U.S. federal civilian agencies must remove DeepSeek products from their information technology systems and may no longer buy technology from the Chinese AI developer, under a Department of Homeland Security order that was made public this week.
The order, signed by Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin on July 24 and published in the Federal Register on October 20, covers DeepSeek's own products as well as third-party products or services "developed using DeepSeek implementations," according to The Hacker News. It also bars agencies from acquiring products from DeepSeek's affiliates.
DHS issued the directive under the Federal Acquisition Supply Chain Security Act of 2018. The department warned that government use of DeepSeek products could transfer sensitive data to China and flagged potential malware or security vulnerabilities in the models, according to the South China Morning Post. DeepSeek's privacy policy states that it collects and stores users' personal data in China.
The order applies to civilian agencies including the Treasury, State and Justice departments, but not to the Defense Department or intelligence community systems, which fall under separate authorities. Agencies can seek exceptions within a 60-day window by submitting written justifications. A December 2025 law had already barred DeepSeek from national-security systems tied to U.S. intelligence agencies; the new order extends the restriction across the rest of the civilian government.
The disclosure comes as DeepSeek raises about $15 billion in a massive new funding round, according to Bloomberg, with potential investors including battery maker CATL and Tencent. The Hangzhou-based startup rattled the AI industry last year with open-weight models that performed close to much more expensive American counterparts — and the new U.S. restrictions, even as the company expands, set up a fresh round of tension over how its technology is allowed inside government networks.