The case that captured public attention reflects the intensifying French authorities’ campaign against advertising chaos on digital platforms, amid calls for stricter regulation of an industry that extends beyond fame to economic influence and social behavior.

Paris court sentenced French blogger and influencer Maïva Ghnam (28 years old) on Friday to one year in prison with suspension and fined her 150,000 euros after convicting her of commercial deception and false advertising on social media between 2019 and 2023.

Maïva, who has over 3 million followers on social media and previously appeared on the reality TV show “Les Marseillais,” faced 12 charges related to publishing unauthorized advertising content containing false claims about beauty, slimming, and financial trading products without disclosing they were paid advertisements.

According to the French newspaper “Le Parisien,” which followed the case, the session started with clear tension as Maïva’s lawyer, Elyassine Maalawi, tried to postpone the trial claiming his client had not received an official summons, but the court rejected the request and proceeded.

The court convicted Maïva on charges of deceptive commercial practices, including promoting creams for buttocks and breast enlargement as a safe alternative to cosmetic surgery, advertising a “slimming tea” claiming a loss of 7 kilograms in 20 days, and promoting sweets that allegedly stimulate hair growth, all claims described by the fraud control authority as “illegal and misleading.”

During the session, an investigator described Maïva’s behavior as “a model of all violations an online influencer can commit,” adding: “From health to money to cosmetics, she promotes everything, always replying with the same phrase: I forgot to mention it was an ad.”

Investigations indicated Maïva promoted cosmetic services such as teeth whitening and microneedling treatments, procedures legally allowed only for doctors.

In her defense during the investigation, the influencer admitted she “exaggerated a bit in presenting some products,” claiming she was unaware of the seriousness of misleading advertisements.

She said she promoted trading platforms claiming to earn 1,200 euros daily, although she never invested any amount.

Reports indicate Maïva earns about 60,000 euros monthly from her online commercial activities, making her one of the prominent faces in the world of “disguised advertisements” on social networks.

This conviction comes months after a similar ruling against influencer Rim Renom in July, sentenced to one year suspended prison in a similar case, as part of a French judicial campaign targeting commercial abuses by internet celebrities, especially those who started from reality TV shows.

French authorities have tightened monitoring of advertising content on social media in recent years following increasing scandals related to promoting cosmetic surgeries and fake products.