Is DeepSeek's AI sending user data to Chinese servers?
What's the story
DeepSeek, a fast-growing Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) company, is under fire for its data collection practices.
Its R1 chatbot, which lets users interact with AI in a coversational manner, is collecting and storing user data on servers in China.
The practice has raised alarms over the risk it poses to user privacy and data security.
Storage
Data collection practices under scrutiny
DeepSeek's privacy policy clearly mentions that everything it collects, from conversations and search history to any files uploaded, are stored on Chinese servers.
You can delete your chat history from the app's settings, but the worry remains over the automatic collection of such a wide range of data.
This includes basic information like device type, operating system, IP address as well as keystroke patterns.
Information gathering
Data collection extends to account setup details
DeepSeek also collects account setup details like email IDs and phone numbers.
Though it's not unusual for AI platforms to collect similar information to improve their services, the concern here is that DeepSeek's data goes back to China.
This could put the data under China's strict cybersecurity laws, which require the cooperation of companies with national intelligence efforts, raising surveillance concerns.
Censorship allegations
DeepSeek accused of censoring content critical of China
DeepSeek has also been accused of censoring content critical of China or its policies.
Users have reported cases where the AI platform omits sensitive topics such as the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989. and sometimes even provides responses that appear to be in line with Chinese government propaganda.
These allegations are raising fears that the app could be used to manipulate information and subtly steer conversations in favor of Chinese interests.
User advisory
Experts advise caution when using DeepSeek
Experts are advising users to be careful while entering sensitive personal data into AI platforms like DeepSeek, especially those operating on cloud-based servers beyond user control.
Although you can run AI models such as DeepSeek locally on your PC without sharing data with the company, this isn't a widely available option for most users.
The emergence of DeepSeek and its data collection practices highlight the continuing US-China tension in the tech world.