Today on 17 Feb 2025, South Korea’s digital watchdog temporarily restrict downloads of the Chinese-based DeepSeek AI app from app stores in the country. They want to first know how the company handles user data.
Further, the Personal Information Protection Commission said that the Chinese AI Lab must comply with South Korean privacy laws before it can be approved to be downloaded again. The commission said the ruling will not affect existing apps and web services in South Korea.
The commission also said it contacted the Chinese AI Lab after DeepSeek service was begin in South Korea in January and detect many issues with the company’s third-party and privacy policies.
There are also rumors that DeepSeek has transferred South Korean user data to ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok.