Homeland Security Orders DeepSeek AI Removed From Federal Agency Systems

The Department of Homeland Security has ordered civilian federal agencies to remove DeepSeek products and third-party services built on the Chinese company’s AI model from their information technology systems, and barred the agencies from buying them in the future.

The department published the notice with the Federal Register on Monday. The order, called an Exclusion and Removal Order, was signed by Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin earlier this year, and the paperwork became public Monday when it was filed for public inspection.

DHS said DeepSeek’s models pose “multiple threat vectors” and warned that using the product “may result in the transfer of sensitive data to the PRC if used by U.S. government employees or vendors.” The notice said the models themselves “may contain malware or other security vulnerabilities” and could “produce actionable intelligence on US persons and/or government agencies.” PRC is the department’s abbreviation for the People’s Republic of China.

What agencies must do

Under the order, agencies covered by the Federal Acquisition Supply Chain Security Act of 2018 must strip DeepSeek products from their systems after a review by the Federal Acquisition Security Council, and can no longer buy products from DeepSeek or its affiliates. The restriction also reaches third-party products and services that were developed using DeepSeek’s models. In a July memo released Monday, DHS told federal agencies to watch traffic flowing in and out of government websites to address the possible risks.

The ban applies to civilian executive-branch agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency and the Federal Communications Commission. National security systems are excluded, and agencies can ask for exceptions in writing within 60 days of the order if they provide a compelling justification, according to reporting on the Federal Register filing.

A crackdown that has been building

DeepSeek rattled the American technology industry last year with the release of its R1 model, which was trained on less powerful chips at a fraction of the cost of rival systems and beat American models developed by OpenAI and Anthropic in several complex tests, SiliconANGLE reported. Millions of Americans downloaded the free app in 2025, drawing scrutiny from Washington.

The crackdown had already begun before Monday’s order. The Commerce Department last year banned DeepSeek from government devices, the U.S. Navy told its members not to use the model, and New York State barred the app from government devices and networks over what it called serious concerns about data privacy and censorship. Two members of Congress proposed a bill last year that would have banned the company’s AI chatbot from government devices. Engadget reported the timing of the new order came days after DeepSeek released its latest model, V4.1-Flash-1017, which the company described as smarter, faster and more efficient.

China pushed back against the move, accusing the Trump administration of using security claims to single out a Chinese company, according to Fox News.

Reporting based on coverage by Reuters, Engadget, and SiliconANGLE.