Is Temu stealing your information to scam you?

• Niki Moore
• June 11, 2025
• Business, Consumer
• 0 Comments

Maybe. But so is everyone else.

There is good news and bad news.

The bad news is that sophisticated software (from even innocuous-seeming sites like online shops) can access your personal information without your even being aware of it. Scammers can buy or steal this information in order to empty your bank accounts.

The good news is that they need YOU in order to do it. Our global financial systems are robust enough to have built-in checks and balances that ultimately require human intervention to overcome. So the scammers have to recruit you somehow before they can get access to your savings.

They do this with scam calls, scam e-mails or scam messages that either either threaten or persuade you to give them the final permission they need. And sometimes they are scarily good – so good that the Global Anti-Scam Alliance (yes, that is a real organisation) estimated digital scam losses to equal $1 trillion in 2024. That figure will likely increase exponentially every year.

So how does Temu come into this?

Temu is under investigation from various world bodies for a number of suspected unsavoury practices, including ‘dodgy sourcing, the use of forced labour, poor-quality goods, and innumerable scams.’ According to the US-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Temu is ‘an information-gathering spyware program masquerading as an e-commerce site.’

It’s not only Temu that is under scrutiny. Chinese companies have been particularly singled out by US-based organisations because of their links to the Chinese Communist Party, but every single platform on your computer or phone has access to information that hackers and scammers can access and use. That includes Amazon and Facebook and almost every app or game you have downloaded – ever.

So.. anyone with a phone or computer – in other words, you – needs to be aware that your device is an open front door to scammers and hackers worldwide who want a toe-hold in your bank account. But fortunately there are a few fail-safe tricks to protect yourself without your having to live in a state of permanent paranoia.

It is very, very difficult for scammers to access your money simply via your apps or online presence. They either need your bank or credit card PIN, or they need you to allow them access. This means they have to contact you directly in some way, to try to trick this information out of you. They do this through phishing phone calls, sms’s or e-mails. And there are certain red flags that you should be aware of.

Warning signs

* An unexpected call from an unknown number, or an unsolicited e-mail with a special offer or request

1. Phone Calls

A call from an unknown number with an unexpected message: a parcel delivery, a notice from a service provider, a call from SARS or the police – if you are not expecting any of these things to happen, this should raise suspicion. Don’t dismiss it out of hand (sometimes unexpected things do happen) but also don’t accept it as true until you have checked.

The caller has a non-South African accent. Most of these scam networks are based in Middle Europe or Asian countries. They might give themselves local names, but their accent is a dead give-away.

Scam callers will reel you in by telling you that they are some kind of official, and that you are implicated in some kind of trouble. These shock tactics are used to confuse and disorient you to prevent your natural caution from taking over. Just remember that there is not a single enforcement official anywhere on earth that can take action against you based on a phone call. Even if they have your name and ID number, sometimes even your address, there needs to be some official personal process that involves, at the very least, paperwork, a person-to-person visit, and some kind of reference or case number. So try not to react to threats or warnings, especially if the caller is telling you they need an urgent response or urgent payment.

* How to react to these

It is only human to panic when unexpected bad news comes in, especially when couched in official terms and hedged around with threats. However, the first thing you have to do is start asking questions. Ask for details about the alleged problem or offence – places, times, descriptions, dates, processes. Get the name of the person and the address of the office they are calling from. Ask for their office number so that you can verify their identity. Tell them you will call them back. If they are scammers, they will hang up. Even if they play along and give you an office number (which is extremely unlikely), it will be a simple matter for you to check whether the number they give you is legitimate by confirming it online at your convenience.

2. E-mails

Scam e-mails have largely fallen out of favour because everyone is aware of the Nigerian prince or warlord widow asking you to help them launder money or buy gold. Spam filters and firewalls have also become very sophisticated. However, a few types gamely hang in there. The most popular ones at the moment concern some delivery or financial transaction that cannot be completed because of an outstanding sum of money. You are invited to click on a link in order to make some small payment to make the problem go away.

The most concerning thing about these mails, is that internet-scraping tools are sophisticated enough to monitor your online traffic. Algorithms can target the subject of a mail closely enough that you are fooled into thinking it is a response to a mail you have sent, or a notification regarding an issue you are dealing with. And some of these mails include legitimate letterheads or signatures. The warning signs for these mails is if –

a) They do not address you by name, there is no reference number, or they are extremely vague as to details

b) They contain poor language, spelling or grammatical errors

c) They invite you to open a document or click on a link in order to continue

*How to react to these

First, check the e-mail address. If the address does not match the company or name in the e-mail, it is fake. Sometimes scammers use aliases that mimic the real address, but there will be some small difference like a punctuation mark or missing letter. However, any e-mail that asks you to click on a link needs to be closely scrutinised.

If in any doubt, simply ignore or delete the mail. However, if you suspect that it might be legitimate, simply contact the company or entity via their formal channels (not by responding to the mail!) and verify the mail.

In Closing:

It is very easy, when confronted with an alarmist message from someone, to panic and react in haste. If this ever happens, SLOW IT DOWN. Give yourself time to think. Read an e-mail slowly and pay attention to detail. With callers, never be afraid to ask questions. Get names, addresses, locations, descriptions, reference numbers, dates and times. Scam callers seldom have details, and the more you ask, the more likely they will stumble and contradict themselves.

And always remember the Golden Rule:

IF IN ANY DOUBT, ASK FOR A NAME, OFFICE ADDRESS AND OFFICE NUMBER AND TELL THE CALLER YOU WILL CALL THEM BACK.