State AGs say the AI app would make it easier for China to 'steal America's secrets'
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State attorneys general have joined the growing calls from elected officials urging Congress to pass a law banning the Chinese-owned DeepSeek AI app on all government devices, saying "China is a clear and present danger" to the U.S.
"DeepSeek appears to be another tool for Chinese spies to attack America’s national security," the letter, signed by 21 attorneys general to House and Senate leaders, said.
"Given the Chinese desire to steal America’s secrets and the ability of DeepSeek to carry out this theft, Congress should quickly pass legislation to ban DeepSeek on government devices," the letter read. "Congress passed similar legislation two years ago to prevent TikTok from stealing information from our government."
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A man using a translation app on his cellphone. (Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson)
Montana AG Austin Knudsen, who drafted the letter, wrote that "China is trying to steal America’s secrets. America must fight back. Congress should shut down China’s latest Trojan horse by passing the No DeepSeek on Government Devices Act."
The letter comes as longstanding concerns about Beijing's intellectual property theft of U.S. officials and Americans has been a point of public contention over the last several years. House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mark Green, R-Tenn., introduced legislation last month to outlaw the app.
DeepSeek is an AI-powered search and data analysis platform based in Hangzhou, China, owned by quant hedge fund High-Flyer. The launch of DeepSeek’s new AI model, which is cheaper to operate than models from Meta and OpenAI, has raised concerns in U.S. markets. One of its chatbot functions is similar to ChatGPT, the California-based platform.
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Chinese spying capabilities via smartphone technology were a significant concern behind legislation that went into effect in January, effectively banning TikTok unless it is divested from Chinese ownership. The state AGs cited this precedent in their letter. (Li Xueren/Xinhua via Getty Images)
The AGs charge that DeepSeek could be used by Chinese spies to compromise U.S. national security through the app's collection of user data, including chat history, keystrokes and IP addresses, and may secretly transmit this information to the Chinese Communist Party.
Several countries, including Canada, Australia, South Korea, Taiwan and Italy, have already blocked DeepSeek due to these security risks. Several states, including Virginia, Texas and New York, have also banned the app from government devices.
"Like it did with TikTok, Congress should protect America’s national security by banning DeepSeek on government devices," the letter reads. "If it has not already taken action to administratively ban DeepSeek, we trust that the Trump Administration would swiftly implement this ban to protect our national security from America’s ‘potent and dangerous’ adversary."
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Many feer that DeepSeek presents significant security threats to users. (Reuters/Dado Ruvic/Illustration)
The letter was signed by AGs from Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and Virginia.
Fox News Digital has reached out to High-Flyer for comment.
Jamie Joseph is a U.S. Politics reporter for Fox News Digital covering transgender and culture issues, the Departments of Education and Health and Human Services, and stateside legislative developments.
