Consumer Committee to Revamp Online Sales Laws, Push Platform Liability

MGR Online•Politics•9d ago

Reader Briefing

Thailand's Consumer Committee is pushing to amend three key laws to strengthen regulations for online transactions, particularly addressing issues of counterfeit goods, fraud, and platform liability.

•The Consumer Committee is preparing to propose amendments to three laws to improve online sales regulations.
•Current laws make it difficult to hold online platforms accountable, with the aim of making stakeholders share responsibility for damages.
•The committee identifies social media sales as a major problem due to lack of identity verification, leading to widespread scams.

Overview

•The Consumer Protection Committee announced plans to push for amendments to 3 laws to enhance online sales.
•Current laws are difficult to enforce, making it hard to prosecute platforms for issues like counterfeit or substandard goods.
•The Thai Industrial Standards Institute (TISI) has already removed over 8,557 non-standard items from online systems.
•Proposed amendments target the Direct Sales and Direct Market Act for influencer marketing, the Industrial Product Standards Act for SME facilitation, and the Electronic Transactions Act for platform liability.
•The amendments aim to make large platforms jointly responsible for damages, preventing them from claiming they are mere intermediaries.
•Problems are exacerbated by product label counterfeiting from production sources, misleading consumers and damaging product credibility.
•Sales via social media are highlighted as a significant issue due to a lack of identity verification, facilitating scams and fraudulent activities.
•The committee emphasizes updating existing laws rather than creating new ones, focusing on penalties and enforcement efficiency to build consumer confidence.

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Key Quotes

Wuttakorn Nutayakul

"Another concerning issue is product label counterfeiting at the production source; even with standard labels, they are fake, misleading consumers and affecting product credibility."

อีกปัญหาที่น่ากังวลคือการปลอมแปลงฉลากสินค้าตั้งแต่ต้นทางการผลิต แม้จะมีฉลากแสดงมาตรฐานแต่กลับเป็นของปลอม ทำให้ผู้บริโภคเข้าใจผิดและกระทบต่อความน่าเชื่อถือของสินค้า

Kanphong Prayoonsak

"The main problem doesn't stem from e-commerce platforms with oversight systems but from sales via social media lacking identity verification, leading to fraud by scammers."

ปัญหาหลักไม่ได้เกิดจากแพลตฟอร์มอีคอมเมิร์ซที่มีระบบกำกับดูแล แต่เกิดจากการซื้อขายผ่านสื่อสังคมออนไลน์ที่ขาดการยืนยันตัวตน ส่งผลให้เกิดการหลอกลวงของมิจฉาชีพ

Kanphong Prayoonsak

"Thailand has over 15,000 laws, but the key isn't new legislation, it's updating existing laws to keep pace with situations, increasing penalties and enforcement effectiveness."

ประเทศไทยจะมีกฎหมายมากกว่า 15,000 ฉบับ แต่สิ่งสำคัญไม่ใช่การออกกฎหมายใหม่ หากเป็นการปรับปรุงกฎหมายที่มีอยู่ให้ทันต่อสถานการณ์ เพิ่มบทลงโทษและประสิทธิภาพการบังคับใช้

Key Entities

Organization

Consumer Protection Committee(กมธ.ผู้บริโภค)

The organization initiating legal amendments to improve online sales consumer protection.

Thai Industrial Standards Institute (TISI)(สำนักงานมาตรฐานผลิตภัณฑ์อุตสาหกรรม)ℹ️

The agency that has removed over 8,557 non-standard products from online systems.

Shopeeℹ️

An e-commerce platform that has connected with TISI's API for data linkage.

Office of the Consumer Protection Board (OCPB)(สำนักงานคณะกรรมการคุ้มครองผู้บริโภค)

An agency that will collaborate with TISI on proactive measures against counterfeiting.

Electronic Transactions Development Agency (ETDA)(ETDA)ℹ️

An agency involved in discussions with the Consumer Protection Committee regarding online sales issues.

The Customs Department(กรมศุลกากร)

An agency involved in data linkage via API with TISI and e-commerce platforms.

Person

Kanphong Prayoonsak(นายกันต์พงษ์ ประยูรศักดิ์)

Deputy Chairman of the Consumer Protection Committee, who spoke about issues with social media sales.

Kantaphon Duangampon(นายกัณตภณ ดวงอัมพร)

Spokesperson for the Consumer Protection Committee.

Wuttakorn Nutayakul(นายวุฒากร นุตยกุล)

Committee member who highlighted concerns about counterfeit product labels.

Law

Direct Sales and Direct Market Act(พระราชบัญญัติขายตรงและตลาดแบบตรง)

A law that the committee plans to amend to cover influencer marketing and online advertising.

Industrial Product Standards Act(พระราชบัญญัติมาตรฐานผลิตภัณฑ์อุตสาหกรรม)

A law to be amended to improve prosecution efficiency and assist SMEs.

Electronic Transactions Act(พระราชบัญญัติว่าด้วยธุรกรรมทางอิเล็กทรอนิกส์)

A law that will be amended to hold large platforms jointly responsible for damages.