AG Kris Mayes accuses Temu of ‘harvesting’ sensitive info of app users
Arizona’s attorney general is filing a consumer fraud lawsuit against Temu for allegedly stealing private data.
PHOENIX — Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes announced Tuesday her office is suing online marketplace Temu for allegations of consumer fraud.
During a press conference, Mayes alleged that the e-commerce platform had been “misleading” Arizona consumers for allegedly counterfeiting brands and stealing private data.
The lawsuit claims the Temu platform features unlicensed products claiming to be from local brands like the Arizona Cardinals, Arizona State University and the University of Arizona.
In addition, the lawsuit accuses the retail giant of “unlawful data collection” and secretly infiltrating app users’ devices to access sensitive information.
“We allege that Temu has repeatedly and willfully violated the Arizona Consumer Fraud Act and put the privacy of Arizonans, including minors, at extreme risk,” Mayes said in a statement.
Temu, which is owned by the Chinese e-commerce company PDD Holdings, went live in the U.S. in 2022 and has quickly become a popular marketplace for online shoppers and one of Amazon’s biggest competitors.
The legal complaint filed in Maricopa County additionally accuses Temu of “deceptive and unfair trade practices” by allegedly faking customer reviews and charging for goods not ordered by the customer.
“I will not stand by while a Chinese company vacuums up reams of sensitive data from Arizonans’ phones and profits from deception and abuse,” Mayes added.
The attorney general of Nebraska announced in June his office was suing Temu for similar allegations involving data collection.
Earlier this year, Temu agreed to pay $2 million in civil penalties to resolve allegations it had violated the INFORM Consumers Act, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
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