A Chinese e-commerce company, Pinduoduo, has been accused of having malware in its app that could access users' personal information without their consent. The malware was discovered by cybersecurity experts who found that the app was requesting excessive permissions and had the ability to exploit vulnerabilities in the Android operating system.
Pinduoduo has denied any wrongdoing and has since removed the malicious code from its app, but some experts are questioning why regulators did not take action sooner.
The incident raises concerns about the company's compliance with China's data protection laws and regulations. The Personal Information Protection Law, which was passed in 2021, prohibits companies from collecting, processing or transmitting personal information without consent and also bans them from exploiting internet-related security vulnerabilities.
The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Cyberspace Administration of China have been criticized for not taking action against Pinduoduo sooner. Some cybersecurity experts have expressed frustration that regulators do not understand technology and are unable to detect malicious code.
The incident highlights the challenges faced by Chinese regulators in policing the tech industry, particularly when it comes to issues related to data protection and security.
In response to the incident, some Chinese social media users have called for greater oversight of the tech industry and more action to be taken against companies that fail to comply with regulations. Others have expressed concern about the lack of transparency from regulators and the potential risks to consumers.
Pinduoduo has since disbanded a team of engineers who had developed the malware, but some experts are concerned that this may not address all of the issues related to data protection and security.
Pinduoduo has denied any wrongdoing and has since removed the malicious code from its app, but some experts are questioning why regulators did not take action sooner.
The incident raises concerns about the company's compliance with China's data protection laws and regulations. The Personal Information Protection Law, which was passed in 2021, prohibits companies from collecting, processing or transmitting personal information without consent and also bans them from exploiting internet-related security vulnerabilities.
The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Cyberspace Administration of China have been criticized for not taking action against Pinduoduo sooner. Some cybersecurity experts have expressed frustration that regulators do not understand technology and are unable to detect malicious code.
The incident highlights the challenges faced by Chinese regulators in policing the tech industry, particularly when it comes to issues related to data protection and security.
In response to the incident, some Chinese social media users have called for greater oversight of the tech industry and more action to be taken against companies that fail to comply with regulations. Others have expressed concern about the lack of transparency from regulators and the potential risks to consumers.
Pinduoduo has since disbanded a team of engineers who had developed the malware, but some experts are concerned that this may not address all of the issues related to data protection and security.
it just goes to show how lax regulators are in China when it comes to tech companies. I mean, come on, they knew about this malware since who knows when and still didn't do anything about it 
. It's like they're more interested in letting big business run wild than protecting consumers. And now the engineers who made the malware are free to roam again? 
that just doesn't sit right with me. We need to hold these companies accountable for their actions and make sure they're playing by the rules. Otherwise, it's going to be a never-ending nightmare for people like us who care about online security 
.
... I mean, think about it - an entire company's app is infected with malware, potentially putting millions of people's personal info at risk? And what really takes the cake is that regulators didn't catch this sooner 
. It's like they're not even doing their job properly.
I mean, this is the 21st century we're living in; tech companies are supposed to be held accountable.
. So yeah, this whole situation stinks and needs to be looked into ASAP 
I remember when my sister used to use Pinduoduo app, she would always get these annoying ads on her phone... now it seems like those ads were actually a backdoor for malware 
.
I think we need to hold tech companies accountable for their actions and make sure they comply with regulations. Maybe then we can have some peace of mind when we're shopping online 
.
I mean, come on! Regulators should've been all over this like a bad rash 
ASAP. It's one thing to make mistakes, but it's another thing entirely when you're dealing with potentially serious security breaches and people's personal info is at risk 
. Pinduoduo's gotta be really careful what they're asking for permissions on - I mean, who gives an app access to their location, camera, and mic all the time? 
They're basically saying "oh no, we didn't know that" - like it's their job to stay informed about these kinds of issues. And what about all those users who are already vulnerable because they don't speak English or don't know what's going on? 
It's just not good enough.
.
The fact that they're only now addressing the issue, after the fact, just shows how out of touch they are with tech trends 
It's like they're trying to cover up their lack of understanding about the tech industry 
What needs to happen is more transparency from regulators and better oversight of these companies. We need to see some real action taken against Pinduoduo and other companies that are compromising user data. 
, can you believe that? 
. China's Personal Information Protection Law has been in effect since 2021 
, so how did Pinduoduo slip through the cracks? 
. I'm not buying that they were unaware of the issue 
. And what really gets me is that regulators took their sweet time to step in. I mean, come on! This is basic tech stuff. Can't we just get it right for once? 
... and the question is, where was this kind of oversight when Pinduoduo first launched? It's a wake-up call, that's for sure. Time to take action and make some real changes in this industry! 
The fact that Pinduoduo can just dismiss it as a " technical issue" and remove the code without taking responsibility is really sketchy 
. But maybe that's just what I'm thinking as a netizen who's seen all this drama play out on social media 
. And now they're talking about disbanded their team of engineers? It feels like a PR stunt to me 
. I'd love to see some real action taken against them for this... but at the same time, I get that regulators have got to balance all these competing interests 
.
. It feels like there's a whole lot of smoke and mirrors going on here 
.
this is so sickening I mean like pinduoduo's got this huge app with millions of users and they're just letting them walk into a trap with malware 
. I mean, we've all heard of the saying "regulation is key", but when does it actually happen? 
i mean, how could they even think it was okay to collect people's info without asking? 
. It's about time those regulators stepped up their game, especially since we're talkin' about personal info here 
