A New York-based cybersecurity firm, Wiz, has reported discovering a significant cache of sensitive data from Chinese artificial intelligence startup DeepSeek that was inadvertently exposed on the open internet.
In a blog post published on Wednesday, Wiz stated that scans of DeepSeek’s infrastructure revealed the company had mistakenly left over a million lines of data unsecured. The exposed information included digital software keys and chat logs, which appeared to record prompts sent by users to the company’s free AI assistant.
Wiz’s Chief Technology Officer, Ami Luttwak, confirmed that DeepSeek swiftly secured the data after being alerted by his firm.
“They took it down in less than an hour,” Luttwak said. “But this was so simple to find we believe we’re not the only ones who found it.”
DeepSeek has not yet responded to a request for comment.
The Chinese startup’s rapid rise following the launch of its AI assistant has captivated China and raised concerns in the US. Its apparent ability to rival OpenAI’s capabilities at a significantly lower cost has sparked debate over the sustainability of US AI giants’ business models and profit margins, including those of Nvidia and Microsoft.
By Monday, DeepSeek had surpassed its US competitor, ChatGPT, in downloads from Apple’s App Store, contributing to a global selloff in tech stocks.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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