There may be change in geopolitical equations, but this has not stopped European Union regulators from going after Chinese companies. According to a report in AP, European Union regulators are investigating Chinese ecommerce giant Shein over the concerns that the online retailer hasn’t done enough to limit the sale of illegal products or protect users from the platform’s allegedly addictive design. In a order on Tuesday, February 17, the 27-nation bloc’s executive arm said that it has opened formal investigation under the bloc’s sweeping rulebook known as the Digital Services Act. The Act requires the biggest online platforms to take extra steps to protect internet users from dodgy products.
European Commission said that Shein may be required to alter its actions or pay a hefty fine if a so-called non-compliance decision is reached following the investigation.
One area its investigation is focusing on is whether Shein has the proper safeguards in place to limit the sale of products that are illegal in the Europe, the commission said, including items that amount to child sexual abuse material such as “child-like sex dolls. ” The commission said that it will also determine whether Shein has systems to reduce risks related to what it says is the platform’s addictive design, which includes giving users points or rewards “for engagement. “
European Commission is also targeting the transparency of Shein’s recommendation systems that suggest more products to consumers. There are reportedly concerns that Shein doesn’t clearly explain to users why they are being recommended specific products.
What Shein said on probe by European Commission
Shein said that it has invested significantly in strengthening compliance with the DSA. The measures “comprehensive systemic-risk assessments and mitigation frameworks, enhanced protections for younger users, and ongoing work to design our services in ways that promote a safe and trusted user experience.”
“Protecting minors and reducing the risk of harmful content and behaviours are central to how we develop and operate our platform,” the company said in a statement.
Elon Musk’s X and Grok facing investigation in Europe
The European Union’s data privacy watchdog has launched an investigation into Elon Musk’s X over sexualized images generated by the social media site’s AI chatbot, Grok. In particular, the commission will be looking into whether X complied with the EU’s flagship data privacy rules in the way that it handled the personal data of the bloc’s citizens.
The commission’s investigation will “examine X’s compliance with some of their fundamental obligations under the GDPR in relation to the matters at hand,” he added.
The European Union is already investigating X over the sexualised images, examining whether the platform “properly assessed and mitigated risks associated with the deployment of Grok’s functionalities into X in the EU.”
Google hit with EU antitrust investigation
Earlier this year, Google was hit with an EU antitrust investigation over its use of online content for AI purposes, marking the latest in a series of crackdowns from the bloc on regulating U.S. big tech companies. The European Commission said it was investigating whether Google had breached EU competition rules by using the content of web publishers, as well as content uploaded on the online video-sharing platform YouTube, for AI purposes.
