The Indian Air Force (IAF) accuses Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi, Inc. for retrieving user information and sending this data to servers located in Beijing, China.

The IAF said the Chinese company poses a cyber-security threat. It claims the company's smartphones and notebooks automatically send user information to its remote servers in Beijing.

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Reports claim the IAF issued a 'medium' alert to its squadrons and their families and advised them to avoid using Xiaomi devices.

The intelligence unit prepared a note based on the information provided by the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team.

The note says, "F-secure, a leading security solution company, recently carried out a test of Xiaomi Redmi 1s, the company's budget smartphone, and found that the phone was forwarding carrier name, phone number, IMEI plus numbers from address book and text messages back to Beijing,"

The note also mentioned that a user from Hong Kong claims Xiaomi's Redmi Note automatically connects to an IP address hosted in China.

The IAF added the IP address is owned by the CNNIC, which is the administrative agency for Internet affairs operating under the Ministry of Information Industry of China. The IAF is currently awaiting a response from the Chinese company.

This isn't the first time Xiaomi has been accused of stealing user data. Last month, Taiwan's government announced an investigation into the Chinese company's smartphones. It's deciding whether Xiaomi poses a security threat to the country.

TagsIndian Air Force, IAF, Xiaomi Ltd., Xiaomi Redmi Note, CNNIC, Ministry of Information Industry, Taiwan, Indian Computer Emergency Response Team, Xiaomi Redmi 1S