Effective immediately, University Information Technology has restricted access to DeepSeek AI on all UND-owned devices and networks due to newly identified security concerns. This means that DeepSeek AI will no longer be accessible on any UND-owned device or through the UND network (WIFI and hardwired) after February 7, 2025. What is DeepSeek? The newly released large language model DeepSeek is an AI-powered platform designed for various applications, including natural language processing and code generation. Why was this decision made? Data Transmission to ByteDance Servers It was observed that all DeepSeek data is being sent to servers owned by ByteDance, owner of Tiktok. Given the Federal, State, and North Dakota Higher Ed Board regulatory and privacy concerns associated with ByteDance, this data transmission raises compliance concerns. Usage of 3DES DeepSeek utilizes the outdated and vulnerable Triple Data Encryption Standard (3DES). This standard was depreciated by NIST in 2016 and is no longer considered secure against modern cryptographic attacks. Hard-Coded Symmetric Keys The application has hard-coded symmetric keys embedded directly into the app that are identical for every user. This makes it easier to extract and misuse these keys.