Australia has followed Taiwan in banning China’s DeepSeek AI from all government systems and devices. The decision was made due to national security concerns, with authorities requiring the immediate removal of all DeepSeek products from government networks.
National Security Risks Identified
Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke stated that a threat assessment by the country’s intelligence services found DeepSeek AI posed an unacceptable risk. As a result, all applications and services from the Chinese startup must be removed without delay. The government emphasized that the decision was based solely on security threats rather than the company’s Chinese origins.
DeepSeek’s Rapid Growth and Security Concerns
Founded just 20 months ago, DeepSeek gained global attention in January with its chatbot featuring reasoning AI, which visually demonstrates its “thought process” when solving problems. The company claims to spend minimal resources on training its AI models, yet its app quickly became one of the most downloaded worldwide. Despite its popularity, concerns about data security have led to increased scrutiny, reminds NIX Solutions.
Minister Burke acknowledged AI’s potential but reinforced that the government will act decisively if security threats arise. The ban does not apply to individual users, but Australians are encouraged to consider how their data is used and take steps to protect their privacy. We’ll keep you updated as more developments emerge.