dexinwin Chinese second-hand marketplace Xianyu has come under renewed scrutiny after a media investigation alleged that some sellers were using the platform to promote and facilitate illegal sexual services, including services allegedly involving minors.
The investigation, reported by Hebei TV and subsequently covered by Chinese media, described sellers using seemingly ordinary listings such as modeling, fitness and other services to attract potential customers before attempting to move conversations off the platform.
The report also alleged that some intermediaries claimed to have access to underage girls, with the youngest reportedly said to be 14. The allegations have triggered widespread concern over online child protection and platform moderation.
Alleged Sexual Solicitation Hidden Behind Ordinary Listings
According to the investigation, some sellers appeared to use ordinary-looking product or service listings as an entry point for sexual solicitation.
Media reporters found listings presented as services such as modeling photography, fitness training and swimming instruction. In some cases, the investigation alleged, users were encouraged to contact sellers privately and then move communications to external social-media or messaging platforms.
One investigation described an alleged chain in which users were directed from marketplace listings to external groups, where information about women was circulated and further transactions were allegedly arranged.
The investigation also reported claims that some individuals were offering access to underage girls.
Because the allegations involve minors, the specific identities and personal information of any alleged victims have not been disclosed.
Xianyu Says Nearly 100,000 Risk Accounts Have Been Frozen
Following the media reports, Xianyu said on September 21 that it had established a special task force to combat sexual solicitation and related traffic diversion.
The company said it had frozen98,358 accounts classified as high-risk accounts related to sexual solicitation and traffic diversion since January 2026. It also said it had transferred relevant leads to police and had worked with law enforcement to crack down on 15 suspected criminal groups this year.
Xianyu said it had screened more than 10 million listings during the campaign, with the overwhelming majority being legitimate products.
The company said the problem is particularly difficult to address because illegal groups often use mainstream platforms only as an entry point before moving suspected transactions or fraud to external channels. It also said such groups frequently change coded language and use apparently normal products to disguise their activities.
Platform Disputes Some Details of the Investigation
Xianyu also disputed parts of the media report.
According to the company's statement, 10 listings shown in the investigation were reviewed individually. Six had already been identified and removed by Xianyu's routine monitoring system before the media report was published, while three others were removed after the report because of suspected attempts to direct users off the platform.
The company said that, in its review, those three listings did not themselves contain sexual content on Xianyu. The company said the allegedly inappropriate communications described by the investigation occurred after users were directed to external accounts.
Xianyu also disputed the claim that a phrase associated with the alleged solicitation of minors appeared in Xianyu listings or private messages. The company said the phrase shown in the media report appeared in an individual's enterprise WeChat profile rather than on Xianyu itself.
The company further said that some listings described by the investigation as suspicious were, after review, ordinary services such as anime-style image customization or personal fitness training, although it acknowledged that some wording could have been inappropriate and took action against certain listings.
The Challenge of Policing Off-Platform Activity
The controversy highlights a broader problem faced by online marketplaces.
Platforms can monitor listings, user accounts and communications within their own systems, but illegal activity can become significantly harder to track once users move to external messaging applications.
Investigations into online sexual solicitation have increasingly focused on this transition from public listings to private or external channels. In the Xianyu case, the media investigation alleged that coded language and ordinary-looking advertisements were used to attract potential customers before communications moved elsewhere.
At the same time, Xianyu has argued that some apparently suspicious listings can be legitimate products whose wording or images are later misinterpreted, making accurate moderation more complicated.
This creates a difficult balance for platforms: they must identify genuine attempts to facilitate illegal activity while avoiding incorrectly removing legitimate sellers and services.
Child Protection Becomes the Central Concern
The most serious aspect of the controversy is the allegation that minors may have been targeted or offered through such networks.
If verified by authorities, the involvement of minors would raise substantially more serious legal and child-protection concerns than ordinary violations of platform rules.
For that reason, investigators and platforms face pressure not only to remove suspicious listings but also to identify the people behind potential trafficking, exploitation or other criminal activity and refer evidence to law enforcement.
Xianyu said it would strengthen cooperation with police and other platforms in an effort to disrupt the broader networks rather than simply remove individual accounts.
A Larger Test for Online Platforms
The Xianyu controversy comes as Chinese internet platforms face increasing pressure to address illegal content, fraud and black-market activity that can exploit legitimate online marketplaces.
The latest allegations do not establish that Xianyu itself was directly involved in illegal transactions, nor do media reports alone establish the criminal liability of specific individuals. Those questions would require further investigation and, where appropriate, judicial findings.
What the episode does demonstrate is the difficulty of preventing legitimate e-commerce platforms from being used as gateways to illegal activity.
For Xianyu, the immediate challenge is to improve its ability to detect coded solicitation, identify suspicious patterns and prevent users from being redirected to potentially dangerous external channels.
For regulators and law-enforcement agencies, the more difficult task is tracing the networks that operate across multiple platforms.
And where allegations involve minors, protecting potential victims and identifying those responsible will remain the most urgent priority.
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