Rouen influencer Poupette Kenza, real name Kenza Benchrif, was fined 50,000 euros for misleading commercial practices, she announced in a Snapchat story on Wednesday August 16. “I’m too nervous, 50,000 euros fine like that, but it’s a shame! »reacted the most followed Frenchwoman on Snapchat with 1.6 million subscribers.
The Directorate General for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Prevention (DGCCRF) accuses him on the one hand “not having indicated the true commercial intention of the content for which [s]the company has received consideration”. This service of the Ministry of Economy and Finance condemns, on the other hand, Mme Benchrif” for having given the impression that the sale of a Crest 3D white brand teeth whitener is lawful when it is prohibited for sale on French territory”, reads the mail the 23-year-old received.
Consequently, the content creator must also issue a press release about her sanction on her social networks, Instagram, Tiktok and Snapchat, instructs the DGCCRF. Kenza Benchrif expressed the wish to appeal the sanction.
Regulation of practices
The influencer, who films her daily life for her million subscribers, claimed to ignore the ban on the sale of Crest 3D white products In France. “I went to find out about the brand”, she explains after being alerted by subscribers to the ban. “The brand tells me, ‘no it’s not forbidden’, I continued to post [des promotions de] the brand, it doesn’t have to make me take any risks”, she continues, adding that the company itself ” did not know “ that his product was illegal for sale.
Since the beginning of June, the DGCCRF has issued several injunctions against influencers, in parallel with the adoption by Parliament of a text regulating their practices. The latter also prohibits the promotion of certain practices, such as cosmetic surgery or “therapeutic abstention”. It prohibits or severely regulates the promotion of several medical devices. The penalties provided for in the event of a breach are up to two years in prison and a fine of 300,000 euros.