All charm and no commitment: Unpacking DeepSeek’s situationship and red flags

The relationship between the world and DeepSeek is beginning to feel like a complicated situationship—one part gaslighting, another part breadcrumbing, with a sprinkle of orbiting thrown in for good measure. If those terms seem unfamiliar, they perfectly capture the confusion and uncertainty I experienced while trying to navigate DeepSeek’s privacy policies. As DeepSeek continues to dominate the app store charts, its rapid ascent has raised more than just eyebrows—it’s sparked growing concerns about user data privacy.