The EU wants to know what systems Shein has in place to limit the sale of illegal products in the bloc.
The European Commission is investigating Shein after it sold child-like sex dolls in the bloc. Irish media regulator Coimisiún na Meán will take part in the investigation given that Shein’s EU operations are headquartered in Dublin.
Shein came under fire last in 2025 after it was revealed that the Chinese e-retailer allowed the sale of lifelike sex dolls that resembled young girls in the EU. The French government, at the time, threatened to ban Shein from country, but the retailer was left unscathed after it apparently removed the illegal goods.
The EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA) probe into Shein will investigate the systems the company has in place to “limit” the sale of illegal products in the EU.
It will also look at the possible risks linked with Shein’s “addictive design” – which includes incentives such as points or rewards for engagements, as well as the measures it has in place to mitigate them.
In addition, the probe will investigate the transparency of the algorithm Shein uses to recommend content and products to users. Under DSA, platforms are obligated to disclose the key parameters they use in their recommender systems.
Formal proceedings were initiated after the EU analysed risk assessment reports and requests for information provided by Shein, and received information from third-party stakeholders.
Shein has been under the EU’s radar ever since it was designated as a Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) alongside Temu back in 2024. The designation meant that Shein is subject to some of the most stringent rules under the DSA.
The EU has sent Shein multiple requests for information since its designation as a VLOP, requesting information on child protection, mechanisms to report illegal products, recommender system transparency and access to data for researchers.
The fresh investigation into Shein is complementary to the action regarding Shein’s compliance with the region’s consumer law.
The EU’s Consumer Protection Cooperation Network, in a joint probe with the European Commission found last year that Shein employed a number of practices that breach EU laws. This included offering fake discounts on its website that pretend to offer better deals, putting pressure on consumers by displaying deadlines for ‘deals’ and using deceptive labelling to attract consumers.
Potentially addictive websites selling illegal goods are not, however, Shein’s only problems. Last August, Dublin-based company Infinite Styles Services, which manages Shein’s trading websites in Europe, was fined €1m by Italy’s competition authority for greenwashing its products.
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