A coalition of 21 attorneys general sent a letter to Democratic and Republican leadership in the U.S. Congress calling on them to put limits on DeepSeek, a Chinese artificial intelligence technology that has some experts worried about the national security threat to the U.S.
DeepSeek surprised AI experts when it was released because of its ability to compete with U.S. versions. Users can download the app, but doing so allows the Chinese company, and by extension the Chinese Communist Party, to access sensitive data on users’ devices.
The state leaders cited those national security concerns in their letter, which calls on Congress to pass “No DeepSeek on Government Devices Act,” which bans the application on federal devices, something some of U.S.’ allies have already enacted.
“DeepSeek appears to be another tool for Chinese spies to attack America’s national security,” the letter said.
“DeepSeek collects a wide range of data, ‘including chat and search query history, keystroke patterns, IP addresses, and activity from other apps…’” the letter continued, citing media reports on DeepSeek. “DeepSeek ‘has code hidden in its programming which has the built-in capability to send user data directly to the Chinese government.’”
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen led the letter, which argues that DeepSeek is even more invasive and dangerous than TikTok, which was set to be banned before President Donald Trump signed an executive order in January to delay the ban for 75 days.
“The Canadian, Australian, South Korean, and Taiwanese governments
have already blocked access to DeepSeek on government devices due to these security concerns,” the letter said. “Italian authorities have blocked DeepSeek across the country. The private sector has also recognized the threat of DeepSeek.”
The state attorneys general signing on to the letter are from Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Virginia.
