Kentucky Sues Temu Over Massive Data Collection

Kentucky’s attorney general, Russell Coleman, said on July 17 that the state has filed a lawsuit against Temu, alleging that the Chinese e-commerce platform secretly collects massive amounts of American users’ personal data.

The state’s investigation has revealed “code-level behaviors” in Temu’s app that allow it to collect users’ personal information without their knowledge or consent, according to the court documents.

The lawsuit alleged that such behaviors pose privacy and security threats, in part because Temu has a portion of its operations in China, where cybersecurity laws grant the regime “unfettered access” to data belonging to Chinese companies.

The investigators allege that the app collects an “alarming amount” of sensitive data—“well beyond what would be necessary in the ordinary course of business,” the court document said.

“Examples include a user’s granular geolocation (‘GPS’), lists of all other installed apps and associated accounts, on consumer’s phones, and the cellular data and WiFi networks the user’s phone is connected to as well as all WiFi networks that are detected by the phone,” it stated.

Privacy risks associated with Temu are not an innocent mishap, but a conscious part of the app’s design, the complaint alleges.

To disguise itself, the app can “edit its own code once it has been downloaded to a consumer’s phone,” the complaint alleges. That potentially allows it to exploit users’ personally identifiable information and other data or “otherwise control the consumer’s device, in unknown and unknowable ways,” it states.

Personally identifiable information refers to any data that can be used to identify a specific individual. This includes name, address, and social security number, as well as date of birth, gender, and IP address.

One example of this occurs in the form of notifications. According to the complaint, Temu users are encouraged to recommend the app in exchange for credits and items, such as a free Nintendo Switch—with a catch.

Apart from Temu itself, third parties also bombard users with spam notifications. However, “these emails and notifications occur even after the users delete the app from their devices,” the complaint adds.

Temu denied Kentucky’s accusations, calling them “totally unfounded” and based on “misinformation circulated online.”

“We categorically deny the claims and will defend ourselves vigorously,” a company spokesperson told The Epoch Times on July 20 via email.

Owned by Chinese e-commerce giant PDD Holdings, Temu launched in the United States in 2022. The company, known for its slogan “shop like a billionaire,” sells low-priced goods manufactured in China.

In recent years, Temu has ballooned in popularity, becoming Apple’s most downloaded free app in 2023. Users spend double the daily screen time on Temu as they do on its rival Amazon, according to the court document.

The lawsuit attributes its success to word-of-mouth exposure and aggressive marketing campaigns, notably advertisements run during Super Bowl 2024—promoting a catchy jingle that features bargain-priced products.

The recent complaint is not the first of its kind. In 2023, Apple suspended Temu from the App Store due to concerns over product misrepresentation and questionable data collection practices. Similarly, Google removed Temu’s sister app, Pinduoduo, from the Play Store in March 2023 after it was found to contain malware.

Several other states have taken legal action against Temu. Nebraska Attorney General Mike Hilgers filed suit against Temu last month, criticizing the platform’s lack of a meaningful return policy, citing privacy concerns but also alleging that consumers are left with low-quality products instead of the higher-quality items they were promised.

“There is no meaningful return process for Nebraskans to get their hard-earned money back,” Hilgers said in a statement.

Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin was even more direct. In a news release last June announcing a lawsuit against the retailer, Griffin said: “Temu is not an online marketplace like Amazon or Walmart. It is a data-theft business that sells goods online as a means to an end.”

In 2023, the state of Montana banned the Temu app from government devices, citing security and privacy concerns. The ban also includes other apps tied to “foreign adversaries,” such as TikTok, WeChat, and Telegram.

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