On Monday, the European Commission fined Chinese online marketplace AliExpress €550mn for failing to curb the sale of illegal goods, the largest penalty under the Digital Services Act (DSA). The platform, owned by Alibaba, did not adequately reduce risks of counterfeit clothing, unsafe toys, and other harmful products.

Henna Virkkunen, EU technology commissioner, said “The spread of counterfeit clothing, unsafe toys, dangerous cosmetics and other illegal and harmful products is not an unavoidable cost of shopping online — it is a failure by AliExpress to comply with its obligations under the DSA.” She added that scale is not an excuse and that risks must be addressed systematically.

AliExpress has until the end of October to submit an action plan detailing how it will assess and mitigate illegal‑product risks. The company says it is “firmly committed to meeting our obligations” and disputes the fine, calling it disproportionate. Under the DSA, the EU can impose fines up to 6 per cent of a group’s annual global revenue.

The decision follows fines of €200mn against Temu and investigations into Shein, and comes as the EU imposes a flat €3 customs duty on e‑commerce parcels to curb low‑value imports from China.