Governor Sanders blocks DeepSeek, RedNote, and Lemon8 from executive branch devices

LITTLE ROCK — Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders today announced Arkansas has blocked the Chinese-based platforms DeepSeek, RedNote and Lemon8 across executive branch devices.
“My administration is taking the appropriate steps to ensure Arkansans are protected from the Chinese Communist Party,” said Governor Sanders. “China is only looking to advance their country’s interest by accessing highly sensitive information and that will not be tolerated in Arkansas state government.”
“The Arkansas state cyber office has initiated network blocks on social media services that include DeepSeek, RedNote and Lemon8. These applications developed by Chinese companies have raised concerns about data privacy and the risk of unauthorized access to critical infrastructure. The primary objective in blocking access to these applications is to protect critical infrastructure and sensitive information from potential espionage or unauthorized data access by foreign entities, particularly the Chinese Communist Party,” said Chief Information Officer Gary Vance.

In February, Governor Sanders announced the China Legislative Defense Package, which expands prohibitions on Chinese Communist Party-linked companies’ property ownership by preventing those companies from leasing property, owning property near critical infrastructure, and shortening the amount of time a banned company has to divest. State agencies will be barred from spending public funds to purchase promotional items made in China.
In her first year in office, Governor Sanders became the first governor in the country to kick Communist China off Arkansas’ farmland and out of the state.