Representative image (Picture credit: AP)

Chinese-founded fashion and e-commerce giant Shein has announced a worldwide ban on all sex-doll products after French authorities accused it of selling dolls resembling children and warned the company could be banned from the French market.As per news agency AFP, France’s anti-fraud office, DGCCRF, said the listings on Shein’s website were “childlike” and of a likely pornographic nature. The Paris prosecutors’ office confirmed investigations had been opened against Shein, AliExpress, Temu, and Wish for distributing “messages that are violent, pornographic or improper” and accessible to minors.As per CNN, Shein removed the products immediately after France’s warning and launched an internal review, later announcing a “complete ban on all sex-doll-type products.” It also temporarily removed its adult products category for review.A company spokesperson quoted by AFP said that the ban applies globally.“These publications came from third-party vendors, but I take personal responsibility,” said Shein’s executive chairman Donald Tang, adding that “the fight against child exploitation is non-negotiable for Shein.”French finance minister Roland Lescure told BFMTV that the government could legally block Shein’s access to the market if such violations recur. “These horrible items are illegal,” he said, stressing that France would act firmly against the retailer.According to news agency AP, under French law, distributing child-pornographic material online is punishable by up to seven years in prison and a €100,000 fine.The scandal comes days before Shein’s first physical store opening in Paris’s BHV Marais department store — a move already facing backlash from activists and lawmakers. Some brands have withdrawn their products from BHV following the controversy, while France has fined Shein three times in 2025 for cookie law breaches, false advertising, misleading information, and undeclared plastic microfibres.