Europe Tackles Coronavirus Scams: Data Sharing by E-commerce Platforms

Legislators in Europe are urging prominent e-commerce businesses and media platforms to enhance data sharing as a strategy to combat fraudulent actors who are exploiting consumers with scams related to the coronavirus pandemic.

Following the pandemic’s arrival in Western countries, online platforms experienced a surge in advertisements for personal protective equipment (PPE) of questionable or unverified quality, alongside other misleading coronavirus-related offerings – even after some companies had prohibited such promotions.

The primary concern extends beyond financial loss to encompass the genuine possibility of harm resulting from the purchase of products that fail to provide the advertised protection against the virus, or from the acquisition of ineffective, so-called coronavirus “remedies” when no such cures currently exist.

In a recent announcement, Didier Reynders, the European Union commissioner for justice, stated: “Based on past experiences, we recognize that fraudulent individuals view pandemics as opportunities to deceive European consumers. We also understand that collaboration with major online platforms is essential for safeguarding consumers from unlawful activities. Today, I encouraged these platforms to work together through peer-to-peer information exchange to strengthen their responses. Increased agility is crucial as Europe faces a second wave of infections.”

The Commission reported that Reynders convened a meeting with representatives from 11 online platforms today – including Amazon, Alibaba/AliExpress, eBay, Facebook, Google, Microsoft/Bing, Rakuten, and (TechCrunch’s parent company) Verizon Media/Yahoo – to discuss emerging trends and business practices linked to the pandemic and to encourage further action against a renewed surge in COVID-19 scams.

Earlier this year, in March, consumer protection authorities from EU Member States reached a consensus on this issue. Since then, the Commission and a network of EU-wide consumer protection enforcers have maintained regular communication with the 11 platforms to promote a unified response to the threat of coronavirus scams.

The Commission asserts that these efforts have led to the platforms removing “hundreds of millions” of illegal listings and advertisements. They also report a “consistent decrease” in new coronavirus-related postings, although specific data was not provided.

Within Europe, stricter regulations governing the sale of products through e-commerce platforms are under development.

Next month, regional lawmakers are expected to present a legislative package proposing revisions to current e-commerce regulations and aiming to increase the legal accountability of platforms, particularly concerning illegal content and unsafe products.

During a speech delivered last week, Margrethe Vestager, Commission Executive Vice President and head of the bloc’s digital policy, explained that the Digital Services Act (DSA) will mandate platforms to assume greater responsibility for addressing illegal content and dangerous products, including by establishing standardized procedures for reporting illegal content and managing related reports and complaints.

A second legislative package, also scheduled for release next month – the Digital Markets Act – will introduce additional regulations for a select group of platforms that are considered to have a dominant position in the market. This may involve requirements to share data with competitors, with the goal of promoting competition within digital markets.

Members of the European Parliament have also advocated for the inclusion of a “know your business customer” principle within the DSA.

Concurrently, the Commission has been urging social media platforms to disclose information regarding what it described in June as a coronavirus “infodemic” – in an effort to suppress the spread of COVID-19-related misinformation.

Today, the Commission provided an update on actions taken in September by Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Twitter, and TikTok to combat coronavirus disinformation, releasing its third set of monitoring reports. Thierry Breton, commissioner for the internal market, emphasized the need for continued efforts in this area.

“The rapid dissemination of disinformation related to the pandemic jeopardizes the health and safety of our citizens. We require even more robust collaboration with online platforms in the coming weeks to effectively combat disinformation,” he stated. 

These platforms have all signed the EU’s (non-legally binding) Code of Practice on disinformation.

Legally enforceable transparency rules for platforms regarding the handling of content such as illegal hate speech are anticipated to be included in the DSA package. The approach to addressing the more ambiguous issue of “harmful content” (like disinformation related to a public health crisis) remains to be determined.

A European Democracy Action Plan to address the issue of disinformation is also planned for release before the end of the year.

In a related statement accompanying the Commission’s latest monitoring reports today, Vera Jourová, Vice President for values and transparency, commented: “Platforms must intensify their efforts to become more transparent and accountable. We need a more effective framework to support them in making responsible decisions.”