Legal Issues of the Internet Purchases
The Internet has become ubiquitous in American life. As brick-and-morter retailers struggle, web purchases of goods and services have exploded, This migration of commerce raises number of consumer-protection issues that can be addressed here.
How can you protect yourself online?
Don't let your guard down when communicating with strangers on-line or providing information to sites without an established repuation for trustworthiness. The major commercial services usually require that your real name and address be available to them, though you are often able to choose a pseudonym for participation in forums. And, once you leave the proprietary areas of the service and venture into that vast, unregulated frontier of the Internet, anonymity is the rule.
What common sense protections are there for buying online?
It is remarkably easy to put up a slick website that has nothing real, or nothing legitimate, behind it. Do not assume that because a merchant displays an authentic trademark or accepts credit cards that it is what it seems to be. Nothing could be easier than copying these marks or arranging for a third party to act as a credit card clearing house with little or no accountability. Avoid buying expensive luxury goods over the Internet except from established merchants you are familiar with. Chances are they are counterfeits.
What legal protections are there for buying online?
As with catalog and TV shopping, Internet shopping carries a risk of fraud, since it's hard to assess the company without seeing a showroom or salespeople. On-line merchants are more ephemeral even than ones on TV—and possibly more fly-by-night.
At least with a phone number or P.O. Box, there is some paper trail to follow if you have problem. But a computer merchandiser's website may, for all practical purposes, be no more concrete than cyberspace itself. The business may not exist at all, or may be so undercapitalized that there is no telling if it can fulfill your order.
Therefore, there are special rules that protect consumers involved in mail or telephone transactions, including fax and Internet sales.
The FTC's Mail or Telephone Order Rule covers goods you order by mail, telephone, Internet, and fax. Under this Rule, goods that you buy through these means must be shipped within the time the seller has advertised (e.g., six weeks). If no time period is specified, the goods must be shipped within thirty days of your order.
If they aren't, you must at least have received a notice informing you of the delay and of when to expect delivery. The seller also has to offer to cancel your order and send you a refund within one week if you don't want to wait any longer. Many states have laws that protect you even further than the federal law.
What about substitute goods?
Unless the seller has your consent to agree to a substitute, you don't have to accept one. You can send it back and ask for a refund. If you keep it, though, you have to pay the usual price, unless the company offers it for less. Try to negotiate. A reputable company may be willing to strike an acceptable deal with you.
Is it safe to give a credit card number online?
There is always the potential for cybercrime, as mayor hacks into the data of giant retailers such as Target have amply demonstarted. That said, a reputable retailer with a credit-card processing system that uses a strong encryption technology is generally thought of a relatively good bet. You should be particularly cautious about entering personal or financial data onto the web when you are using a public wireless system, such as you might find at a coffee shop. Make sure your own home wireless connection is password protected.
