Temu users in the European Union are at a “high risk” of encountering illegal products while shopping on the platform, as previously reported by the Financial Times. The preliminary findings of the European Commission’s investigation into the platform revealed children’s toys, small electronics, and other products deemed to be counterfeit, dangerous, or “non-compliant.”
Last year, the EU designated Temu as a “very large online platform” under the Digital Services Act, which makes online platforms liable for hosting illegal goods, services and content. The EU later launched an investigation into Temu over concerns that it was not doing enough to keep illegal goods out of its ultra-cheap marketplace.
Temu now has the opportunity to respond to the EU’s findings. If the EU ultimately finds that Temu did indeed violate its rules, the platform could be fined up to 6 percent of its global annual revenue. The European Commission says it will continue to investigate other alleged violations of Temu’s rules, including its “addictive design, the transparency of its recommendation systems, and access to data for researchers.”
