DeepSeek 'shared user data' with TikTok owner ByteDance

South Korea has accused Chinese artificial intelligence startup DeepSeek of sharing user data with ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok. The Personal Information Protection Commission (PIPC) of South Korea told Yonhap News Agency that it had confirmed data communication between DeepSeek and ByteDance. Previously, South Korea removed DeepSeek from app stores over the weekend due to data protection concerns.

In January, DeepSeek's rapid rise sent shockwaves through the AI field, with claims that its new models were trained at a much lower cost than American competitors like ChatGPT, leading to billions of dollars in market value evaporation in global stock markets. Subsequently, several countries issued warnings about the potential lack of adequate protection for user data. In February, an American cybersecurity firm also claimed that data sharing may exist between DeepSeek and ByteDance.

DeepSeek quickly rose to the top of App Store charts in several countries, including the UK and the US, but its ranking in the UK is now far below ChatGPT. Before being removed from Apple and Google's app stores, DeepSeek had been downloaded over one million times in South Korea. Currently, existing users can still access and use the application through web browsers.

Although the South Korean Personal Information Protection Commission discovered a connection between DeepSeek and ByteDance, it stated that it "has not yet confirmed what data was transmitted and to what extent." The agency advised users to "exercise caution and avoid entering personal information into the chatbot." South Korea has followed several countries, including Australia and Taiwan, in banning the use of DeepSeek on government devices.

Regarding DeepSeek, cybersecurity firm Security Scorecard published a blog post on February 10, pointing out traces of "multiple direct references to ByteDance-owned services." "These references indicate deep integration with ByteDance's analytics and performance monitoring infrastructure," the company said in its assessment of the DeepSeek Android application. Security Scorecard also expressed concern that DeepSeek "user behavior and device metadata may be sent to ByteDance servers," and found data "being transmitted to domains associated with Chinese state-owned entities."

ByteDance is headquartered in Beijing, and its owners include numerous global investors. Critics have long argued that China's National Intelligence Law allows the government to access any data held by Chinese companies. However, some argue that the same law also allows for the protection of private companies and personal data. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld a ban on ByteDance's TikTok, partly due to concerns about user data being sent to China. Currently, the U.S. ban on TikTok has been suspended until April 5.