Ban-It-Harderism in European Consumer Law: The Case of the French Influencer Law

Abstract

In June 2023, France adopted a new law to curb the negative impact of influencer marketing on its consumers. While it introduces some innovative provisions, the law mostly doubles down on legal prohibitions that could have been equally construed under existing consumer protection legislation. From this perspective, it can be argued that this law is an example of ban-it-harderism: a regulatory trend where lawmakers respond to perceived enforcement failures, not by addressing structural or institutional issues, but by enacting additional prohibitions that duplicate existing norms. Ban-it-harderism is problematic for at least two reasons. First, it often gives the false public impression that certain issues were not covered by regulation before the specific intervention. Second, it contributes to the overwhelming regulatory inflation seen at European and national levels on matters dealing with technology regulation and the digital market. This article discusses selected provisions from the French Influencer Law to contrast them with existing European consumer law and to critically reflect on its contributions to relevant legal frameworks.