00:04Welcome to theCUBE, Euronews' fact-checking show.
00:07Second-hand clothing platform Vinted is at the center of a social media storm.
00:11Users allege that the platform is being used to facilitate child trafficking across several EU countries.
00:17On the 15th of June, a French TikToker claimed to have found suspicious Vinted listings featuring unusually high prices and
00:24cryptic descriptions,
00:25suggesting they could be coded messages linked to child trafficking.
00:30Similar posts quickly spread across social media channels and discussion forums.
00:34We also found three listings displaying the same characteristics.
00:38One of them advertised the toy at unusually high price, with a description that appeared to refer to a child's
00:44age and physical appearance.
00:45The account and the listings were removed shortly after they were created.
00:49Vinted told us it had investigated the listings and found no credible evidence linking them to child trafficking.
00:55German police said they are investigating reports and had thus far concluded that many were fake.
01:01But they told us they had seen an uptick in reports since the 23rd of June.
01:05In France, prosecutors have opened a preliminary investigation to verify reports of suspected child trafficking linked to the platform.
01:13That investigation is ongoing and France's High Commissioner for Children has alerted the authorities and says it doesn't hurt to
01:20be careful.
01:20This is not the first time such claims about Vinted posts have circulated online.
01:25In November 2023, users on X and TikTok shared similar listings, alleging that Vinted was being used to facilitate child
01:33trafficking in France.
01:34However, no evidence emerged linking those listings to an organized child trafficking network.
01:39At the time, several French media outlets reported that the claims had been amplified by Cannes linked to the QAnon,
01:45a baseless conspiracy theory movement, claiming that Donald Trump is secretly fighting a global network of child traffickers within political,
01:53business and media elites.
01:55Which case——
01:56Inarias Writers
01:58You
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