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Stiftung Warentest: These sex toys share intimate data with ChatGPT
by Stephan Lamprecht
A lot of poison for little money: two out of three products from Chinese shops are dangerous
4.11.2025
Translation: machine translated
The findings are not new, but the extent is alarming. According to a new analysis, jewellery and toys from suppliers at Temu and Shein very often contain harmful substances that are banned in the EU.
Non-EU-compliant does not automatically mean dangerous, however. The experts analysed the mountain of goods they ordered in more detail. Their findings: around a quarter of the products are «potentially dangerous».
Five out of 54 necklaces with «worryingly high doses of harmful substances» failed the jewellery test. The tests showed that cadmium and nickel can get onto the skin. In one necklace from Shein, the heavy metal was in the pendant in the form of cherries. The limit value was exceeded by a factor of 8500. Cadmium is classified as carcinogenic and can cause bone and kidney damage.
Problems with toys for babies
When ordering toys for the little ones from Temu, you must be aware that small parts could come loose from the products and be swallowed. There is therefore a choking hazard for children under the age of three.
The Stiftung Warentest found another defect in squeaky balls from Shein. These were too loud, up to 115 decibels. The maximum permitted would be 110 decibels. This may not sound like a lot, but it is due to the logarithmic decibel scale. Ten decibels more are perceived as twice as loud by the human ear.
A toy wipes box from Temu was also criticised. Formaldehyde was added to the textiles - and too much of it. Instead of the permitted 30 milligrams per kilogramme of material, it was up to 164.
Right hot USB chargers
USB power supplies had the most serious defects. 52 out of 54 of the charging plugs did not fulfil the EU safety requirements, meaning they had defects in electrical components and durability. Specifically, ten out of 27 power supply units from Shein were too hot - up to 88 degrees. The EU limit is 77 degrees. Insufficient spacing between the insulation of the various components in the plug poses a risk of short circuits.
How seriously are complaints taken?
The Stiftung Warentest investigation shows that the two platforms are clearly still struggling to comply with the rules of the Digital Service Act (DSA). This has been in force in the EU since 2024 and obliges online platforms to take action against products from third-party sellers that are not EU-compliant, among other things.
For Temu and Shein, Stiftung Warentest has made itself known after the anonymous test purchases and pointed out the shortcomings. As with similar cases in the past, the platforms responded and promised to remove the products from the platforms.
In some cases, the testers did not come out and criticised critical products as normal customers. The platforms' responses were then merely empty phrases with references to existing service options such as returns or reports of damaged products.
Header image: Stiftung Warentest
Martin Jungfer
Head of Content
Martin.Jungfer@digitecgalaxus.chJournalist since 1997. Stopovers in Franconia (or the Franken region), Lake Constance, Obwalden, Nidwalden and Zurich. Father since 2014. Expert in editorial organisation and motivation. Focus on sustainability, home office tools, beautiful things for the home, creative toys and sports equipment.
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