Arkansas Attorney General Sues Chinese Company Temu for Deceiving Arkansans, Illegally Accessing Personal Data

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Last week Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin sued Chinese e-commerce platform Temu for

The A.G.’s legal team brought the lawsuit under the Arkansas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, which carries a penalty of $10,000 per violation.

Temu is marketed as an online shopping platform launched in 2022, and it is widely regarded as similar to Amazon or Walmart.com. In 2023, the Temu was reported to be the most widely downloaded app in the U.S., and its multibillion dollar marketing campaign — which included an advertisement during the 2024 Super Bowl — has contributed to its success.

But as a Chinese-based tech company, the Arkansas Attorney General’s office has pointed out that security and privacy experts are concerned about Temu.

The A.G.’s lawsuit asserts that Temu “collects a shocking amount of sensitive user data” beyond what is necessary for an online shopping app — including users’ GPS locations and fingerprint data. The lawsuit alleges that the Temu app is able to bypass phone security systems, which potentially grants Temu access to a user’s private messages.

The A.G. says these security concerns are compounded by the fact that Temu is owned by a Chinese company subject to Chinese laws — including “laws that mandate secret cooperation with China’s intelligence apparatus regardless of any data protection guarantees existing in the United States.”

The A.G.’s allegations against Temu are very similar to points the A.G.’s office has made in its lawsuits against TikTok — a widely popular social media platform that is also owned by a Chinese company.

Below is a statement from Attorney General Tim Griffin regarding the lawsuit against Temu.

Griffin: ‘Temu is not an online marketplace like Amazon or Walmart. It is a data-theft business that sells goods online as a means to an end’

LITTLE ROCK – After announcing he is suing Chinese e-commerce company Temu for violations of the Arkansas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (ADTPA) and the Arkansas Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA), Attorney General Tim Griffin issued the following statement:

“Temu is not an online marketplace like Amazon or Walmart. It is a data-theft business that sells goods online as a means to an end. Today I have filed a first-of-its-kind state lawsuit against the parent companies of Temu—PDD Holdings Inc. and WhaleCo Inc.—for violating the ADTPA and PIPA. Though it is known as an e-commerce platform, Temu is functionally malware and spyware. It is purposefully designed to gain unrestricted access to a user’s phone operating system. It can override data privacy settings on users’ devices, and it monetizes this unauthorized collection of data.

“While this is the first state lawsuit against Temu over its deceptive trade practices, it is not the first time Temu’s tactics have been called into question. Apple suspended Temu from its digital app store in 2023, prompting multiple investigations into the company’s dealings, including an ongoing investigation being conducted by the U.S. Congress. 

“Temu is led by a cadre of former Chinese Communist Party officials, which raises significant security risks to our country and our citizens. For my part, I will aggressively fight Temu’s efforts to profit at the expense of Arkansans’ privacy rights.”

The lawsuit, filed in Cleburne County Circuit Court, seeks an order enjoining Temu’s deceptive trade practices and violations of users’ privacy, imposing civil penalties, and providing all other monetary and equitable relief to which the State is entitled.

To read a copy of the lawsuit, click here.

For a printer-friendly version of this release, click here.

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A.G. Griffin Issues Ballot Integrity Alert in Arkansas

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On Monday the Arkansas Attorney General’s office issued a ballot integrity alert.

The A.G.’s alert says, “It is imperative that both voters and canvassers understand and adhere to Arkansas’s laws on the collection of signatures for ballot initiatives.”

The alert notes that in Arkansas it is a felony for a petition canvasser to:

  • Sign someone else’s name to a petition;
  • Print someone else’s name, address, or birth date. If the signer requires assistance due to disability, a person other than the canvasser may print the signer’s name, address, birth date, and the date of signing. The person providing assistance must sign and print his or her own name in the margin of the petition;
  • Ask for or obtain a signature when the canvasser knows that the person signing is not qualified to sign the petition;
  • Pay someone to sign;
  • Knowingly misrepresent the purpose and effect of the petition or the measure in order to persuade someone to sign; or
  • Falsely swear to have witnessed all signatures on the petition page.

By law, petition canvassers in Arkansas must be at least 18 years old. They must be a U.S. citizen and a resident of Arkansas. The law also says canvassers must personally witness all signatures on the petition.

