The European Commission initiated a formal investigation into AliExpress, an international e-commerce platform operated by Chinese tech giant Alibaba, concerning concerns about the dissemination of illegal content. Under the newly enacted Digital Services Act (DSA), designed to regulate tech giants, the Commission probes into AliExpress’s compliance.
The investigation delves into potential breaches of the DSA, focusing on various areas including risk management, content moderation, advertising transparency, trader traceability, and access to data for researchers. The Commission examines whether AliExpress failed to enforce its terms of service, prohibiting risky products like fake medicines.
Furthermore, the probe scrutinizes whether AliExpress violated DSA provisions allowing minors to access inappropriate content, such as pornography. The investigation also assesses AliExpress’s product recommendation practices and its compliance with rules governing searchable ad repositories.
In response, an AliExpress spokesperson assured cooperation with authorities to ensure compliance with standards and commitment to a safe marketplace. This marks the third formal DSA investigation, following probes into TikTok and social media platform X.
