In a significant move to protect user data, Germany's data protection commissioner, Meike Kamp, has officially requested tech giants Apple and Google to remove the AI chatbot app DeepSeek from their platforms. Developed by Hangzhou DeepSeek Artificial Intelligence Basic Technology Research Co. Ltd., the app has been flagged for illegally transferring user data to China, raising serious data protection issues.

Meike Kamp highlighted the lack of compliance with the European Union's stringent data protection standards, notably the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Under GDPR's Article 46, it is mandatory for companies to ensure that if personal data leaves the EU, it must be safeguarded with GDPR-equivalent protections. However, China, where DeepSeek processes and stores data, has not received an adequacy decision from the EU, rendering such data transfers potentially unlawful.

DeepSeek's privacy policy openly states that personal data collected—including account details, user inputs, device identifiers, and IP addresses—is stored and processed in China. The policy attempts to reassure by mentioning supplementary safeguards for users in the European Economic Area, Switzerland, and the UK, but this has not alleviated the regulatory concerns.

This action by Germany follows increasing unease regarding the security implications of the Chinese National Intelligence Law of 2017. Article 7 of this law obliges all citizens and organizations to cooperate with state intelligence efforts, which theoretically includes handing over data upon government request. Although there are no documented instances of such data requisition by the Chinese government, the potential for such actions exists.

Earlier in January 2025, Italy's data protection authority, Garante, also took a stand against DeepSeek by ordering a block on the chatbot after the company failed to rectify highlighted privacy concerns. This pattern of scrutiny among EU nations underscores a growing cautious stance towards applications that handle sensitive data, especially those linked to countries with conflicting data protection laws.

As it stands, Apple and Google have been tasked with reviewing the German notice to decide on the future availability of DeepSeek in Germany. This decision will be closely watched as it may set a precedent for how tech companies handle apps developed outside strict regulatory frameworks in the future.