US bars DeepSeek from civilian government agency systems

The US Department of Homeland Security has ordered civilian federal agencies to remove DeepSeek AI products from their computer systems and stop buying them. The rule also covers other companies' tools built on DeepSeek. It matters because DHS says DeepSeek sends user data to servers in China.

What happened

DHS made the order public on October 19, 2026, with a notice set to appear in the Federal Register on October 20, per MeriTalk. The order itself was signed on July 24, and the limits took effect in late July, MeriTalk reported.

The Federal Register notice says the order does two things. First, it keeps products and services made by Hangzhou DeepSeek Artificial Intelligence Co., Ltd, and its affiliates out of civilian agency purchases. Second, it removes all DeepSeek products, plus third-party products and services built using DeepSeek, from civilian agency IT systems.

The order also bars DeepSeek from taking part in federal contracts, per The Next Web.

Key facts

• Who ordered it: The Secretary of Homeland Security, according to the Federal Register notice.
• The law used: The Federal Acquisition Supply Chain Security Act of 2018, a law that lets the government cut risky suppliers out of its buying, per the notice and The Next Web.
• Who it covers: Federal civilian executive branch agencies. The Department of Defense, the intelligence community and national security systems are left out, per MeriTalk.
• What it covers: DeepSeek's own products and third-party tools built on DeepSeek, per the notice.
• Dates: Signed July 24, made public October 19, set for the Federal Register on October 20, per MeriTalk.
• Who handles questions: A team in the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), the notice says.

Background

DHS gave several reasons, MeriTalk reported. It said DeepSeek collects and stores user data in China. It said user prompts and AI answers are sent to servers in China. It also pointed to security and privacy weak spots found through forensic checks, and said the models could produce wrong, biased or harmful content. In the department's words, DeepSeek presents "multiple threat vectors" to US government cybersecurity, MeriTalk reported.

This is not the first limit. A Pentagon IT agency blocked DeepSeek's chatbot in January 2025, per The Next Web. The Commerce Department and the Navy banned it on work devices. New York, Tennessee and Virginia took similar steps.

The Next Web also reports that in June the White House held off on blacklisting DeepSeek and more than 100 other Chinese firms for trade. In February, OpenAI told US lawmakers that DeepSeek used a method called distillation to build its R1 chatbot, The Next Web reported, citing Bloomberg.

What it means for you

For most people, nothing changes today. The order is about government computers and government buying, not about the app on your phone.

Our take: if you work for a company that sells software to US civilian agencies, check whether any of your tools run on a DeepSeek model. The order reaches tools built on DeepSeek, not just DeepSeek's own app.

Our take: the reasons DHS gave, such as data stored in China, are worth thinking about for anyone who types private or work details into a free AI chatbot.

What happens next

While agencies remove the tools, DHS told them to watch network traffic, keep more logs and add controls to stop data leaks, per MeriTalk. The signed order can be found on regulations.gov under docket DHS-2026-0628, the Federal Register notice says.

Our take: watch for whether the Pentagon or more states follow with their own rules.

FAQ

Is DeepSeek banned for everyone in the US?

No. The order covers federal civilian agency IT systems and purchases, per the Federal Register notice. It is not a ban for the public.

Why did the US bar DeepSeek from agency systems?

DHS said DeepSeek stores user data in China, sends prompts and answers to servers in China, and has security and privacy weak spots, per MeriTalk.

Does the order cover apps built on DeepSeek?

Yes. It removes third-party products and services built using DeepSeek from civilian agency IT, according to the Federal Register notice.

Sources

• Politico
• news.google.com
• meritalk.com
• public-inspection.federalregister.gov
• thenextweb.com