‘Exploiting Americans’ data’: House Intel seeks ‘critical’ briefing on CCP-linked firm Temu

INTERMEDIATE: The House Intelligence Committee is requesting a briefing from the FBI and the Securities Exchange Commission on Chinese Communist Party-linked e-commerce company Temu and its parent company Pinduoduo (PDD) amid concerns over US data use.

Fox News Digital obtained a letter led by House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Turner, R-Ohio, and Rep. Darin LaHood, R-Ill., directed at FBI Director Christopher Wray and SEC Chairman Gary Gensler.

Lawmakers wrote about Temu and PDD, noting that PDD is listed on NASDAQ and is “under United States’ Securities and Exchange Commission purview.”

‘FORCED LABOR’: STATE AGS PROBE CHINESE COMPANY TEMU OVER ‘DISTURBING’ BUSINESS PRACTICES

“Many organizations, from US Senators, to the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, Attorneys General, and countless others, have raised the alarm about Temu’s and PDD’s practices — from possible trade, slave labor, and national security,” they wrote.

In 2023, Google suspended the PDD app, saying it “exploited a zero-day vulnerability that allowed them to secretly control millions of user devices to steal personal data and install malicious apps.”

Lawmakers emphasized that they are “concerned about the protection of the data of the American people.”

“Similar to Congress’s action on TikTok, the relationship between the Chinese Communist Party, China’s national security laws and Americans’ data must be understood,” they wrote. “We are concerned that the CCP has made another attempt to exploit democracy, free market principles, and the personal and economic data of the United States.”

Lawmakers are now requesting a joint briefing from the FBI and the SEC about whether the bureau will provide any information to the SEC about issues related to Temu and PDD.

Lawmakers are seeking answers to what laws or policies stand in the way of information sharing between the intelligence community and the SEC and others.

Mobile over keyboard with Term logo (Nikos Pekiaridis/NurPhoto via Getty Images/Getty Images)

The letter was signed by every Republican member of the House Intelligence Committee.

ARKANSAS AG WARNS TEMU IS NOT LIKE AMAZON OR WALMART: ‘IT’S A BREAKING BUSINESS’

“The relationship between Temu, their parent company PInduoduo, and the national security laws of the Chinese Communist Party raises serious concerns that the CCP has taken another attempt, beyond TikTok, to exploit the information of the American people and undermine our democracy,” it said. LaHood told Fox News Digital.

LaHood said Temu had “abused our trade laws” and warned that its Chinese ownership had “increased the risk to American consumers, by potentially allowing confidential and sensitive data to be transferred to foreign adversaries.”

Rep. Darin LaHood, R-Ill., at the US Capitol on April 26, 2023. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images/Getty Images)

“Given the growing and growing public security concerns about Temu, which is listed on the NASDAQ, it is important that our FBI and SEC partners brief the Intelligence Committee to ensure that Congress is taking appropriate precautions against the growing threats of CCP,” LaHood said. .

AMAZON LAUNCHES SHEIN, TEMU CONTAINS DIRECT SHIPPING FROM CHINA

The demand for the forum comes amid concerns that officials in states across the country are alleging “disturbing” collection of US consumer data and illegal enforcement practices.

Last year, the House Intelligence Committee disclosed “disturbing information about Temu’s failure to comply with US laws prohibiting the forced use of Uyghurs.”

READ MORE ON FOX BUSINESS

Temu, at the time, admitted that it had no policy to ban the sale of goods from Xinjiang, the site of the CCP’s ongoing genocide against the Uyghurs. Temu also said that it is not under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act.

Temu did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.