Key points

• With DeepSeek quickly gaining traction, it’s also raising questions for how the Chinese-owned app handles and stores user data, sparking serious privacy concerns.
• Bringing DeepSeek into your organisation could open the door to security risks like data breaches and non-compliance with regulations, putting sensitive information at risk.
• It’s crucial to train employees on how to use AI tools like DeepSeek and ChatGPT securely to prevent accidental data mishandling or leaks that could compromise your security.
• Metomic makes it easier for organisations to track and protect sensitive data across their SaaS applications, helping ensure that tools like DeepSeek are used safely and compliantly.

DeepSeek has been making waves in the AI space since it launched its R1 model on January 20, 2025. This emerging platform has quickly gained attention for its impressive performance, positioning itself as a strong contender to AI models like ChatGPT.

For IT and security teams, DeepSeek represents both a great opportunity and a challenge. 

On one hand, its cost-effectiveness stands out. DeepSeek reached ChatGPT-level performance with just $5.6 million in development costs, compared to GPT-4’s whopping $3 billion. Additionally, while ChatGPT charges a monthly fee of $20, DeepSeek offers free access to its AI, making it an appealing choice for many businesses.

As organisations adopt DeepSeek, they must carefully consider the security implications, especially around handling sensitive data. The tool’s use opens the door to potential privacy concerns, compliance issues, and security vulnerabilities if not properly managed.

Adopting AI tools like DeepSeek isn’t a decision to be taken lightly. It’s crucial to address these risks from the outset and implement proactive data protection measures to safeguard your organisation’s information. 

What is DeepSeek?

DeepSeek is an AI model designed to offer high performance while using fewer resources than traditional systems. Positioned as a direct competitor to more established AI models like ChatGPT, DeepSeek stands out for its remarkable efficiency and significantly lower costs.

Unlike other large-scale models, DeepSeek was developed with cost-effectiveness in mind. Its performance is impressive, but what really sets it apart is the efficiency with which it operates. In fact, DeepSeek has achieved ChatGPT-level performance with just $5.6 million in development costs, while GPT-4’s development cost soared to over $3 billion.

DeepSeek has just launched, and it’s already shaken up the market, wiping $600bn in market value from Nvidia, the chip manufacturer for AI models like ChatGPT. And despite only being a few days old, it’s positioning itself as a serious challenger to bigger and more established AI models.

Key capabilities of DeepSeek

• Chip usage: DeepSeek runs on approximately 2,000 chips, significantly fewer than the 16,000+ chips used by ChatGPT. This reduced hardware requirement means that DeepSeek can deliver impressive performance while being more energy-efficient.
• Environmental impact: DeepSeek is a more sustainable option. It consumes 90% less energy and boasts a 92% lower carbon footprint compared to similar AI systems. For businesses focused on sustainability, these figures are hard to ignore.
• API costs: DeepSeek offers a far more cost-effective option for businesses with heavy AI usage. At just $0.006 for every 1,000 tokens processed, it’s a much cheaper alternative to ChatGPT, which charges around $0.03 for the same amount (in this context ‘tokens,’ meaning words or part of words that the AI model processes). This makes DeepSeek particularly attractive to organisations seeking to optimise their AI-related expenses.

When compared to larger models, DeepSeek’s combination of lower development costs, energy efficiency, and competitive pricing structure makes it a standout in the market. However, while it offers significant opportunities for businesses, it’s important to recognise that its rapid growth also brings potential security and privacy risks.

How to use DeepSeek

With 65% of organisations now using AI in at least one business function, the potential for DeepSeek to gain traction as a serious contender to existing AI models.

Though we’re yet to see the full scope of DeepSeek’s applications, early adoption suggests several key ways it could be leveraged:

• Productivity and automation: Businesses could use DeepSeek for tasks like automating data entry, processing customer queries, or even generating marketing copy. Its affordable API pricing (80% lower than OpenAI's) and high performance could help streamline operations, making these processes more efficient.
• Data analysis: Companies could utilise DeepSeek to analyse large datasets quickly and cost-effectively, extracting valuable insights to inform business decisions. This might include processing customer feedback, market research, or internal reports.
• AI-powered applications: Organisations may look to integrate DeepSeek into their existing AI tools or software products. Its low cost and strong performance make it an appealing option for AI-driven applications in fields like finance, healthcare, or customer service.

Despite its potential, there are risks that companies will need to consider. With AI tools like DeepSeek, the speed and affordability it offers may also bring new security and compliance challenges, particularly around data privacy and system vulnerabilities.  In an increasingly treacherous digital threat environment, it’s increasingly important to deploy third party tools like Metomic to mitigate your security risks.

What are the security risks and concerns of using DeepSeek?

There are important security considerations when using DeepSeek, especially regarding data protection and potential vulnerabilities. 