The A.G.’s ballot integrity alert comes as groups work to enshrine abortion and marijuana into the Arkansas Constitution via the petition process.

Arkansans for Limited Government has until July 5 to collect 90,704 valid signatures from registered voters to place the Arkansas Abortion Amendment on the November ballot.

The measure would write abortion into the state constitution, allowing thousands of elective abortions in Arkansas every year.

The amendment does not contain any medical licensing or health and safety standards for abortion, and it automatically nullifies all state laws that conflict with the amendment. That jeopardizes even the most basic restrictions on abortion.

The measure contains sweeping exceptions that would permit abortion through all nine months of pregnancy in many cases.

The amendment also would pave the way for publicly funded abortion in Arkansas by changing Amendment 68 to the Arkansas Constitution that currently prohibits taxpayer funded abortion in the state.

Right now the group Arkansans for Patient Access is actively working to drastically expand marijuana in Arkansas.

If passed, the marijuana amendment would give free marijuana cards to immigrants and out-of-state residents who come to Arkansas to use marijuana.

The amendment would guarantee marijuana growers and sellers a monopoly over the state’s marijuana industry.

Marijuana users would no longer need to show they suffer from a specific medical condition listed in state law — making it easier to use marijuana recreationally.

The measure also fails to limit the amount of THC that marijuana products can contain, and it repeals restrictions on marijuana advertising.

All of this would lead to more marijuana in the state.

The A.G.’s entire ballot integrity alert is available below:

LITTLE ROCK – With the deadline for submittal of signatures on statewide ballot initiatives fast approaching, Attorney General Tim Griffin reissued guidance on the rules that govern the collection of signatures:

“As the July 5 deadline for signature submission draws near, there will likely be many people across the state this week making a final push to collect signatures for various ballot measures. It is imperative that both voters and canvassers understand and adhere to Arkansas’s laws on the collection of signatures for ballot initiatives. This benefits all involved; it protects the signatures from being challenged legally and upholds faith in our democratic process.”

The law requires that canvassers:

• Be 18 years of age or older, a U.S. citizen, AND an Arkansas resident.
• Personally witness all signatures on the petition.

It is a felony for a canvasser to:

• Sign someone else’s name to a petition;
• Print someone else’s name, address, or birth date. If the signer requires assistance due to disability, a person other than the canvasser may print the signer’s name, address, birth date, and the date of signing. The person providing assistance must sign and print his or her own name in the margin of the petition;
• Ask for or obtain a signature when the canvasser knows that the person signing is not qualified to sign the petition;
• Pay someone to sign;
• Knowingly misrepresent the purpose and effect of the petition or the measure in order to persuade someone to sign; or
• Falsely swear to have witnessed all signatures on the petition page.

If you are approached by a canvasser, remember that:
• Only registered voters may sign a petition;
• All signatures must be in the signer’s own handwriting and must be given in the presence of the canvasser;
• Because petition parts are separated by county, signers should only sign petition parts for the county in which the signer is registered to vote;
• Arkansas law requires that a full and correct copy of the popular name, ballot title, and text of the initiated or referred measure be attached to every petition at all times during a petition’s circulation. This is so potential signers may read the full text of what they are being asked to sign;
• The information a signer provides on a petition may be disclosed in response to a records request made under the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act.

We have received reports of canvassers leaving petitions unattended in public places. What is the effect of someone signing an unattended petition?
• This is a canvasser violation only if (1) someone signs that petition while the canvasser isn’t there and (2) the canvasser signs the affidavit in the bottom corner of the signature page. If both the foregoing happen, then two legal consequences occur: (1) people attacking the petition can argue that every signature page gathered by that canvasser be tossed out; and (2) the canvasser can be convicted of a felony for falsely swearing to have witnessed the signatures that occurred in his or her absence.

Regarding the collection of signatures on private property:
• Signature collectors should ensure that their ballot-related activities comply with any posted signs and are conducted with the consent of private property owners.

Any complaints or allegations of misconduct in the ballot-initiative process should be directed to the Election Integrity Unit, Office of the Attorney General at (833) 995-8683.

To download a PDF version of this alert, click here.

Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.

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