Belgium officially outlaws the use of DeepSeek for government officials

The federal government of Belgium has ordered government officials to cease using China’s AI tool, DeepSeek, starting December 1st.

By next Monday, all DeepSeek applications must be removed from staff members’ devices. According to Belgian news outlet DataNews, Vanessa Matz, Minister of the Department of Government Modernization, has stated this in a letter.

Minister Matz first announced the ban on DeepSeek in September. This decision followed the publication of an analysis by the Centre for Cybersecurity Belgium, which highlighted the risks associated with this specific AI tool.

“Based on that analysis and taking into account the risks in terms of the protection of data transmitted to the DeepSeek system, it was decided to preventively ban the Chinese system from federal government workplaces. Banning the use of this system is a matter of vigilance. We guarantee that our government services are a safe, secure, and exemplary environment,” Matz said at the time.

Belgium isn’t the first country to ban DeepSeek for government officials. The AI tool has been prohibited in numerous countries. Taiwan, for example, forbids government departments from using it because it’s considered a security risk. For the same reason, Australia banned DeepSeek from all government devices.

In February, DeepSeek was ordered to remove its app from all app stores in South Korea, right after the South Korean government decided to ban DeepSeek from being used by civil servants. The National Intelligence Service (NIS) conducted an investigation and concluded that the Chinese startup ‘excessively’ collected personal data to train its AI chatbot. Back in April, DeepSeek’s app was available again for download.

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Although the Dutch government hasn’t officially prohibited the use of DeepSeek by civil servants, they aren’t allowed to install the Chinese chatbot on government-issued devices because they are susceptible to espionage.

The Czech Republic's government prohibited the use of DeepSeek by government officials after its cybersecurity agency raised concerns.

Canada, India, Italy, and the United States have also imposed restrictions on the use of DeepSeek by civil servants.