The government has investigated the data collection and usage practices of Chinese e-commerce companies like AliExpress and Temu, which are eroding the domestic market with ultra-low-cost policies. This comes as the U.S. Congress is pushing for a law to ban the use of the Chinese platform TikTok over fears of personal data leaks. The move by the Korean government is seen as a response to these concerns.
Goh Hak-soo, the chairman of the Personal Information Protection Commission, explained at a press conference held at a restaurant in Washington, D.C. on the 3rd (local time), “We are looking into how user data from Chinese online shopping companies like Temu and Ali (AliExpress) is collected and used.”
He added, “There is uncertainty about the level of China’s personal information protection law and whether data protection is properly implemented within China,” explaining the purpose of the investigation.
There are concerns that the personal information of nearly 30% of the Chinese population using Ali and Temu could be leaked to China and misused for crimes like voice phishing as dependency on Chinese e-commerce grows. According to Chinese national information law, Chinese companies can collect personal information of members held by domestic platforms, and this information stored on overseas servers could be handed over to Chinese authorities.
The Personal Information Protection Commission plans to understand the personal information handling policies stipulated in Chinese laws and individual corporate terms and conditions, the process of obtaining consent for the collection and use of personal information, whether the collected data is managed within China, and whether it goes to a third country. The investigation will proceed by sending questionnaires to Chinese commerce companies and receiving responses.
If violations are confirmed through the investigation, the commission can decide to impose fines or penalties and issue correction orders. According to the Personal Information Protection Act, foreign companies providing services to information subjects in Korea can also be subject to correction orders and fines.
According to the mobile index of data platform company IGAWorks, Ali and Temu had 6.94 million and 6.36 million monthly active users (MAU) last month, respectively.
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