DeepSeek AI ‘pulled from Italy’s app stores’ amid data privacy concerns

The Chinese AI platform DeepSeek is no longer available for download on Google and Apple app stores in Italy. This comes after regulators in Rome started asking the company questions about how it handles citizens’ data.

Ireland’s Data Protection Commission has also reached out to DeepSeek, asking for details on how it handles data from Irish users.

Last week, DeepSeek rolled out a free AI assistant, claiming it processes data more efficiently and at a much lower cost than its competitors. By Monday (Jan. 27), it had already surpassed ChatGPT in downloads on Apple’s App Store, causing a stir among tech investors.

However, there’s growing concern over how the data collected by DeepSeek’s chatbot might be used by the Chinese government. In Italy, users noticed that the app had suddenly vanished from the Google and Apple stores. Those trying to access it got messages saying it was “currently not available in the country or area you are in” on Apple, while Google users saw a notice saying the download “was not supported,” according to Reuters.

Italy regulator’s concern over DeepSeek’s security and privacy

#IntelligenzaArtificiale Il #GarantePrivacy ha inviato una richiesta di informazioni alle due società che forniscono il servizio di chatbot #DeepSeek, sia su piattaforma web che su App