DeepSeek Users in the US Face Potential Millions of Dollars in Fines

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Several countries have banned the use of , an artificial intelligence platform from China. One of the countries that has banned it is the United States (US). The US Navy has issued a ban on the use of Chinese-made technology due to concerns about security and ethics.

Not only that, the United States Space Agency (NASA) has even banned all of its employees from using open source AI technology from China. Through a memo issued on January 31, 2025, NASA explained that the Deepseek server operates outside the US and is considered to pose a risk to data and information managed by NASA employees or the US government.

"DeepSeek and related services are not permitted for use with NASA data or on devices and networks managed by the government," the memo said.

So, what are the sanctions for DeepSeek users in the United States?

Quoted from the , Republican Senate member Josh Hawley recently proposed a new Bill that has the potential to tighten the use of DeepSeek and other Chinese AI technology in the US. The bill is called the 'Decoupling America's Artificial Intelligence Capabilities from China Act of 2025'.

The bill aims to prohibit Americans from developing artificial intelligence capabilities in the People's Republic of China, and for anyone else. Although the bill does not directly mention 'DeepSeek', the proposal comes a few weeks after DeepSeek became increasingly popular around the world, including in the US.

The proposed law also prohibits the import of "technology or intellectual property" developed in China. Americans who violate the law will face up to 20 years in prison and be subject to large fines. The fines that must be paid also vary.

If the violator is an individual, the fine imposed can reach 1 million US dollars or around Rp16.3 billion. Meanwhile, if the violator is a company, the amount is much larger, namely 100 million US dollars or around Rp. 1.6 trillion. Currently, the bill is still under discussion, and there is no certainty when it will be passed.

Previously, security experts have also warned that DeepSeek could pose a greater threat to businesses and governments than other Chinese-owned apps like TikTok. This is because DeepSeek data is stored on servers in China.

"DeepSeek is a clear risk to any company whose leadership values data privacy, security, and transparency," said Bill Conner, chief executive of automation company Jitterbit and a former security advisor to the US government.

"As stated in their own privacy policy, DeepSeek is a shared cloud service run in China with data stored in China - potentially posing unknown risks to data privacy, compliance mandates, and security controls."

Looking further, US concerns about DeepSeek stem from the distillation technique used by its US competitors' AI technology. Distillation is a technique that uses AI systems to learn from other AI systems. Silicon Valley executives and investors say this is difficult to stop.

US suspicions were sparked by the launch of DeepSeek's latest AI model that shook the world. The AI model rivals US-based artificial intelligence such as OpenAI at a lower cost and is freely accessible.

Some technologists argue that DeepSeek’s latest AI model may have learned from US AI models to gain an advantage. Distillation in AI development uses older, established, and sophisticated technology to evaluate the quality of answers to newer technology.

The distillation technique is common in the field of AI. However, its use is different from what most academic researchers do. In addition, the technique violates the terms of service of several US AI models that have been enforced in recent years, including .

Haura Hamidah and Fuza Nihayatul Chusna contributed to this article.

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