Australia bans DeepSeek on government devices citing national security
Australia banned DeepSeek on government devices citing national security risks, following similar action by Taiwan and Italy. Data protection authorities in Italy, Ireland and France are investigating DeepSeek's data handling practices after the company failed to respond to regulatory inquiries.
What happened
Australia's Department of Home Affairs instructed government agencies to block and remove DeepSeek products, applications and web services from all government systems and devices immediately. Taiwan had banned government use of DeepSeek earlier in the week, and Italy's Garante data protection authority blocked DeepSeek the previous week after the company failed to respond to questions about its data protection policies.
Ireland's and France's data protection authorities are also questioning DeepSeek regarding the chatbot's data protection policy. Italy's Garante had asked DeepSeek about personal data collection sources, purposes, legal basis, and whether data is stored in China.
Reported impact
Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke stated that DeepSeek presents "unacceptable risk" to government technology. The ban is intended to protect Australia's national security and national interests.
Index analysis
Multiple countries initiated restrictions and investigations into DeepSeek based on data security concerns. The coordination of bans and inquiries suggests widespread concern among governments and regulators about the system's data handling practices.
Governance controls
The Italian Garante data protection authority took enforcement action by blocking DeepSeek in Italy after the company did not respond to regulatory inquiries about its data protection policies.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.