Italy demands explanations from DeepSeek over threat of millions of users' data leak

By: Nastya Bobkova | 29.01.2025, 06:23
Italy turns to DeepSeek over threat to data of millions of citizens Italy has sent a request to DeepSeek: "The data of millions of Italians is at risk". Source: Getty Images

The Italian authorities turned to the Chinese company DeepSeek, which has become known for its large-scale language model of artificial intelligence.

Here's What We Know

The Italian authorities have confirmed that they have received a request from Euroconsumers, a coalition of European consumer organisations, to process the personal data of DeepSeek users under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

The Italian Data Protection Agency (DPA) said it had sent the company a request for further information. "The data of millions of Italians is at risk," the statement said. DeepSeek was given 20 days to respond.

Of particular note is the fact that DeepSeek, established in China, collects and stores user data, including personal information processed in accordance with local laws. The privacy policy states that data may be transferred to China. However, the company claims that this is done in accordance with the requirements of data protection laws.

The Italian DPA wants to know more about what kind of data is collected, from what sources, for what purposes - in particular, for training artificial intelligence, as well as the legal basis for processing this data. In addition, the regulator is interested in how the data of underage users is processed and how age verification is carried out on the platform.

European consumer organisations have also raised the issue of child protection and restrictions for users under the age of 18. According to them, the company's policy does not specify how minors are protected.

Earlier, the issue of DeepSeek was the main topic at a press conference at the European Commission. Thomas Rainier, the Commission's representative for technological sovereignty, said that at this stage it is difficult to say whether DeepSeek will meet European requirements. He stressed that EU rules guarantee protection in case of problems.

Source: TechCrunch