Seemingly overnight, everyone’s talking about Temu, a web based shopping app filled with deals that appear too good to be true. You’ll find $17 wireless earbuds, $1 “gold” necklaces, and $23 wedding dresses.
No wonder Temu is the most well-liked shopping app within the U.S., behind only Amazon. But most of us know little concerning the app’s origins. Like these apps, it’s tied to China.
I did some digging into whether it’s secure to make use of. Here’s what I discovered.
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Where did Temu come from?
This app isn’t some fly-by-night operation. Temu (pronounced “tee-moo”) relies in Boston, Massachusetts, by PDD Holdings Inc. PDD is headquartered in Shanghai, China. PDD also owns the e-commerce platform Pinduoduo headquartered in — you guessed it — China. (More on Pinduoduo and its shady app below.)
Over 50 million Americans have downloaded Temu because it launched state-side in September 2022. You would possibly remember its expensive Super Bowl ads promising to allow you to “shop like a billionaire.”
Searches for terms like “Is Temu legit” surged once Americans saw just how low cost the costs are. Not surprisingly, you get what you pay for.
What it’s worthwhile to know before using Temu
First, you’re buying goods directly from manufacturers in China and other parts of the world. That’s why shipping times are sometimes for much longer than on sites like Amazon. You would possibly get your stuff in per week, but that might be more like 12 days.
For probably the most part, the costs are low because the products are low cost. The images of what you see advertised might not be what you really get.
Online reviewers appear to agree: Low cost is sweet, but not when the standard is simply too shoddy to make use of. Temu’s BBB rating is 2.21/5. Reviews at TrustPilot are interesting, with 38% 5-star reviews and 41% 1-star reviews.
But that’s not the worst of it. As you shop, Temu collects a lot of information.
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It gets worse
Temu isn’t unique in all the data it desires to capture out of your phone, after all. Most apps on the market want as much as you’ll surrender. But considering its ties to Communist China, the permissions seem much more frightening to me.
Temu collects, amongst other things:
- The information you provide, like your name, address, and phone number.
- Details you enter, like your birthday, photo, and social media profiles.
- Your phone or computer’s operating system and version, your IP address, GPS location (when you allowed it), and browsing data.
Additionally they gather more about you from third party sources, including Temu sellers, public records, social media, data brokers, credit bureaus, and marketing partners.
Americans using Temu are selling the country out for bargains that basically aren’t value it. I say you delete it. Here’s how:
On iPhone, Long-press an app, then tap Remove App > Delete App. Tap Delete to substantiate.
On Android, touch and hold an app, then tap Remove App > Delete App > Delete.
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In bad company
While Temu collects rather a lot, it’s nothing in comparison with Pinduoduo. Remember, they’re owned by the identical company.
Cybersecurity researchers found it wasn’t just tracking device info and activity – malicious code allowed it to bypass cellphone security settings to spy on other apps, read notifications and messages, and even change settings.
Temu gains full access to all of your contacts, calendars, and photo albums, plus all of your social media accounts, chats, and texts. In other words, literally every thing in your phone.
Why? Company insiders told CNN that it’s a method to spy on users and competitors to spice up sales.
No shopping app needs this much control, especially one tied to Communist China. In the event you’re using Pinduoduo, delete the app out of your phone ASAP. It’s also reportedly hard to remove every thing, even after you delete it.
Pro tip: In the event you downloaded Pinduoduo you actually need to do a full factory reset in your smartphone to wipe out any remaining code or tracking.
