Teen jailed for 11,900-order cosmetics refund scam worth $570,000

A 17-year-old in China has been sentenced to six years in prison after spotting and ruthlessly exploiting a loophole in an online shopping platform’s refund policy, turning bogus returns into a personal cash machine.

Over the course of the scam, the teenager filed a staggering 11,900 fake refund requests, never sent the goods back, and walked away with more than four million yuan (US$570,000). A Shanghai court delivered its verdict in July 2025, bringing the scheme and his shopping spree to an abrupt end, as reported by South China Morning Post.

The trick was deceptively simple. According to police, the teen, surnamed Lu, realised the platform allowed users to enter courier tracking numbers manually when requesting a return. By submitting fake tracking details, Lu could trigger refunds without the seller ever receiving the items.

Once he cracked the system, he scaled fast.

Lu allegedly opened multiple accounts, ordered cosmetics and other goods, claimed refunds through the loophole, kept the products — and then resold them on second-hand platforms. Authorities say he repeated the process 11,900 times, receiving goods worth 4.76 million yuan (US$680,000) and netting 4.01 million yuan (US$574,000) in profit.

The money didn’t sit idle. Investigators found Lu spent it on new mobile phones, branded clothing, and treating friends.

The scheme came to light in March 2024, when an online cosmetics shopping platform reported suspicious refund activity to the police. Lu was arrested soon after. Neither the platform nor further personal details about the teenager were publicly disclosed.

Under Chinese law, fraud involving especially large sums can carry prison sentences of 10 years or more. However, the court reduced Lu’s punishment, citing his age at the time of the offences.

The case has reignited debate around refund abuse, a growing headache for online sellers.