Editorial: Le Monde

• Shein, a Chinese online selling platform, has been called out for questionable commercial practices, including selling poor-quality clothes and employing polluting production methods disinterested in decent working conditions.
• The company was recently accused of selling sex dolls with pedopornographic traits, further damaging its reputation.
• Despite a late reaction, Shein removed the product and the corresponding promotions from the market after being reported to authorities.
• Regulation of digital commerce is complex and slow, and often fails to prevent the damage caused by inappropriate online content.
• E-commerce sites like Shein, considered service providers, are not obliged to validate the legality of the activities of sellers that use their infrastructure.
• The ability of authorities to monitor and enforce regulations against massive platforms with millions of product listings is limited and challenging.

Conclusion: This situation highlights the urgent need for strengthened regulation and oversight of e-commerce to prevent the sale of illegal content and protect consumer rights and safety.

---