DeepSeek faces expulsion from Apple, Google app stores in Germany

Germany's data protection commissioner, Meike Kamp, has requested that Apple and Google remove Chinese AI startup DeepSeek from their app stores in Germany due to concerns over unlawful data transfers and privacy violations. Kamp asserts that DeepSeek has been transferring German users’ personal data to China without ensuring protection levels equivalent to EU standards. Despite a prior request in May for DeepSeek to either comply with EU data transfer requirements or withdraw voluntarily, the company did not respond. DeepSeek’s privacy policy indicates that user data—including AI interaction requests and uploaded files—is stored on servers in China, where authorities are known to have extensive access to personal data. The commissioner’s call for app removal follows scrutiny in other countries: Italy has already blocked the app, the Netherlands has banned it on government devices, and U.S. lawmakers are considering legislation to ban AI models developed in China from use in executive agencies. Additionally, DeepSeek is reportedly involved in supporting China’s military and intelligence services, raising further national security concerns. Apple and Google have yet to respond to the request.