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DeepSeek AI has been blocked by an NSW government department, marking Australia’s first steps towards restricting or banning its use.
The NSW Department of Customer Service told staff late last month that access to the Chinese AI start-up and its services would be blocked on government devices and systems.
“After careful analysis of the way the platform handles data and accesses technical information, we have made the decision to block access to this service on work devices and systems to protect our data and information,” said a memo sent to department staff.
The department told Cyber Daily that it blocked access to the AI after analysing if it complied with its policies.
“The Department of Customer Service regularly reviews technology for compliance with its policies and procedures and has taken a precautionary approach to restrict corporate access to DeepSeek AI, consistent with the approach taken for many new and emerging applications, systems and services,” a spokesperson for the Department of Customer Service told Cyber Daily.
DeepSeek AI has raised concerns regarding national security, data collection and influence.
In an advisory warning against government use of DeepSeek, Australian cyber security firm CyberCX said that it was highly likely that the Chinese AI collects user personal data and produces answers that are biased towards China.
“We assess it is almost certain that DeepSeek, the models and apps it creates, and the user data it collects, is subject to direction and control by the Chinese government,” said CyberCX.
“We assess with high confidence that the DeepSeek AI Assistant app … produces biased outputs that align with Chinese Communist Party (CCP) strategic objectives and narratives [and] collects user personal information from their device and collects prompt information entered by users and stores this information in China.”
CyberCX also recommends that organisations, particularly government agencies, critical infrastructure organisations, and those storing personal information and commercially sensitive data, should consider restricting access to DeepSeek and advise their staff about the dangers of its use.
The NSW Department of Customer Service follows in the footsteps of Taiwan, Italy, Texas, NASA, the US Navy and the Pentagon in introducing bans.
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