The government has decided to send a letter of inquiry to the Chinese Artificial Intelligence startup DeepSeek to verify the legitimacy of the way the company manages personal information. 

The Personal Information Protection Commission said Friday that it will send the letter to determine what kind of personal information DeepSeek collects from its users and how it handles and stores the data. 

The move came amid growing concerns in a number of countries over the Chinese AI firm’s vulnerabilities in protecting personal information. 

An official with the commission said the agency will launch an on-site inspection or investigation if deemed necessary after reviewing the expected reply from the Chinese company. 

According to foreign media, companies and state agencies around the world are blocking access to DeepSeek to prevent leaks of personal information and data.