> Back to All Posts

DeepSeek Halts New Signups Amid Large-Scale Cyberattack

DeepSeek, a fast-growing Chinese AI platform, has suspended new registrations on its DeepSeek-V3 chat platform following a significant cyberattack. The attack has impacted the platform’s services as its popularity continues to soar.

Why Did DeepSeek Disable Registrations?

DeepSeek gained widespread attention recently with the launch of its advanced AI model, which reportedly matches or exceeds the performance of leading U.S. tech companies’ models at much lower costs. This innovation triggered a wave of interest, pushing the DeepSeek AI Assistant app to the top of the Apple App Store rankings, surpassing ChatGPT.

However, the surge in popularity has also attracted cybercriminals. A “large-scale malicious attack” prompted DeepSeek to temporarily disable new user registrations. Existing users remain unaffected and can still log in as usual.

A statement on DeepSeek’s status page reads:
“Due to large-scale malicious attacks on DeepSeek’s services, we are temporarily limiting registrations to ensure continued service.”

Nature of the Cyberattack

Although DeepSeek has not disclosed detailed information, the incident appears to be a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack. DDoS attacks flood a platform with excessive traffic, overwhelming its resources and disrupting services until mitigated.

To address the situation, DeepSeek now allows users to log in via their Google accounts. This process requires sharing personal information such as names, email addresses, language preferences, and profile pictures.

Concerns Raised by Cybersecurity Experts

DeepSeek’s rapid rise has not only attracted cyberattacks but also scrutiny from cybersecurity firms. Experts at KELA recently reported vulnerabilities in DeepSeek’s AI model. According to KELA’s findings, the model is more susceptible to exploitation compared to competitors like ChatGPT.

KELA’s report states:
“KELA’s AI Red Team successfully jailbroke the model across various scenarios, enabling malicious outputs such as ransomware creation, toxic substance production, and sensitive content fabrication.”

What’s Next for DeepSeek?

As DeepSeek addresses the ongoing cyberattack, it faces increasing pressure to enhance its security and prevent misuse of its platform. Despite the challenges, the company’s AI advancements continue to position it as a major player in the competitive AI market.

David McAfee

David McAfee is a seasoned cybersecurity expert with over a decade of experience at VPN Group. Specializing in online privacy and digital security, he has played a key role in developing advanced strategies to protect individuals and organizations from cyber threats.