Temu Actually Reached Out to Me About Those Bank Hacking Claims—Here's What They Said

← All posts Heavy Handed Advice Temu Actually Reached Out to Me About Those Bank Hacking Claims—Here’s What They Said This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please read our affiliate disclosure policy. Remember when I wrote about whether Temu was safe to use after a bunch of users reported weird banking activity? Well, the internet did its thing, and Temu’s PR team actually reached out directly to my inbox to respond. When… By Jamie Slack July 26, 2026 Reviewed July 2026 This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please read our affiliate disclosure policy . Remember when I wrote about whether Temu was safe to use after a bunch of users reported weird banking activity? Well, the internet did its thing, and Temu’s PR team actually reached out directly to my inbox to respond. When a massive company reaches out about an article questioning their data practices, my initial reaction is usually to brace for impact. But to their credit, Temu’s representative came back with specific background information, independent security studies, and their perspective on how their app actually handles user data. Since I promised to give you the full picture, here’s what Temu said, what the data actually shows, and whether it changes anything. 1. What Temu Said About App Permissions & Data Collection In my initial post, I mentioned that security researchers had flagged Temu for aggressive data requests. Temu’s team pushed back on this, pointing out that independent third-party testing tells a different story compared to other major shopping apps: The Which? Review: In a test comparing 20 popular shopping apps, independent consumer group Which? found that Temu requested 12 app permissions —the lowest count among all 20 apps evaluated. They also noted Temu doesn’t ask for access to your device’s audio or files. The Surfshark Analysis: A data collection study by Surfshark found Temu collected 17 out of 35 data types—which is actually fewer than several major household retailers like Amazon, Walmart, and Costco. The Tenscope Study: Cybersecurity firm Tenscope gave Temu an invasiveness score of 2 out of 100 (where lower means less intrusive) and found no evidence of cross-app tracking. My Take: It’s fair context. While all shopping apps collect data to run, independent testing indicates Temu isn’t requesting more permissions on your device than the household brands already sitting on your home screen. 2. What They Said About Payment Safety & Bank “Hacking” The biggest concern in my previous article was the wave of social media posts claiming bank accounts were compromised after shopping on Temu. Temu emphasized that their platform relies on standard industry security protections to keep transactions safe: No Direct Card Access via Mobile Wallets: If you check out using Apple Pay, Google Pay, or PayPal , Temu never actually sees or stores your raw credit or debit card numbers. Security Certifications: Temu holds a MASA (Mobile Application Security Assessment) certification for mobile app safety and complies with PCI DSS standards for payment processing. Bug Bounty Program: They partner with HackerOne to pay independent ethical hackers to find and report vulnerabilities before bad actors can exploit them. My Take: If you’re worried about direct card theft, using Apple Pay, Google Pay, or a virtual card remains the smartest layer of defense—not just on Temu, but anywhere you shop online. 3. The Bottom Line: Does This Change Anything? Temu isn’t asking you to blindly trust them; they brought third-party receipts. Knowing that independent reviewers at Which? and Surfshark found their permission requests to be on par with (or lower than) traditional retailers gives some helpful nuance to the conversation. That said, my core advice hasn’t changed: Stick to credit cards or third-party checkouts (like Apple Pay or PayPal) instead of linked debit cards. Keep your permissions locked down to only what the app needs to ship your order. Be a smart consumer. What’s Next? Speaking of putting Temu to the test in real life… I actually bought an inflatable paddleboard off Temu recently to see if a budget option can hold its ground against my friend’s full-priced board. Stay tuned for that full hands-on review coming next! 📌 Pin this post You might also like — from the same topic There’s a mystery device on your home network — here’s how to find out what it is Why does my cast iron pan keep rusting even after seasoning it How to stop thinking about something that won’t leave your head CVS Sent Me Their SPF Data (And Y’all Are Still Skipping Sunscreen in the Winter)