French ministers pressed online marketplaces Oct. 19 to remove ads suspected of offering looted goods, seeking to curb possible resale after a weekend of violence and looting that affected shop owners.
Minister Delegate for Artificial Intelligence and Digital Affairs Anne Le Hénanff and Minister for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises, Commerce, Crafts, Tourism and Purchasing Power Serge Papin made the request to platforms including Vinted, eBay and Amazon.
The ministers urged the companies to act quickly and cooperate with state services so suspected resellers could be prosecuted. Representatives of the Interior and Justice ministries were due to attend a meeting with the platforms.
France 24 reported that ads for merchandise that appeared to be stolen had surfaced online. The outlet said thousands of shop owners were affected by the weekend’s violence and looting.
The government separately scheduled an Oct. 19 meeting to assess damage to businesses from the Oct. 17 events. Vinted previously said it had taken down listings it believed were associated with looting. The company has not disclosed how many it removed.
