On 20 July, the European Commission fined AliExpress, a Chinese online marketplace, € 550 million. This action was taken due to the company’s inadequate efforts to address the sale of unsafe and counterfeit products on its platform. This fine marks the largest penalty imposed under the Digital Services Act across the 27-member European Union.
This decision follows a similar enforcement action in which another online retailer, Temu, was fined €200 million for related violations. Furthermore, last year, the European authorities issued a $120 million penalty to Elon Musk‘s social media platform, X.
“The spread of counterfeit clothing, unsafe toys, dangerous cosmetics and other illegal and harmful products is not an unavoidable cost of shopping online — it is a failure by AliExpress to comply with its obligations under the Digital Services Act,” Henna Virkkunen, the commission’s executive vice-president for tech sovereignty, security and democracy, said in a statement.
“Scale is not an excuse; risks must be identified and addressed systematically to ensure consumers can safely shop online. Today, we are holding AliExpress to this standard and request it to take action,” she added.
In a recent comment submitted to The Associated Press, AliExpress supported its commitment to compliance following the implementation of the Digital Services Act (DSA). The company emphasised that it has invested significant resources in risk assessment, mitigation, product safety, and consumer protection. While AliExpress acknowledges the recent fine imposed, it contends that the amount does not accurately reflect its established compliance framework or the proactive measures it has undertaken. The company is currently reviewing the decision and considering all available avenues for response.
The fine pertains to actions taken by the company up to at least June 2025, when the commission issued a preliminary ruling finding that AliExpress had not sufficiently addressed the sale of illegal products under the DSA. Consequently, the commission accepted AliExpress’s commitments to enhance its systems. The commission has set a deadline of 20 October for AliExpress to submit a comprehensive action plan outlining measures to rectify the identified breach of its obligations regarding the assessment and mitigation of systemic risks.
The Digital Services Act aims to uphold user safety online and to prevent the dissemination of harmful content that is either illegal or violates the platform’s terms of service, such as the promotion of genocide or anorexia. Additionally, the act seeks to safeguard the fundamental rights of European citizens, including privacy and free expression.
This announcement follows closely on the heels of a statement made by Alibaba, AliExpress’ parent company, regarding a $600 million settlement with the U.S. government related to allegations of selling and importing illegal pharmaceuticals, controlled substances, regulated chemicals, and pill-making equipment into the United States.
This article used information from The Associated Press.
