The South Korean government has taken action to prepare sanctions on international e-commerce platforms, aiming to resolve issues of discrimination against domestic e-commerce platforms. The Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) announced on March 13 the implementation of comprehensive consumer protection measures related to international e-commerce platforms.
A key aspect of these measures is compelling foreign businesses without a domestic address to designate a local representative, thereby obligating them to fulfill consumer protection responsibilities. Additionally, the focus lies on preventing consumers from encountering damages due to counterfeit products and safeguarding against privacy breaches.
To enforce these measures effectively, the government is advocating for an amendment to the Act On The Consumer Protection In Electronic Commerce. This amendment would mandate the designation of local representatives for foreign businesses above a certain scale. Currently, addressing complaints or resolving issues related to foreign businesses without a domestic address or office has been challenging.
Moving forward, amendments to the law will require foreign businesses to appoint local representatives, ensuring strict compliance with consumer protection obligations under the Act, even in the absence of a domestic address or office. These designated representatives will be tasked with addressing consumer grievances, resolving disputes, and will be subject to document delivery and investigation concerning the enforcement of domestic e-commerce laws.
Inter-agency cooperation will be instrumental in tackling four major concerns regarding consumer damages. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety will enhance management practices, including advertising block requests and special inspections, to combat illegal distribution and unfair advertising related to food and pharmaceutical products on international e-commerce platforms.
The Korean Intellectual Property Office and the Korea Customs Service will intensify efforts to detect counterfeit goods during the customs clearance process for cross-border purchases, aiming to prevent damages. The government will mandate international e-commerce platforms to take follow-up actions upon receiving government monitoring data on counterfeit products.
The Korea Communications Commission will conduct inspections to ensure that international e-commerce platform operators inform users about smartphone app access permissions, preventing the leakage of personal information. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, along with the Korea Communications Standards Commission, will reinforce checks to ensure that international e-commerce platforms comply with youth protection measures when selling adult products, including verifying the age of purchasers.
To enhance the management of items blocked and prohibited from import during the customs clearance process, the Korea Customs Service will upgrade its customs-related risk management system. It plans to expand collaborative inspections for cross-border purchases.
