DeepSeek, a Chinese generative AI app, has rapidly climbed to the top of app download charts, surpassing ChatGPT. This surge has triggered alarm bells among national security experts due to concerns about data sharing with the Chinese government and potential cybersecurity vulnerabilities.
Chinese generative AI DeepSeek has surged to the top spot as the most downloaded free app last week, surpassing OpenAI's ChatGPT. This rapid ascent has sparked alarm among national security experts due to Chinese government mandates requiring domestic firms to share user data with the PRC. While a legal ban similar to TikTok might be in the works, government prohibitions have already been swiftly implemented across various sectors and countries, ranging from NASA and the U.S.
Navy to the State of Texas, Taiwan, and Italy. Cybersecurity firms have uncovered vulnerabilities within DeepSeek that enable data leaks, and a national security expert interviewed by CNBC characterized its privacy policy as essentially worthless. The app's sudden popularity in the midst of U.S.-China technological rivalry and growing mistrust raises concerns about the wisdom of millions of Americans allowing it to access their personal search queries.DeepSeek's development, completed on an accelerated timeline and reportedly at a significantly lower cost than anticipated, caught AI experts off guard. Privacy advocates are equally alarmed, emphasizing the risks Americans face by using the app, regardless of the development cost. Dewardric McNeal, managing director and senior policy analyst at risk management firm Longview Global, which advises companies on China strategy, states that the amount of data and information that malicious actors in China could extract from DeepSeek is 20 times greater than what could be gleaned from a Google search. He describes it as a treasure trove of intelligence, highlighting risks such as personal banking and health information theft. Prominent cybersecurity firms are already sounding the alarm.McNeal emphasizes the broader implications of the data collected, stating that Chinese intelligence could use query patterns in DeepSeek to understand American industries and potentially sow division among the public. While he acknowledges that the world won't end tomorrow if someone uses DeepSeek, he stresses the substantial risks involved. The app's open-source nature, for instance, could grant China access to U.S.-based supply chains at an industry level, allowing them to learn about company operations and gain a competitive advantage. National security professionals are keenly aware of these potential implications. Matt Pearl, a special advisor to the deputy national security advisor at the National Security Council in the Biden administration and now the Strategic Technologies Program director at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, expresses his concerns about DeepSeek's privacy policy, stating that it is essentially useless. He points out that DeepSeek is subject to PRC laws and that user data can be tracked across devices through keystroke patterns and advertiser information. Pearl further warns that DeepSeek could potentially leverage cameras and microphones, raising serious cybersecurity concerns. He believes the most significant threat lies in the potential for a mass malware injection through a single app update.Pearl underscores the numerous ways DeepSeek could be exploited, stating that it is difficult to overstate the potential dangers. Despite being a relatively new player in the AI landscape, with leading firms like Nvidia still ahead, DeepSeek's rapid growth poses a substantial challenge to established competitors like ChatGPT. According to online analytics platform Semrush, while DeepSeek's daily user visits have surged, it still lags significantly behind ChatGPT in terms of consumer activity. ChatGPT continues to attract millions of daily users, although it has recently experienced a decline in traffic.In contrast, even before DeepSeek became a national news story, its online presence was steadily expanding. Joe Jones, director of research and insights for The International Association of Privacy Professionals, a policy-neutral nonprofit that promotes privacy and AI governance, recognizes that disruptors like DeepSeek can complicate the organization's efforts to protect user privacy and ensure responsible AI development
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