The application of artificial intelligence as a practical tool for practically every business has swept the globe. The most well-known brand on the market at the moment is DeepSeek A.I., a chatbot created by a Chinese business that quickly surpassed OpenAI’s ChatGPT as the most downloaded software. The U.S. Navy has effectively instructed every member of the military to refrain from downloading or using the app, despite its widespread use and the pressure it is placing on American businesses creating their own AI chatbot. According to CNBC, the Navy sent out an email to its members on January 24, 2025, addressing “potential security and ethical concerns associated with the model’s origin and usage.”
The Navy has a strong policy against such software, and DeepSeek A.I. is open sourced, meaning that any developer can use it. AI isn’t entirely opposed by the Navy. Although officials strongly oppose open-source programs, particularly those from Chinese sources, the U.S. military does have some fairly frightening A.I. applications. The Navy has a rule that states, “Commercial AI language models are not recommended for operational use cases until security control requirements have been fully investigated, identified and approved for use within controlled environments.”
The government sees China as a major threat to cyber security, as demonstrated by the U.S. government’s decision to prohibit TikTok. So much so that a bill that would prohibit DeepSeek A.I. from being placed on government devices is being introduced in the House of Representatives by U.S. Representatives Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., and Darin LaHood, R-Ill. However, the United States is not the only nation considering a ban on the A.I. model.
Has anyone else issued a warning about DeepSeek AI?
The A.I. software contains hard evidence, despite the fact that many TikTok users questioned the U.S. government’s intentions regarding the social media app, claiming it posed a national security threat but refusing to provide any proof. DeepSeek contained a secret code that would transmit login information to China Mobile, a cellular provider that the Federal Communications Commission of the United States has prohibited from doing business in the country since 2019. The U.S. Navy is not the only organization banning its employees from using the app. NASA disabled DeepSeek from its personnel devices shortly after the Navy handed out the communication regarding artificial intelligence. However, it goes beyond that, as the software is also blocked on devices in other nations.
ChatGPT and other A.I. applications are generally prohibited in South Korea, and a third-party firm is currently looking into DeepSeek’s data management practices. In January, DeepSeek was already prohibited on the devices of Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power personnel. Following suit, Taiwan, Italy, and Australia have restricted or outright banned the app’s use by their federal personnel. When governments discover that an app controlled by a hostile country needs access to a vast amount of personal data, it can be unsettling. It gathers more than just passwords, phone numbers, and user birthdays.
According to DeepSeek’s privacy statement, it needs the user’s OS system, IP address, and typing habits. When an IP address is left unprotected, it can be used by an outside party to monitor your online activities, block access to websites, and launch a DDoS attack.