Alibaba Rival Pinduoduo's Shopping App Was Taken Down From App Store, Russian Cybersecurity Firm Kaspersky Flags Tampering Vulnerabilities

Kaspersky Lab security researchers highlighted potential malware in PDD Holdings Inc PDD Chinese shopping app Pinduoduo.
Last week Alphabet Inc GOOG GOOGL Google suspended Pinduoduo after discovering malware in unsanctioned software versions.
The Russian multinational cybersecurity and anti-virus provider explained how the app could boost its privileges to vandalize user privacy and data security, Bloomberg reports.
It tested versions of the app distributed through a local app store in China, where Huawei Technologies Co, Tencent Holdings Ltd TCEHY, and Xiaomi Corp XIACF XIACY run some of the biggest app markets.
Kaspersky found proof that earlier versions of Pinduoduo manipulated system software vulnerabilities to gain unauthorized access to user data and notifications.
Last week, Google suspended downloads of the Play Store version of Pinduoduo as a security precaution. Google also warned users to uninstall off-store versions of Pinduoduo.
Kaspersky, which the U.S. in 2022 flagged as a threat to national security, said it did not discover the malicious versions of the Pinduoduo app but drew on earlier research by Chinese cybersecurity analysts.
PDD has lately won market share from Alibaba Group Holding Ltd BABA by chasing the poorer rural cities not penetrated by the more prominent players while aggressively expanding in North America with Temu.
Price Action: PDD shares traded lower by 1.28% at $72.57 premarket on the last check Monday.