Germany urges Apple and Google to remove DeepSeek from app stores over EU privacy concerns
Berlin’s data protection commissioner, Meike Kamp, has officially reported the Chinese AI app DeepSeek to Apple and Google. She has asked both companies to consider removing the app from their German app stores, citing alleged violations of European Union data protection regulations. The complaint charges that DeepSeek transfers user data to China without adequate safeguards and has failed to produce evidence that it protects personal data according to EU legal standards.
Kamp emphasized that Chinese authorities possess extensive rights to access data held by companies based in China, which heightens privacy concerns. Following these findings, Kamp’s office requested that DeepSeek comply with EU cross-border data transfer regulations or withdraw from the German market. The company did not fulfill either request. According to DeepSeek’s own privacy policy, all collected user data is stored within China, thereby exposing it to potential governmental access.
Other European regulators have acted as well, with Italy having previously banned DeepSeek from its app stores over similar privacy concerns earlier this year. While data privacy advocates in the EU have repeatedly raised alarms about software developed and operated from China, the decision regarding DeepSeek’s availability now rests with Apple and Google, who have yet to respond to the German commissioner's report.
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- Freemium
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External links
- Rechtswidrige Datenübermittlung nach ChinaBerliner Beauftragte für Datenschutz und Informationsfreiheit • Official source
- German official urges Apple and Google to ban AI company DeepSeek, citing privacy concerns | Euronewseuronews
- DeepSeek faces ban from Apple, Google app stores in GermanyReuters
- German data protection official wants Apple, Google to remove DeepSeek from the country's app storesTechCrunch
- Germany tells Apple, Google to block DeepSeek AI appCNBC
Comments
Deepseek R1 is a beast AND you can run it yourself given you have the equipment.
It's only the app not the model
Meanwhile, other AI companies consistently "produce evidence" that they "protect personal data according to EU legal standards".
A good step forward for privacy 🤡
Now be consistent and remove ChatGPT, Gemini, Grok and all these data hungry spying company!
This. That couldn't be fucking obvious with lazy governments that only care about protecting from political trends than actual threats. But there are governments that are ditching windows for good measure.
I too, have reservations about Deepseek's Chinese ownership and data collection. But that doesn't mean I give silicon valley companies a free pass either, they just report to a different set of "alphabet agencies" in a different jurisdiction.
Ultimately if we want the benefits of AI without ANY privacy concerns, you'll have to run your own local LLM.
And the best local LLM is also Deepseek.
Personally, I don't want AI or any of it's supposed benefits PERIOD.
Except for Grok! You guys know you can trust and embrace the AI supervised by his majesty Elon "Dork Maga" Musk. Especially now that he's tweaking it to stop dissing him.
Judging by his usual rantings about "Orange Man Bad" that have absolutely nothing to do with the topic being discussed, I see Azazel is still off his meds. Seek help, little buddy.
Orange Man Good?
Not perfect by any means, but better than Heels-Up Harris and Tampon Tim.