By Foo Yun Chee
BRUSSELS (Reuters) – DeepSeek may be facing additional actions from national regulators in the foreseeable future, as noted by Europe’s privacy watchdog on Tuesday. This underscores the bloc’s apprehensions regarding the growing prominence of the budget-friendly Chinese artificial intelligence startup.
During a monthly meeting on Tuesday, national privacy regulators deliberated DeepSeek’s status. Italy’s decision to block the chatbot due to insufficient information on its handling of personal data, alongside inquiries from enforcers in France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and other countries on DeepSeek’s data collection practices, prompted these discussions.
“A number of DPAs (data protection authorities) have already initiated actions against DeepSeek, with the possibility of more to come,” stated a spokesperson for the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) via email following the meeting.
Such concerns have led the EDPB to extend the jurisdiction of a taskforce established in April 2023 to facilitate collaboration and information exchange concerning AI-related enforcement. Initially focusing solely on Microsoft-backed OpenAI’s ChatGPT, the taskforce has now broadened its scope.
Moreover, the EDPB members emphasized the necessity of coordinating DPAs’ activities on urgent and sensitive matters. To this end, they will establish a rapid response team.
Europe has been at the forefront of safeguarding its citizens’ privacy rights, with the General Data Protection Regulation, enacted in 2018, being the most stringent privacy law globally.
(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
