Texas Reaches $3 Million Settlement With Temu Over Data Privacy and Product Safety
Texas has reached a $3 million settlement with e-commerce platform Temu in a case alleging the platform illegally collected U.S. user data and sold products with safety hazards. The settlement was announced on Oct. 16; according to Reuters, it is the first settlement among U.S. state claims alleging Temu illegally harvested American user data accessible to the Chinese government, while similar lawsuits in other states continue.
The settling parties are PDD Holdings and Whaleco, which does business as Temu. The agreement requires Temu to pay $3 million and take on ongoing compliance duties: annual independent security testing of its mobile app and hazardous-substance testing of sampled products; Texas residents' personal data must be stored on servers owned and controlled in the United States, with access from China restricted.
The terms also provide for penalties of up to $8 million per year if annual audits find major noncompliance. State officials said reports had raised concerns that some products on the platform may contain long-lasting chemicals such as PFAS; the settlement requires testing and corrective action when hazardous substances are confirmed, but does not find all of the platform's products unsafe. Temu denied wrongdoing, and the agreement states the settlement is not an admission of guilt or a court finding of illegality.
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：奥斯汀的德克萨斯州议会大厦（资料图）。照片：lsbthnavarro／Wikimedia Commons（CC BY-SA 4.0）。The Texas State Capitol in Austin (file photo). Photo: lsbthnavarro / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).
