eBay removed listings for gender-prediction kits that were being shipped to India, where prenatal sex determination is banned, following a Reuters review published this week. At least nine listings from brands such as SneakPeek and Peekaboo were found offering kits priced between $6.99 and $156.59, with shipping options to India, according to medianama.com.
The review prompted eBay to launch an internal investigation into its safeguards. The company stated that these listings violated both local Indian regulations and eBay’s own policies. eBay said it is reviewing its controls around shipping and checkout experiences to consider further enhancements. The kits were sold by third-party sellers on eBay’s international platform, which does not operate a dedicated Indian website but allows shipments to India.
The presence of these kits on eBay highlights ongoing challenges for online marketplaces in complying with Indian laws banning prenatal sex determination. The DNA Diagnostics Center, maker of the Peekaboo kit, confirmed it does not sell or distribute these kits for resale in India and does not control independent third-party sales. Amazon’s US website also lists gender-testing products, but these are not available for delivery to India. This incident follows previous scrutiny of Indian online marketplaces over similar issues.
eBay’s removal of the listings came after Reuters raised the issue, with the company confirming the action and its ongoing review. The company’s statement emphasized that it already had controls to prevent certain gender-prediction products from appearing in India but is now reassessing those measures to ensure compliance.