Deceptive and misleading on-line advertising and business practices
- Presented at: Communications Research Forum 2000, Canberra, 4-5 October 2000
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Abstract
This paper considers the extent to which digital communications technologies are being used in misleading and deceptive ways to advertise goods and services, and how problems of this nature can best be dealt with. Four types of misleading and deceptive on-line practices are considered-pretending to sell something you don't have whilst taking the money in advance; supplying goods or services which are of a lower quality than the goods or services paid for, or failing to supply the goods and services sought at all; persuading customers to buy something they do not really want through oppressive marketing techniques; and disguising one's identity in order to perpetrate a fraud. A range of hard and soft regulatory responses are considered along with various on-line preventive strategies including the use of on-line surveillance, consumer warnings, and on-line authentication technologies. Although there remains a place for legal controls, it is concluded that the most effective strategies lie in making consumers aware of the risks they face and informed about the nature of misleading and deceptive practices which are present. In this regard, the use of certification and notification systems, which permit consumers to identify businesses which have been found to be trustworthy, seem to provide the best option. Steps need to be taken, however, to ensure that those with the necessary technological expertise are unable to manipulate such systems and thus undo the benefits which they seek to provide.