Calling all of you who sells things on Facebook and Instagram, the Domestic Trade, Cooperative and Consumerism ministry has just declared that anyone selling items online directly via these social networks are now deemed illegal.
Online sellers trading on Facebook and Instagram are now required to register themselves with the Companies Commission of Malaysia. This move is to safeguard consumers from being cheated or exploited by traders.
“Under the new Consumer Protection Regulations (Online Commerce Transactions) 2012, online traders must display the name of their business, business/company registration number, email address and telephone number on their Facebook or Instagram.” – Datuk Seri Ahmad Bashah Md Hanipah.
The statement was in response to a question raised by Senator Shahanim Mohamad Yusoff, who asked about the steps taken by the ministry to protect consumers of online trading of goods and services.
This is not all bad news though, the social network makes trading online such an easy task, so much so that a lot of conmen are relying on these platforms to cheat on people. If you follow any online buying/selling pages on Facebook, you’ll see a huge number of reports on people banking in large sum of money to sellers, who will then go missing. By registering, at least there’ll be a guideline for sellers, and consumers will be able to file a report against the company should they be cheated.
What are your thoughts about the ministry forcing sellers on Facebook and Instagram to register themselves first?
(Source: Bernama via: The Malaysian Insider)
