A network of companies based in Lithuania, Spain, Hong Kong and mainland China is behind a wave of online scams selling so-called "miracle" portable air conditioners to consumers across Europe, according to investigations by French newspaper Le Monde and consumer watchdogs.
The schemes have flourished during this summer's heatwaves, with advertisements promoting brands such as Airabreeze, Coolizi, Epicooler, Polar Breeze and BreezaMax.
The products are marketed as low-cost air conditioners capable of cooling an entire room while using very little electricity, often claiming to have been designed by engineers or backed by thousands of satisfied customers.
Many buyers, however, report receiving what they describe as ordinary fans or evaporative air coolers that provide little cooling. Others say their orders never arrived or that they struggled to obtain refunds.
According to Le Monde, France's consumer protection authority has received around 700 reports related to air conditioner sales since the beginning of June.
Le Monde traced one of the main networks to Lithuanian e-commerce company CommerceCore, formerly known as WhaMedia, and advertising firm Domexus.
The investigation found the companies operated numerous online stores selling low-cost products imported from Asia under invented brand names, supported by aggressive online advertising. CommerceCore reportedly generated around €120 million in revenue in 2025 before rebranding as Bold.One earlier this year.
A second network selling brands including Polar Breeze and BreezaMax was linked to Spanish company Widitrade, which said through its lawyers that it only provides e-commerce infrastructure and does not own or sell the products advertised.
Investigators also connected the Coolizi brand to Hong Kong-registered companies Dedata International and Cola Technology International, while technical evidence pointed to links with Chinese marketing company Surmobi, which operates from Hong Kong and mainland China.
The investigations found that many of the websites reused nearly identical promotional articles, fake customer reviews and fabricated endorsements, changing only the product name.
Consumer experts warn that genuine air conditioners require refrigeration systems and a way to expel heat outdoors, meaning devices claiming to cool an entire room without an exhaust hose cannot perform as advertised.
This summer, Europe has endured one of its most extreme and prolonged heatwaves on record, with temperatures shattering historical highs across multiple countries. France, Spain and Italy saw daytime highs exceeding 45°C, while parts of Germany and the UK experienced unprecedented early-summer spikes.
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