Prime Highlights:
- South Korean data protection authority is holding DeepSeek accountable for illegal transfer of user data.
- Remedial steps suggested, such as erasure of transferred prompt content.
Key Facts:
- DeepSeek illegally transferred users’ personal data to China and U.S. companies without users’ permission.
- Transfer of AI prompt content of the app was suspended on April 10, 2025.
Key Background:
In April 2025, South Korea’s Personal Information Protection Commission (PIPC) announced that DeepSeek, a Chinese artificial intelligence company, had made inappropriate transfers of user information and prompts. Transferred data, made at the app’s launch in South Korea in January, included personal information, device info, network and app data, and prompt content generated by AI. Transfers were to parties in China and the U.S., i.e., Beijing Volcano Engine Technology Co. Ltd.
When the PIPC detected such illegal data transfers, it retaliated by blocking new downloads of the DeepSeek app in February 2025. The company eventually owned up to not having been adhering to South Korea’s data protection regulations. DeepSeek explained that the transfers were meant for the purposes of improving user experience but stopped transferring AI prompt content on April 10, 2025.
As a result, the PIPC sent corrective recommendations to DeepSeek, instructing it to immediately delete the transferred AI prompt content. The agency also suggested that the company implement a legal framework for cross-border data transfers in the future and obtain express user consent before such transfers. This case sets off the red flag on rising data privacy issues, particularly in cross-border AI applications, and the necessity of strong data protection regulation.
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