I am an editorial writer at The Korea Times, focusing on foreign policy, North Korea and domestic politics. My key areas of interest include North Korea, foreign interference in elections, election integrity, cyberattacks and human rights. Prior to joining the Editorial Board, I served as both Politics Desk editor and Culture Desk editor. During my career, I have reported on the Presidential Office under the Lee Myung-bak administration, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Assembly.
South Korea wary of cyber espionage, tech theft as China expands data harvesting
The DeepSeek logo is seen in this illustration taken Jan. 27. Reuters-Yonhap
By Kang Hyun-kyung
China uses AI to acquire personal data of foreign nationals
Chinese startup DeepSeek’s saga was short-lived. The groundbreaking debut of its new chatbot, R1, in January, was initially hailed as a historic moment that could disrupt U.S. dominance in artificial intelligence (AI) and ignite a fierce U.S.-China rivalry for AI supremacy. This was compared to the Soviet Union’s 1957 launch of Sputnik 1, which triggered the Cold War space race.
However, just weeks later, the once-celebrated Chinese open-source chatbot has been ostracized and is now treated as a technological pariah, if not a potential spy app.
An increasing number of countries have imposed bans on the installation of DeepSeek on devices after security risks related to its technology were revealed. These countries include South Korea, Australia, Japan, Taiwan and Italy. The U.S. federal and state governments blocked access to DeepSeek for security concerns. The U.S. Congress also introduced a bipartisan bill on Feb. 11. to ban DeepSeek on federal government devices.
On Monday, South Korea suspended new downloads of DeepSeek’s app days after the country’s Cabinet ministries, public sector entities and businesses were determined to prohibit their employees from installing or using its products and applications. According to South Korea's Personal Information Protection Commission, DeepSeek shared the personal data of its Korean users with Chinese tech company ByteDance without obtaining prior consent. Under South Korea’s Personal Information Protection Act, businesses must gain explicit approval from customers before collecting their personal data, as well as inform them of the reasons and methods of use. DeepSeek failed to comply with these legal requirements, and it remains unclear what specific data or how much of it was shared with ByteDance.
“DeepSeek’s new chatbot will likely become China’s AI daydream, and its service may ultimately be available only in China due to security concerns,” Kwon Ho-cheon, founder and chief executive research director of Global ICT Lab, said. He cited surveillance risks as one of the reasons multiple countries have moved to ban the Chinese app.
Kwon further suggested that China appears to be pursuing a strategy to weaponize AI technology as part of its broader efforts to become a global power — a trend similar to the rise of malicious internet use since the 1990s.
“When the internet first became widely used worldwide, countries like Russia, China and later North Korea saw it as an opportunity to develop a new weapon in cyberspace to disrupt their enemies,” he said. “They succeeded in this and have since launched active cyberattacks against targeted nations. Now, with the advent of AI, these countries seem to view the technology as another tool to develop new weapons. This time, the task is made easier by AI.”
The DeepSeek logo, a keyboard and robot hands are seen in this illustration taken on Jan. 27. Reuters-Yonhap
Like other chatbots, DeepSeek automatically collects personal data from its users, including names, dates of birth, emails and IP addresses. In addition, it gathers the words and phrases users input, along with any sounds, photos and files shared through the chatbot.
However, compared to other chatbots, DeepSeek's data collection scope is much broader. The Chinese tech company allows the app to track how users interact with it and nearly every aspect of their device, network and personal activity. Even users’ unique typing behaviors are recorded. Experts point out that typing patterns can reveal sensitive information, such as whether someone may be suffering from dementia. Such personal data is sent in real-time to DeepSeek’s servers in China.
Beyond DeepSeek’s excessive data collection and the potential misuse of this information, there is further concern about China’s questionable privacy protection practices. Chinese law grants the government access to sensitive personal data of foreign users whenever it deems necessary for national security purposes. Chinese companies are required to hand over such data to the government upon request.
According to the Associated Press, DeepSeek’s website contains computer code that could send certain user login information to China’s state-owned mobile provider, China Mobile, which allegedly maintains close ties with the Chinese military.
China’s weak privacy protections raise serious concerns. What would happen if the Chinese government or military gained access to sensitive data about foreign nationals outside the country? What risks could emerge if the Chinese government misuses this stolen data for its own interests?
Cyber espionage, technology theft and intellectual property theft are common consequences nations face when large amounts of personal data of their citizens are stolen. Cyberwarfare has become a crucial aspect of modern conflict, and unlike traditional physical warfare, it unfolds daily in cyberspace even during peacetime. It’s no surprise that countries like China, Russia and North Korea, notorious for launching cyberattacks to advance their foreign policy goals, actively attempt to steal as much data as possible from their targeted nations and citizens.
“If you know what kind of information your targets are looking for, you’ll have insight into what they plan to do with it,” Park Bum-jin, a retired Navy captain and professor at Kyung Hee University, said. He emphasized that China would be particularly interested in stealing data from individuals who have access to classified information, such as military leaders or key policymakers.
If China successfully acquires such data, the consequences could be severe.
“Massive data is a critical asset that allows experts to conduct multifaceted intelligence analyses on a targeted country or group,” Park, who worked as a military intelligence officer during his Navy career, said.
He warned that South Korea would face direct security risks if China shared this sensitive information with North Korea.
“When a Chinese tech company collects personal data of South Koreans, the Chinese government has access to that information. The real problem arises if China shares that data with North Korea,” he said.
Chai Jang-hyuk, behind left, vice chairperson of the Personal Information Protection Commission, speaks during a briefing about South Korea's decision to ban new downloads of Chinese startup DeepSeek's chatbot app on Monday in the government complex building in central Seoul. Yonhap
China’s efforts to collect vast amounts of personal data from Koreans and citizens of other foreign countries are part of its strategy to strengthen its big data analytics capabilities, according to experts.
A report published by the U.S. policy think tank RAND Corporation in September 2020, titled "Chinese Views of Big Data Analytics," said that China had been using computers to process large data sets for military, domestic and other purposes tied to its key national interests. “Chinese military sources expressed the belief that mastery of big data analytics would better position China to win future military conflicts between great powers,” the report said.
China has long collected data on its citizens to control them and monitor ethnic minorities within the country. This effort intensified after Chinese President Xi Jinping emphasized the importance of big data analytics as part of China’s strategy to become a global power.
However, China now faces a significant challenge in collecting data from people outside its borders, primarily due to its strict censorship policies.
“Google has a presence in China, but its services are not widely available. Facebook and other foreign social media platforms are blocked,” Choo Jae-woo, a professor of China studies at Kyung Hee University, said, stressing that China is now grappling with the consequences of its censorship restrictions.
“There’s no way for China to collect vast amounts of data on people outside China. The issue is that big data is crucial in the age of artificial intelligence. Faced with this challenge, the Chinese government is trying to gather data on foreign nationals through DeepSeek and other Chinese tech companies.”
Choo claimed that stolen data could also be used in China’s influence operations abroad. “If you have access to people’s email addresses and other login information, it’s easy to learn about their identities and how to approach them. The information they’ve searched for online, tracked through algorithms, reveals much about them,” he explained.
China’s reaction to South Korea’s ban on new downloads of the DeepSeek app was swift.
Guo Jiakun, spokesperson for China’s foreign ministry, responded during a daily briefing on Monday, stating that the Chinese government encourages Chinese companies operating overseas to comply with local laws and regulations.
“We also hope that relevant countries will refrain from generalizing or politicizing economic, trade and technological issues,” he added.
A screenshot of DeepSeek's closed website is seen on Feb. 6 as South Korea banned government employees from using or installing it on devices. Yonhap