The other day, I wondered whether the US should consider a DeepSeek ban amid all the excitement. It wasn’t just about US-based AI chatbots being banned in China, including ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Meta AI, and others. It’s also about the DeepSeek privacy policy since all data is sent in China. Also, there’s the DeepSeek censorship related to sensitive topics for China, and the risk of China using AI algorithms in its own interest, similar to how TikTok allegedly operated its algorithm.
While I started wondering whether a US ban on DeepSeek was imminent, it looks like localized bans were in effect long before then. The US Navy issued an order on Friday warning “shipmates” not to use DeepSeek AI “in any capacity” due to “potential security and ethical concerns associated with the model’s origin and usage.”
A spokesperson for the US Navy confirmed to CNBC that the email it reported on was genuine. The email was in reference to the Department of the Navy’s Chief Information Officer’s generative AI policy.
“We would like to bring to your attention a critical update regarding a new AI model called DeepSeek,” the email said. The US Navy informed everyone in the OpNav distribution list that it was “imperative” that members do not use DeepSeek AI “for any work-related tasks or personal use.”
Recipients were told to “refrain from downloading, installing, or using the DeepSeek model in any capacity.”
OpNav stands for Operational Navy, which means the email was an all-hands demo. CNBC further explains that the warning was based on an advisory from the Naval Air Warcraft Center Division Cyber Workforce Manager.
A specific, localized ban on the use of generative AI like ChatGPT isn’t surprising for any new AI tool, whether DeepSeek or something else. It happened during the early days of ChatGPT, both in the US and internationally. Countries in the EU even briefly banned OpenAI’s chatbot, citing privacy issues.
Such bans were applied at the company level, with Samsung’s ban on ChatGPT being one of the memorable ones. At the time, some Samsung employees uploaded sensitive code to ChatGPT. The early days of ChatGPT use were not the best for privacy-conscious individuals. It wasn’t easy to opt out of model training, as OpenAI made several improvements to its privacy policy along the way.
Similar precautions should be taken with DeepSeek AI, especially by governmental employees like the US Navy. I wouldn’t be surprised if other military or government branches issued similar messages in the US and other countries. In a way, this mimics the US government’s reaction to TikTok, which was initially banned from devices belonging to government employees.
Then there are the special concerns mentioned above. DeepSeek user data and chat content go to China, and DeepSeek also conducts censorship in real time. It makes sense for the US Navy to ban DeepSeek and do it very early. The memo was sent out on Friday, just a few days before DeepSeek went viral.
