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3.3.2
The OECD Guidelines are in the forefront of public and private sector
activities on business-to-consumer (B2C) electronic commerce. A
number of governments and businesses have carried out public
education and information initiatives based on the Guidelines;
legislation has been reformed to reflect the principles in the Guidelines;
and codes of conduct, trustmark programmes,12 and self-regulatory
regimes have been developed to implement the Guidelines.
3.3.4
Several countries are working on bi-lateral and multi-lateral law
enforcement arrangements to ensure consumers receive effective
protection no matter where they shop or from whom they buy. For
example, information sharing and enforcement cooperation agreements
have been signed by a number of country regulators, including the
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and the U.S. Federal
Trade Commission. Canada, Australia and New Zealand have also
recently signed a cooperation agreement relating to the application of
their competition and consumer laws. International “sweep days” are
becoming a regular event as law enforcement authorities from the
international community focus on particular scams and evaluate internet
sites according to a number of key consumer protection principles
outlined in the Guidelines.
3.3.5
Many countries issue press releases and distributed copies of the
Guidelines to businesses. In Norway and Switzerland, the government
expanded its education initiatives into the schools to teach teenagers and
children their responsibilities as consumers in the electronic
marketplace. Australia, Finland, France, and Portugal have set up
websites to provide consumers with up-to-date information, references
and hyperlinks on a range of consumer issues, including tips for better
and safer online shopping. Many countries have been developing
information and education programmes for consumers using ecommerce and businesses using the Internet to reach consumers.
3.3.6
Several countries have been pursuing codes of conduct as a means of
self-regulation by e-vendors. In Norway, the National Consumer
Council and representatives of business established a voluntary and
independent label, N-safe. Businesses allowed to display the N-safe
label are subject to the principles defined by the label requirements. The
12
See, for example, TrustUK, where the trustmark on a website indicates that the vendor abides
by commercial standards. www.trustuk.org.uk; the U.S. Better Business Bureau’s BBBOnline
(www.bbbonline.org) has a set of good business guidelines that, if a firm abides by them, can be
displayed on a website. The Global Business Dialogue provides an inventory of trustmarks
(which may be out of date): www.consumerconfidence.gbde.org/t_inventory.html