(Reuters)

Alphabet Inc’s Google suspended the Play version of PDD Holdings Inc’s Pinduoduo app after malware issues were found on the Chinese platform, a Google spokesperson said on Tuesday (March 21).

“The Off-Play versions of the e-commerce app that have been found to contain malware have been enforced on via Google Play Protect,” the spokesperson said in a statement, adding that the Play version of the app has been suspended for security concerns.

Google Play Protect scans all of the apps on Android phones and works to prevent the installation of malicious apps.

This comes soon after various efforts by the U.S. government to bolster its cyber defenses amid a steady increase in hacking and digital crimes targeting the country.

The government recently announced a new cybersecurity strategy that named China and Russia as the most prominent cybersecurity threats to the United States.

PDD did not respond to Reuters request for comment.