China's Z.ai Disables AI Coding Assistant Features After Security Concerns

Chinese startup Z.ai disabled certain features of its AI coding assistant, ZCode, following user reports of the tool uploading local code repositories and sensitive data to cloud servers without consent. The company acknowledged a vulnerability in its "Codebase Indexing" feature, which was enabled by default, and pledged to make the product more transparent. This incident highlights ongoing concerns about data privacy and security in AI development.