Online transaction complaints in Malaysia increased by 112.5%

Malaysia's Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs recorded a 112.5% ​​increase in online transaction complaints from 5,416 cases in 2019. This increase is closely related to the shift from traditional physical shopping to online platforms.

Minister Alexander Nanta Linggi said online sellers have mushroomed, and unethical and even illegal advertising and marketing strategies are also luring consumers.

“Sellers profit through various means such as ‘yo-yo pricing’, which is to raise prices when supply is low and lower prices when supply is abundant, ” Alexander Nanta Linggi said at the Malaysia Economic and Strategic Outlook Forum 2021.

Nanta Linggi said complaints also included predatory pricing, where prices are lowered below production costs in order to boost competitiveness and undermine competitors.

"A common tactic used by some sellers is to mislead consumers through fake discounts , mostly during the 11.11, Black Friday and 12.12 periods," he said.

According to Nanta Linggi, while e-commerce has indeed brought convenience to most people, it also brings risks to consumers, such as identity leakage and credit card fraud.

“Fraudulent offers and transactions are also growing at an alarming rate. Moreover, e-commerce platforms are increasingly vulnerable to illicit industries that distribute harmful, substandard or defective products, including counterfeit and pirated products .

“ From 2017 to 2020, a total of 2,997 cases of counterfeit products were reported in Malaysia, ” he said .

In this regard, Nanta Linggi added that when consumers encounter deception and inducement from bad sellers, there are many ways to protect themselves. For example, consumers can directly complain to the e-commerce platform, and most e-commerce platforms have policies to deal with this issue.

In addition, consumers can also lodge complaints through other channels such as the Consumer Complaints Management Centre of the Ministry of Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs of Malaysia and the National Consumer Complaints Centre.

In response to this phenomenon, Nanta Linggi reminded consumers to be cautious when shopping online and to understand the price and quality of the products in detail. At the same time, he pointed out that online shopping platforms should also consider improving their policies and strengthening their control over merchants, so that even if consumers encounter problems such as false discounts or misleading discounts, they can be guaranteed to be handled in the shortest possible time.

Malaysia

Southeast Asia