Chinese app offers £50 cash for lifetime use of personal data

CONCERNS have been raised over a Chinese shopping app offering a £50 cash reward in return for new sign-ups, whereby customers agree to hand over their personal details for life.

Temu, an online marketplace which sells cheap goods to customers from wholesalers in China, is claiming to give individuals “free cash” as long as they download the app, register and then send out an invitation code to others.

The offer has gone viral on social media, with thousands of people sharing codes in the hope of receiving the £50 reward. However, the terms and conditions state users agree to hand over a large amount of personal information, giving Temu permission to use their “photo, name likeness, voice, opinions, statements, biographical information, and/or hometown and state” worldwide, “in perpetuity without further review, notification, payment or consideration”.

The data is processed in accordance with Temu’s privacy policy, which says information can be shared or “sold”. However, it adds that users can opt out.

Concerns have been raised among consumer and data protection experts over the level of data collection. Lisa Webb, a consumer law expert for Which?, said: “These offers are going viral on social media, including to young people, but consumers should definitely consider whether they are comfortable giving this sensitive data away in return for cash.”

It comes after the US and UK exposed a Chinese hacking plot targeting White House staff, the state department, British MPS and the Electoral Commission.

A spokesman for the Henry Jackson Society, a national security think tank, said: “Given that the Chinese state can also enforce legal backdoors into private companies – regardless of the intentions of those companies – the national security risks of potential data transfers are extremely worrying.”

A spokesman for Temu said: “Temu gathers user information solely for the purpose of delivering our service and to enhance customer experience. We do not sell user information.”

‘Consumers should consider whether they are comfortable giving data away in return for cash’