"EU probes Shein over sale of illegal products, addictive design" 17 February 2026

The EU opened a formal investigation into Chinese online retailer Shein on Tuesday over illegal products and concerns about the platform's potentially addictive design, stepping up scrutiny under the bloc's strict Digital Services Act.

The move under the Act, which requires online platforms to do more to counter illegal and harmful content, came after France urged the EU executive in November to crack down on the sale of child-like sex dolls on Shein's platform. Shein has, since then, stopped the sale of all sex dolls worldwide...

...The investigation will also focus on Shein's addictive design, including the award of points or rewards for engagement, that could have a negative impact on users' wellbeing. The transparency of the recommender systems that Shein uses to propose content and products to users will also come under EU scrutiny...

...Shein said it would continue to cooperate with the EU watchdog and that it had invested significantly in measures to strengthen compliance with the DSA, including conducting systemic-risk assessments and mitigation frameworks, and enhancing protection for younger users. "In addition to enhancement of detection tools, we also accelerated the rollout of additional safeguards around age-restricted products," the company said..