While electronic commerce is on the rise worldwide, there is no authoritative body to govern cross-border online transactions, especially relating to consumer protection, according to Consumers Association of Penang's legal officer Meenakshi Raman.

When consumers buy goods, for instance, from a US-based company like Amazon.com via the Internet, such online transactions are international and Malaysian laws such as the Consumer Protection Act do not cover the consumers, she told malaysiakini today.

Even forums such as the World Trade Organisation have not even begun to address such issues despite the growing e-commerce at the international level, she added.

She said that no world body has been sanctioned to police this "borderless" world of Internet trade, so the problem faced by Malaysia is not unique.

"The WTO governs traditional trade issues such as market access, tariffs and copyright. But no international legislation has been adopted to govern cross-border e-commerce.

"We are seeing now a global issue still in limbo with no proper forum, not even the United Nations is in a position to address the issue," Meenakshi said.

Meanwhile, CAP said when consumers are cheated via electronic means, they cannot pursue redress through the recently formed Consumer Claims Tribunal.

Offences such as sales of defective products, or by false or misleading representation, or misleading indication as to prices of goods and services, covered by the Consumer Protection Act 1999, do not apply to trade transactions via electronic means.

Hence, CAP and another consumers association have urged the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumner Affairs to consider extending legislation such as the Consumer Protection Act 1999 and Direct Selling Act 1993 to cover "any trade transactions effected by electronic means".

This coverage would then cover, besides the Internet, sales and services offered by other interactive means of communication such as via computer and television.

"At present, pyramid sales and direct sales are conducted over the Internet, but victims of poor service or scams do not have any legal recourse," Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations president Professor Hamdan Adnan told malaysiakini today.

He called on the consumer affairs ministry to also educate the public of e-commerce drawbacks and pitfalls while promoting its benefits, so that Malaysians are not exploited over the Internet.

Based on his experience as a consumer advocate, Hamdan stated that the lack of enforcement by the ministry has allowed many scams, such as the gift scam reported by malaysiakini ([#1] "Gift scam victim to take case to consumer tribunal",[/#] March 13), to continue for years even after they had been reported by Fomca.

"The ministry must make a quick start by working with other countries such as Australia, which has done some good work, to tackle this increasingly important issue of e-commerce legislation.

"We hope that with globalised trade giving rise to newer and more challenging problems, the ministry would put in concerted efforts working with consumer and other organisations to really protect the interests of the common people, and not only taking care of big business," he added.