Faulty baby pacifiers. Toxic children’s raincoats. Cosmetics with banned chemicals. These are just some of the products recently purchased through an EU-wide mystery shopper operation on major e-commerce platforms Temu and Shein.
The findings may have widespread implications for e-commerce platforms. Keep reading to learn more about the investigation, the potential financial penalties, and the best approaches for mitigating your risk against the sale of dangerous products.
July 31, 2025 | by LegitScript Folks
What is the EU’s investigation about?
In 2024, the European Commission began a preliminary inquiry into the practices of e-commerce platforms Temu and Shein to ascertain whether they had breached the Digital Services Act (DSA), an EU law adopted in 2022 that regulates online platforms to prevent “illegal and harmful activities online” as well as “the spread of disinformation.” The Commission suspected the platforms of various violations, including the sale of illegal products and the use of potentially addictive designs meant to drive sales.
What followed was an investigation that included mystery shopping on the platforms to ascertain the safety of various products. According to the Commission, among the most problematic findings were unsafe baby toys and small electronics, which could cause health risks, injury, or even death. As a result, the Commission preliminarily found Temu in breach of the DSA, stating that there was “a high risk for consumers in the EU to encounter illegal products on the platform.”
“In our preliminary view, Temu is far from assessing risks for its users at the standards required by the Digital Services Act,” said Henna Virkkunen, executive vice president for tech sovereignty, security, and democracy at the Commission. “Consumers’ safety online is not negotiable in the EU — our laws, including the Digital Services Act, are the foundation for a better protection online and a safer and fairer digital Single Market for all Europeans.”
After viewing the mystery shopper findings, EU Commissioner Michael McGrath told The Guardian he was determined to crack down on the widespread availability of dangerous products available on some e-commerce platforms: “I am shocked by it, and I think we have a duty to protect European consumers.”
Why does the EU’s investigation matter?
Violations of the Digital Services Act can be severe, especially for companies designated as a Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) or a Very Large Online Search Engine (VLOS). This includes about 20 of the world’s largest platforms and search engines.
If the Commission establishes a definitive breach of the DSA, it can impose fines of up to 6% of a company’s global revenue and also require the company to take measures to remedy the breach. It can also apply periodic penalties up to 5% of the average daily worldwide revenue for every day that a company delays in complying with remedies.
A decision could also “trigger an enhanced supervision period to ensure compliance with the measures the provider intends to take to remedy the breach.”
How can you mitigate your risk of DSA violations?
Effective risk management is a complex undertaking that requires ongoing effort. A comprehensive approach should include robust policies, careful seller vetting, and persistent platform monitoring to quickly identify and remove violative products, sellers, ads, and other content.
LegitScript’s Platform Risk Solutions are uniquely positioned to help e-commerce marketplaces, social media companies, and search engines manage and mitigate their risk. We monitor online products, sellers, ads, and other content for regulatory and product risks across jurisdictions, helping protect your brand, your users, and your bottom line.
How does LegitScript’s solution work?
Our team brings unmatched expertise in high-risk content and commerce, a deep understanding of global regulatory frameworks, and a proven track record of supporting platform trust and safety at scale. We offer:
- Precision detection at scale: LegitScript monitors content across more than 60 high-risk categories using AI, regulatory intelligence, and expert analyst review to detect what others miss.
- Enforcement-ready results: We don’t just detect risk. We deliver actionable results your teams can enforce, with prioritized reporting and nuanced context behind every flag.
- Unmatched expertise and data: We combine deep subject matter expertise with product data from 175+ global regulators and nearly 20 years of risk intelligence, giving you insight you won’t find anywhere else.
Furthermore, our solutions are trusted by top platforms. Leading search engines, marketplaces, and social media companies partner with LegitScript to stay ahead of emerging threats and augment existing monitoring.
Want to learn more? Contact us to schedule a brief discussion about how we can help you stay ahead.
