US Homeland Security orders removal of DeepSeek from federal civilian agency systems
Key Facts
The US Department of Homeland Security has ordered the removal of products from DeepSeek and its affiliates from federal civilian agencies' information technology systems, according to a notice made available in October. The removal extends beyond the application itself to third-party products and services developed using DeepSeek applications, according to the notice in the Federal Register. An appendix to the order bears an original issue date of 24 July 2026 and the name of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, placing its issuance before the notice was made available in October. The move combines the removal of covered products from civilian government systems with the exclusion of products and services from DeepSeek and its affiliates from those agencies' procurement. In its stated reasons for the decision, reported by Reuters, the department warned that using the product could result in sensitive data being transferred to the People's Republic of China.
The notice defines the scope of implementation within federal civilian agencies, excluding those agencies' national security systems and sensitive compartmented information systems from the order. The procurement provision excludes products and services from DeepSeek and its affiliates "from federal civilian agency procurement," according to the Department of Homeland Security's wording. For tools provided by other parties, the removal provision makes their inclusion contingent on their having been developed using DeepSeek applications, alongside products bearing the names of the company and its affiliates. The department also said potential risks could be embedded in the models, adding, according to Reuters, that "the models themselves may contain malware or other security vulnerabilities." Its guidance to agencies included monitoring traffic flows to address potential risks associated with DeepSeek use.
The executive order was preceded by action in the US House of Representatives, where Representatives Josh Gottheimer and Darin LaHood announced on 6 February 2025 that they intended to introduce legislation concerning government use of DeepSeek. The bill was titled the "No DeepSeek on Government Devices Act," according to the announcement published on Gottheimer's office website that day. The office described the planned legislation as a bipartisan initiative to protect Americans from DeepSeek, targeting government devices. At the state level, New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced a ban on DeepSeek on state government devices and networks on 10 February 2025. The governor's statement said the application was barred from being downloaded onto devices and networks managed by the Office of Information Technology Services, placing these local restrictions before the Homeland Security order dated July 2026.
Outside the United States, an Australian precedent requires government entities to prevent the use or installation of DeepSeek products, applications and web services, according to the Australian government. The directive, published under the Protective Security Policy Framework, also requires those entities to remove all existing instances of those products, applications and services when found. In Italy, the action took a data protection route, with the Garante authority ordering DeepSeek to block its chatbot in the country, according to a Reuters report published on 30 January 2025. The Italian decision came amid concerns over privacy policy, while the Australian directive addressed the use of products, applications and services within government entities. Measures involving DeepSeek before the US order thus ranged from restrictions on government use in Australia to the blocking of the chatbot by Italy's data protection authority.
In markets, the release of DeepSeek models had been linked to historic turmoil in technology shares, preceding the US order concerning civilian government systems. Reuters reported on 28 January 2025 that Nvidia had lost $593 billion in market value on the Monday before the report's publication. That loss came amid the release of the models, before the Department of Homeland Security order dated 24 July 2026. The market move also preceded Gottheimer and LaHood's announcement in February 2025 that they intended to introduce the government devices bill. The market turmoil was followed by measures including the Italian decision concerning the chatbot, then the announcement of New York's ban on government devices and networks, and ultimately the federal civilian order.
Under procedures for implementing the order, agencies can request exemptions, according to CyberScoop's account of the process for handling cases requiring continued use. Requests must be submitted 60 days in advance, accompanied by what the report described as a "compelling justification" for an exemption. The reasons cited include an inability to perform a mission-essential function or national security considerations that justify an agency's request. The exemption process sits alongside the existing exclusion of federal civilian agencies' national security systems and sensitive compartmented information systems from the order's scope. The next formal step is publication of the notice in the Federal Register, scheduled for 20 October 2026, according to the date specified on the document.