The Department of Homeland Security has reportedly ordered all federal civilian agencies to remove DeepSeek technology from their IT systems and barred future procurement of its products and services, according to the Wall Street Journal. As of 11:16 a.m. ET, neither DHS nor its cyber agency CISA has published a directive.

Who is affected

The order, as described, applies to civilian agencies, the departments outside the military. They would have to take DeepSeek out of their systems and stop buying its products and services.

  • Covered: federal civilian agencies' IT systems.
  • Barred going forward: procurement of DeepSeek products and services.

It is a rule for government buyers and agency systems.

Background

DeepSeek is a Chinese AI company whose models and chatbot apps went viral in early 2025. Its privacy policy says it collects, processes and stores personal data in the People's Republic of China. Chinese AI services drew scrutiny elsewhere this month, when researchers reported an AI agent fleet on Tencent Cloud hitting Alibaba's Amap.

Earlier restrictions

Federal bodies began blocking DeepSeek soon after the app went viral, according to a roundup of the early bans from TechCrunch:

  • Navy: a late-January 2025 email told members not to use DeepSeek products "in any capacity."
  • NASA: a memo said DeepSeek was not authorized for use with NASA data and information, and barred access from NASA devices and agency-managed networks.
  • House: staff were barred from installing DeepSeek on House-issued devices.

In Congress, the No DeepSeek on Government Devices Act (H.R. 1121) would direct the White House budget office to set standards for removing DeepSeek from federal IT.

What to watch

  • The directive text. Which products count as DeepSeek technology: the app, the API, or open models running on agency hardware.
  • The deadline. Whether the directive sets a deadline for removal.
  • Contractors. Whether the procurement bar flows down to vendors that build on DeepSeek models for agency work.

Why it matters

A procurement bar reaches further than a device ban. A device ban stops staff from opening an app, while a procurement bar can force agencies to check whether a vendor's product runs on DeepSeek models underneath.

The report names civilian agencies only. It does not describe private users, companies or the military.