Chinese second-hand trading platform Xianyu was recently exposed for hosting a pornography-related industry chain, in which illicit merchants use coded slang to funnel traffic, with underage girls even involved.

According to a report by Hebei Economic TV's "Today's Investigation" program, a reporter searched on Xianyu and contacted a SPA massage parlor claiming to be located in Xi'an; the other party hinted in the conversation that special services could be provided and steered the reporter off the platform for private communication.

The report also mentioned that some merchants post listings under the guise of "models for on-site photo shoots," "in-home fitness," and "swimming lessons," all illustrated with photos of women. One shop operating under the banner of "swimming lessons" was actually selling funnel videos that direct buyers to scan a QR code and join a group; after scanning into the group, a large number of women's "profile cards" appear, claiming "service available nationwide," and buyers must first pay a 99 yuan (about S$18.9) intent deposit before entering local groups.

The investigation further stated that underage girls were also available for "booking" on the platform, the youngest being only 14 years old, with quotes of 20,000 to 30,000 yuan; customer service responded by saying, "You only live once, there's no bargaining on this."

Xianyu responded that black and gray industry gangs often use traffic platforms as funnel entry points, while the actual pornographic transactions or scams are moved off-platform to be completed, making them hard for the platform to trace. Such gangs commonly use various mutated pornographic code words during the funneling stage, "stigmatizing normal products," and the forms of these code words evolve frequently and endlessly, potentially changing every day, functioning like "daily disposables," further increasing the difficulty of platform identification and governance.

The incident occurred within Xianyu's second-hand idle goods trading scenario, and customer service's explanation of the black industry's tactic of "funneling on-platform, closing deals off-platform" also reflects the pressure second-hand trading platforms still face in content review and account governance.

Source: Second-hand platform Xianyu exposed for hiding a pornography-related industry chain involving underage girls | Lianhe Zaobao · Originally published on 2026-09-21