EU hits AliExpress with €550m fine over illegal products
The European Commission has fined AliExpress €550 million for failing to adequately prevent the sale of illegal and counterfeit goods on its platform. This penalty follows an investigation under the Digital Services Act, which mandates that large online platforms mitigate risks associated with harmful content.
Why it matters
This record fine signals a strict enforcement era for the EU's Digital Services Act, setting a precedent for how global e-commerce giants must manage product safety and moderation.
Alibaba's AliExpress has been hit with a record €550 million fine from the European Union for failing to tackle sales of illegal, unsafe and counterfeit products on its platform.
The fine was the third issued by the European Commission under the EU's landmark Digital Services Act, which requires very large online platforms to do more to counter illegal and harmful content.
The commission charged AliExpress in June last year with failing to comply with a key DSA requirement to assess and mitigate the risks of dissemination of illegal products.
It set a 20 October deadline for AliExpress to propose remedial measures, and the company could face further penalties if the regulator decides in December that they do not comply with the DSA.
"This is very dangerous for consumers, unfair for companies which are complying with all our rules," EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen told reporters.
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