DeepSeek banned from Australian government devices


Chinese artificial intelligence chatbot DeepSeek has been banned from Australian government-issued systems and devices after it was found to pose an “unacceptable level of security risk” .

Home Affairs secretary Stephanie Foster issued a direction to all public servants, politicians and their staffers late on Tuesday on the advice of national security and intelligence agencies.

“After considering threat and risks analysis, I have determined that the use of DeepSeek products, applications and web services poses an unacceptable level of security risk to the Australian government,” she said in the direction.

“Entities must manage the risks arising from DeepSeek’s extensive collection of data and exposure of that data to extrajudicial directions from a foreign government that conflict with Australian law.”

Image: Shutterstock.com/mundissima

DeepSeek disrupted the AI scene last month when it released a new model that was built for a reported cost of US$5.6 million, sending the share price of AI chip giant Nvidia tumbling,

But it was quickly labeled a potential security threat, with US security officials opting to review the app, which US President Donald Trump has described as a “wake-up call” for the US AI industry.

Local cybersecurity conglomerate CyberCX last week recommended that organisations, particularly government agencies and critical infrastructure operators, strongly consider “at least temporarily restricting access” to the app.

“We assess it as almost certain that DeepSeek, the models and apps it creates, and the user data it collects, is subject to direction and control by the Chinese government,” it said.

According to the Protective Security Policy Framework direction issued overnight, all non-corporate Commonwealth entities are required to “prevent the access, use or installation of DeepSeek products, applications and web services”.

Agencies will also be required to “remove all instances of DeepSeek products, applications and web services” from government-issued systems and devices where already downloaded.

Only agencies carrying out… national security or regulatory functions, including compliance and law enforcement functions” can seek an exemption to the ban, meaning it goes further than the government’s ban on TikTok in 2023.

Under the TikTok direction, a “legitimate business reason” can be approved by an agency’s chief security officer, who must also ensure mitigations are in place to manage security risks.

Special Envoy for Cybersecurity and Digital Resilience Andrew Charlton on Wednesday said the ban would prevent DeepSeek from accessing sensitive government information but would still be available on private devices.

“We don’t want to expose government systems to these applications. That’s the main source of the risk, and that’s why this ban is important,” he told ABC News Breakfast on Wednesday.

In the wake of the ban, deputy leader of the opposition and shadow industry minister Sussan Ley told Sky News that “individuals should think carefully about whether they should also remove it from their devices”.

The decision to ban DeepSeek at a Commonwealth government level follows a similar move by the New South Wales government to block the app on corporate devices late last week.

Updated at 9:25am to include commentary from Mr Charlton and Ms Ley

Do you know more? Contact James Riley via Email.

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