India’s Finance Ministry has issued an internal advisory asking its employees to refrain from using artificial intelligence (AI) tools such as ChatGPT and DeepSeek for official purposes. The advisory, dated January 29, highlights concerns about the confidentiality risks these AI tools pose to government documents and data.
The Ministry’s directive comes ahead of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s scheduled visit to India on Wednesday, where he is expected to meet with the country’s IT minister. Countries like Australia and Italy have previously restricted the use of tools like DeepSeek, citing similar data security risks.
The advisory states: “AI tools and AI apps (such as ChatGPT, DeepSeek, etc.) in office computers and devices pose risks for confidentiality of (government) data and documents.”
While representatives from India’s Finance Ministry, OpenAI (parent company of ChatGPT), and DeepSeek did not immediately respond to requests for comment, the advisory has sparked attention on social media.
Several finance ministry officials confirmed the authenticity of the advisory, but it remains unclear if similar restrictions have been issued for other Indian ministries.
This move comes as OpenAI faces a high-profile copyright infringement case in India with major media houses, and the company has claimed in court filings that its servers are not located in India, arguing that Indian courts should not handle the case.
The Finance Ministry’s advisory is seen as a precautionary measure to safeguard sensitive government information from potential AI-related security vulnerabilities.
