South Korea has temporarily stopped new downloads of DeepSeek from local app stores while officials review whether the Chinese AI lab is handling user data in line with Korean privacy laws.
The move does not shut down DeepSeek for people who already have the app, and it does not block the web service. But the country’s data protection authority is warning current users to be careful about what they enter until the review is complete.
What South Korea Has Restricted
South Korean officials on Saturday temporarily restricted DeepSeek’s app from being downloaded through app stores in the country. The restriction is tied to an assessment of how DeepSeek collects, processes, and transfers user data.
The Personal Information Protection Commission (PIPC) said the app can return to app stores once DeepSeek complies with Korean privacy laws and makes the required changes. That makes this a temporary download pause rather than a full ban on the service.
For now, the restriction has a narrow but important effect:
- New users in South Korea cannot download the DeepSeek app from local app stores.
- People who already have the app can continue using it.
- The web service remains available in the country.
- Current users are being advised not to enter personal information until the PIPC reaches a final decision.
The PIPC said it “strongly advises” existing users to avoid entering personal information into DeepSeek while the review is ongoing. That warning is significant because it focuses not just on whether the app is available, but on the risk of users sharing sensitive details before regulators finish their assessment.
Why Privacy Officials Are Reviewing DeepSeek
The review began after DeepSeek launched its service in South Korea in late January. According to the PIPC, the agency reached out to the Chinese AI lab to ask how it collects and processes personal data.
During that evaluation, officials found issues involving DeepSeek’s third-party service and privacy policies. The source article also says the PICC confirmed to TechCrunch that its investigation found DeepSeek had transferred data of South Korean users to ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok.
DeepSeek did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The agency said DeepSeek has recently appointed a local representative in South Korea and acknowledged that it was not familiar with South Korea’s privacy laws when it launched its service.
DeepSeek also said last Friday that it would collaborate closely with Korean authorities. For the app to become available for download again, the company will need to address the privacy law concerns identified by the regulator.
Official Devices Were Already A Concern
The app store restriction follows earlier caution from other parts of South Korea’s public sector. Earlier this month, South Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, police, and a state-run company, Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power, temporarily blocked access to the Chinese AI startup on official devices.
Those earlier blocks were based on security concerns. The latest action from the PIPC is focused on privacy law compliance and user data handling. Together, the steps show that South Korean authorities are treating DeepSeek as both a data protection issue and a security issue, depending on the setting.
The difference matters. A block on official devices limits how government and public-sector systems interact with the AI service. A restriction in local app stores affects public access to new downloads, even while existing users and web users remain able to use DeepSeek.
DeepSeek Faces Scrutiny Beyond South Korea
South Korea is not alone in taking a cautious approach to DeepSeek because of its Chinese origins. Other governments and authorities have also limited or challenged the use of the company’s technology.
Australia has prohibited DeepSeek on government devices because of security concerns. Italy’s data protection authority, the Garante, has instructed DeepSeek to block its chatbot in the country. Taiwan has banned government departments from using DeepSeek AI.
These actions differ in scope, but they point to a shared concern: AI tools that handle user prompts and related data are increasingly being judged not only by their capabilities, but by the rules around privacy, security, and cross-border data handling.
For users, that means an AI chatbot is not just a product interface. It is also a data collection point. When a regulator warns people not to enter personal information, the practical takeaway is simple: until the authority finishes its review, users should assume that sensitive inputs deserve extra caution.
What DeepSeek Is And What Comes Next
DeepSeek is based in Hangzhou city and was founded by Liang Feng in 2023. The company released DeepSeek R1, a free, open-source reasoning AI model that competes with OpenAI’s ChatGPT.
That profile has helped DeepSeek draw attention well beyond China. But wider use also brings more questions from regulators, especially in markets with established privacy rules and official-device security standards.
In South Korea, the immediate next step is compliance. The PIPC has said the app can be downloaded again once DeepSeek follows Korean privacy laws and makes the necessary changes.
Until then, the practical situation is mixed. Existing users can still access the app and web service, but new app downloads are paused. The strongest guidance from South Korea’s data protection authority is directed at current users: avoid entering personal information until the final decision is made.