Are cosmetics sold on online platforms under the labels of "pure natural", "handmade", and "palace secret recipe" really trustworthy? Recently, the People's Court of Changping District, Beijing, concluded a case involving the production and sale of counterfeit and inferior cosmetics, which involved excessive levels of mold, bacteria, and heavy metals in the "three no" cosmetics. The defendant Wang was sentenced to two years and ten months in prison, suspended for four years, and fined 200000 yuan for the crime of producing and selling counterfeit and inferior products. In August 2024, the public security organs seized a store selling "three no" cosmetics on an e-commerce platform based on reports from residents. The police tracked down the product manufacturer Wang Mou along the line, and seized a large number of self-made facial mask, face cream and other skin care products and simple production and filling tools at his home. After professional testing, these products not only exceed the standards for mold and bacteria, but also have issues with excessive levels of heavy metals such as mercury and arsenic, and even contain hormones that are prohibited by the state from being used in cosmetics, making them unqualified products. In addition to labeling pure natural ingredients on the packaging of these cosmetics, they also use "palace secret formulas" as a gimmick. Distributors exaggerate the efficacy of various raw materials in the so-called "palace secret recipe" on their online store promotional pages, which many consumers believe to be true. According to Wang's confession, she had never been in contact with the cosmetics industry before. After trial, the Changping Court found that between 2017 and 2024, the defendant Wang, without any production qualifications, mixed cheap Chinese herbs purchased by himself with chemical raw materials such as talcum powder, and self-made cosmetics such as "plant freckle removing and yellowing skin like jade powder" and "red powder removing", and sold them to the public through other people's e-commerce platforms, with a total sales amount of more than 280000 yuan. After identification, the cosmetics involved are all unqualified products. Finally, the court made the above judgment in accordance with the law. Judge Zhu Yingying of the Criminal Trial Division of Changping Court said that online cosmetics are mixed, and some products claiming to be able to quickly remove spots and acne have problems with excessive heavy metals and hormone addition. These hidden dangers are more prominent in the "three no" cosmetics. The "three no" cosmetics sold online have various disguises, such as "overseas purchasing agents" without Chinese labels, "ancient handmade products" without production dates, and "private customization" but actually mass production. According to the Criminal Law of our country, producers and sellers who mix or adulterate products, pass off fake products as genuine, pass off inferior products as good, or pass off unqualified products as qualified products, with a sales amount of more than 50000 yuan but less than 200000 yuan, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than two years or criminal detention, and shall also be fined not less than 50% but not more than two times the sales amount, or shall only be fined; If the sales amount is more than 200000 yuan but less than 500000 yuan, the offender shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not less than two years but not more than seven years, and shall be fined not less than 50% but not more than twice the sales amount. At the same time, it is stipulated that those who produce cosmetics that do not meet hygiene standards, or knowingly sell cosmetics that do not meet hygiene standards and cause serious consequences, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years or detention, and shall be fined not less than 50% but not more than two times the sales amount. According to the Regulations on the Supervision and Administration of Cosmetics, cosmetics operators shall establish and implement a system of purchase inspection records, verify the market entity registration certificate, cosmetics registration or filing status, and product factory inspection certificate of suppliers, and truthfully record and keep relevant vouchers. Cosmetics operators are not allowed to self prepare cosmetics. Zhu Yingying reminds that businesses should operate in accordance with the law and regulations. When purchasing products, they should check the supplier's license and product qualification certificate. For products that cannot provide qualification certificates, they should not purchase or only purchase after passing inspection. E-commerce platform operators should conduct subject qualification review and establish files for merchants who have settled in, and require them to provide real identity, address, contact information, and other information. Consumers should choose merchants with complete qualifications and good reputation when shopping online. After receiving the goods, they should carefully inspect them to prevent the goods from being wrong, and pay attention to collecting and preserving evidence. For unknown brands, you can log in to the official website of the National Medical Products Administration and enter the product name to check the filing information. (New Society)