South Korea Suspends Chinese AI App DeepSeek Over Privacy Concerns

Seoul, South Korea—Chinese artificial intelligence company DeepSeek suspended its mobile application service in South Korea from 6:00 PM local time on February 15. 

The suspension follows discussions with South Korea's Personal Information Protection Commission regarding compliance with domestic privacy regulations.

The Personal Information Protection Commission initiated its review by sending an official inquiry to DeepSeek headquarters on January 31 regarding data collection and processing methods. 

The commission's analysis identified concerns regarding third-party communication features and privacy policy deficiencies.

DeepSeek designated a local representative on February 10 and acknowledged that its global service launch did not adequately consider South Korean privacy laws. 

The company formally expressed its cooperation commitment to the commission on February 14.

The commission determined that achieving full compliance with the Personal Information Protection Act would require an extended period.

 The regulatory body will inspect DeepSeek's data processing practices during the suspension period. 

This review is expected to proceed more rapidly than previous inspections of major AI services, which require approximately five months.

The Personal Information Protection Commission will develop guidelines for foreign artificial intelligence developers planning to launch services in South Korea, including compliance checklists. 

The commission plans to propose amendments to strengthen enforcement measures for overseas operators and will address international cooperation at the Global Privacy Assembly in Seoul this September.

The suspension affects new downloads from domestic app marketplaces. Existing application users and web service users retain access to the platform. 

The commission advises against entering personal information into the DeepSeek prompt until the completion of the final inspection.