Let’s break down some of the key risks businesses should be aware of:

• Data Privacy: AI tools like DeepSeek process vast amounts of data, raising concerns around data collection and storage. Even with strong safeguards in place, sensitive information might still be exposed unintentionally. This is especially important as AI models learn from large datasets, which could include private or confidential details.
• Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities: AI systems are prone to specific attack methods, including prompt injections or cross-site scripting (XSS) attacks. These tactics can manipulate AI responses, exposing organisations to risks such as data leaks or manipulation of model outputs. Keeping AI systems secure means actively monitoring for these types of vulnerabilities.
• Compliance Challenges: With the growing number of data protection laws, businesses must ensure their AI tools comply with regulations like GDPR, CCPA, and other regional standards. Failure to manage sensitive data properly can result in costly fines and legal issues, making it essential to establish clear guidelines around AI data use.

Security Risks, Public Trust, and ROI: What to Keep in Mind with DeepSeek

When considering DeepSeek, businesses need to be aware of several factors:

• Security risks: Two-thirds of CISOs are concerned that generative AI could create security breaches, and over half worry about employees accidentally uploading sensitive data. Four-fifths of companies plan to use AI to combat AI-related security threats.
• Public trust: Many are worried about AI’s broader impact—68% of Americans fear its effects on humanity, and 86% believe AI should be regulated. Additionally, 31% of UK respondents feel AI will negatively affect fairness, and 45% worry about job losses. For organisations considering using DeepSeek as a major part of their tech stack, establishing trust and transparency will be essential.
• AI ROI: Many companies are struggling to see the returns they expected from AI. The hype doesn’t always match the reality, so it's important to set realistic expectations for what DeepSeek can achieve.

How could using DeepSeek in your organisation cause damage?

While it's too early to fully assess DeepSeek's impact, the potential for data leaks or AI-generated errors is something organisations need to consider.

• Employee risks: Even well-meaning employees could unintentionally share confidential information while using DeepSeek, and that information could be leaked to users that it’s not intended for. This is especially relevant, as 38% of employees have admitted to sharing sensitive work information with AI without their employer’s knowledge.
• Financial, legal, and reputational consequences: A security breach could lead to heavy fines, legal battles, and significant damage to your reputation (in fact, 66% of consumers would not trust a company following a data breach).
• LLM ‘hallucinations,’: It’s tempting to think that the answers you get from AI models are accurate. However, LLM’s have been known to ‘hallucinate'—a fancy term for generating inaccurate, and sometimes harmful information—which can misguide decision making in your organisation and potentially harm your credibility. 

Understanding how to mitigate risks is key, especially as DeepSeek’s full potential is still unfolding. For more on the risks of using AI tools like DeepSeek, read our blog on the top security risks of using large language models (LLMs).

How can organisations educate employees on the use of DeepSeek?

As DeepSeek grows in popularity over the coming weeks and months, educating employees on its safe and responsible use will be essential. Like other AI tools, DeepSeek comes with its own set of risks that can be mitigated through proper guidance.

• Best practices for AI adoption: Organisations should set clear expectations for using AI tools responsibly. This includes guiding employees on how to avoid sharing sensitive data, setting boundaries for AI-generated responses, and establishing secure workflows.
• Internal policies and guidelines: Implementing internal policies is essential for maintaining control. These policies should cover everything from data-sharing protocols to acceptable AI usage, ensuring employees always know the guidelines.
• Training employees: As of now, 52% of employees have received no training on safe AI use and this points to a significant gap in AI awareness making training programmes essential. Educating employees and making them part of your security posture via a Human Firewall approach to data security can help avoid security risks and can significantly reduce the chances of an accidental data leak or breach.

By implementing clear policies, providing ongoing training, and prioritising AI education, organisations can help ensure that their employees use DeepSeek responsibly and securely as it continues to evolve.

How can Metomic help?

As AI tools like DeepSeek become more widely adopted, Metomic provides essential solutions to help organisations manage risks and protect sensitive data:

• Data Discovery and Classification: Metomic automatically identifies and classifies sensitive data, ensuring it is protected and only accessed by authorised AI tools.
• Data Loss Prevention: Prevents unauthorised AI interactions with sensitive data, reducing the risk of leaks or accidental exposure.
• Compliance Management: Metomic helps enforce security policies for AI use, ensuring compliance and controlling access to sensitive information across systems.

Metomic’s solutions help organisations secure data, ensure responsible AI usage, and maintain control over sensitive information.

Getting started with Metomic

As DeepSeek continues to develop, integrating it into your organisation is a simple process designed to improve security and manage risks. Here’s how you can begin:

• Free risk evaluation: Use our complimentary tools to assess your current security setup and identify any gaps. This gives you insight into potential risks when adopting new AI technologies like DeepSeek.
• Book a tailored demo: Book a personalised demonstration with our team to see how DeepSeek works in practice. We'll show you its features, helping you understand how it can support your organisation in reducing security risks and protecting sensitive information.
• Consult with our team: If you have any specific concerns, our experts are here to assist. We'll collaborate with you to refine your AI usage approach, ensuring that DeepSeek integrates smoothly into your processes while maintaining a strong security posture.