Jan 30, 2025 14:00:00

DeepSeek app disappears from Italian Apple and Google app stores, shortly after Italian Data Protection Authority questions DeepSeek about its use of personal data

DeepSeek-R1 , released by Chinese AI company DeepSeek, has been attracting attention in the technology industry due to its low training costs and open source nature. DeepSeek offers apps on the App Store and Google Play , and has ranked first in the free app rankings of each app store. However, it has been reported that the DeepSeek app has disappeared from the app store after the Italian data protection authority requested information about the use of personal data from DeepSeek.

COMUNICATO STAMPA - IA: il Garante privacy chiede informazioni a... - Garante Privacy
https://www.garanteprivacy.it/home/docweb/-/docweb-display/docweb/10096856

DeepSeek blocked on Apple and Google app stores in Italy | Reuters

https://www.reuters.com/technology/deepseek-app-unavailable-apple-google-app-stores-italy-2025-01-29/

Oops! It Did It Again: Italian Data Protection Authority Garante Asks DeepSeek About Its Data Privacy Practices
https://www.forrester.com/blogs/oops-it-did-it-again-the-italian-garante-asks-deepseek-about-its-data-privacy-practices/

DeepSeek's app becomes unavailable on Apple's and Google's app stores in Italy | TechCrunch
https://techcrunch.com/2025/01/29/deepseeks-app-becomes-unavailable-on-apples-and-googles-app-stores-in-italy/

DeepSeek reaches No. 1 on US Play Store | TechCrunch
https://techcrunch.com/2025/01/28/deepseek-reaches-no-1-on-us-play-store/

DeepSeek's app 'DeepSeek - AI Assistant', released in mid-January 2025, has become popular, and according to app analysis company AppFigures, since its release, 'DeepSeek - AI Assistant' has been downloaded more than 1.9 million times on the App Store and more than 5 million times on Google Play. In fact, in the App Store app rankings , it was ranked first in the free app category, surpassing OpenAI's ChatGPT and others.

Chinese AI development company 'DeepSeek' is rapidly emerging as a hot topic in the technology industry, and has also ranked first in the App Store's free app rankings - GIGAZINE

However, the European consumer group Euroconsumers filed a complaint with Garante, the Italian data protection authority, regarding DeepSeek's handling of personal data. Garante then requested DeepSeek to disclose information on January 28, 2025. Garante stated, 'We would like to know what personal data is collected, from what sources, for what purposes, and on what legal basis, and is stored on servers in China.'

Euroconsumers and Garante's main concern is a clause in DeepSeek's privacy policy that states that DeepSeek may 'collect and use your text or audio input, prompts, uploaded files, feedback, chat history, or other content for training purposes' and that 'DeepSeek may, at its discretion, share any information it obtains with law enforcement, public authorities, or others.'

On January 29, the day after Garante requested information from DeepSeek, 'DeepSeek - AI Assistant' disappeared from the Italian App Store and Google Play. The Italian App Store displayed the message 'Currently not available in your country or region,' while Google Play displayed the message 'Download not supported.'

'Just a few hours after we asked DeepSeek for information, new downloads of the app were no longer possible in Italy. We don't know if this is the result of our inquiries,' said Pasquale Stanzione, head of Garante. 'We will launch a detailed investigation to see if GDPR rules are being respected.'

The Irish Data Protection Commission also reported that it had sent a memo to DeepSeek requesting details about how it processes user data of Irish citizens. At the time of writing, DeepSeek had not responded to the letters from the Italian and Irish regulators.