U.S. Civilian Agencies Ordered to Remove DeepSeek Technology

U.S. federal civilian agencies have been ordered to stop purchasing products and services developed by Chinese AI startup DeepSeek and remove them from government IT systems, TechCrunch reported on October 20.

Third-party products are covered

The directive also extends to third-party products and services built with DeepSeek technology. Agencies can request exceptions, so the policy includes a process for circumstances where covered technology may be treated differently.

Government-data concerns

The Department of Homeland Security cited concern that sensitive information from U.S. government users could potentially be accessible to Chinese authorities under Chinese law. That is the stated security rationale for addressing both future purchases and existing deployments.

Not a general consumer ban

The measure concerns federal civilian agencies, not consumer use of DeepSeek generally. Its third-party provision makes the underlying technology important: a product can fall within scope even if DeepSeek is not the name presented to an agency user.

Sources

TechCrunch: U.S. federal DeepSeek order

Image credit and primary source: Federal Register, DHS notice 2026-21447 (October 20, 2026). Screenshot excerpt of the actual removal order notice, not stock photography. U.S. government informational material; no agency endorsement is implied.