpenAI, recently banned its employees from using the service for work by citing security concerns.

LG Uplus also issued a security notice banning employees from using DeepSeek for work on the company network, and advised employees to avoid using DeepSeek on personal devices.

Samsung, SK, and LG Electronics have long prohibited unauthorized software on company devices, while Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power recently reinforced its AI security policies, banning DeepSeek on its internal network.

DeepSeek has also been banned from government computers in Australia and Japan, while Italy has gone as far as banning the app entirely.

In the U.S., the state of Texas, has blocked DeepSeek from government-owned devices.

Meanwhile, the European Union and the UK are closely monitoring potential risks associated with Chinese AI platforms.

Moon Hye-ryeon, Arirang News.