South Korea’s National Intelligence Service (NIS) has raised concerns over the Chinese AI application DeepSeek, accusing it of excessively collecting personal data and using all user inputs for training its AI model. The agency also flagged potential issues with the app’s responses to questions related to matters of national pride.

In an official notice sent to government agencies last week, the NIS urged caution when using DeepSeek due to security risks. According to its statement on Sunday, the app differs from other generative AI services as it can transfer chat records and collect keyboard input patterns, which may enable user identification. The collected data is then transmitted to Chinese company servers, including volceapplog.com.

Several South Korean government ministries have blocked access to DeepSeek, joining Australia and Taiwan in issuing warnings or imposing restrictions on its use. The NIS further alleged that DeepSeek grants advertisers unrestricted access to user data and stores South Korean users’ information on Chinese servers. Given Chinese laws, authorities in China could potentially access this data upon request.

The agency also pointed out discrepancies in DeepSeek’s responses based on language. For instance, when asked about the origins of kimchi a fermented dish that is central to South Korean cuisine the AI app responded in Korean that kimchi is a Korean dish. However, when asked the same question in Chinese, it claimed that kimchi originated in China. Reuters confirmed these discrepancies in the app’s responses.

The origin of kimchi has been a subject of debate between South Korean and Chinese social media users in recent years. Additionally, DeepSeek has been accused of censoring politically sensitive topics, such as the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown. When asked about it, the app reportedly suggested changing the subject by saying, "Let's talk about something else."

DeepSeek has not yet responded to requests for comment. Addressing South Korea’s restrictions on DeepSeek, a spokesperson for China’s foreign ministry stated on February 6 that the Chinese government prioritizes data privacy and security, ensuring compliance with the law. The spokesperson also emphasized that Beijing does not compel any company or individual to collect or store data unlawfully.

Disclaimer: This image is taken from Reuters.