Looking at Amazon, Aliexpress, even Walmart, there’s a lot of products that aren’t what they claim, such as lying about the capacity of batteries. Customers have to figure these things out for themselves and ‘metagame’ the system.
I don’t think this should be allowed, but what are your thoughts?
It’s called a consumer market authority
Some sort of department of consumer protection? https://www.usa.gov/state-consumer
Giving those agencies resources and teeth to successfully prosecute is another thing.
Are you in the US?
If so, it’s the Federal Trade Commission Bureau of Consumer Protection.
Trump ofc tried to replace the commissioners who lead the Bureau. The courts stopped him, at least temporarily, TBH I’ve lost track of that one. And now he’s trying to use the Bureau to go after gender-affirming care. I assume it’s something transphobic like, since he believes transgenderism is made up, care to help a person transition would be “fraudulent”.
The courts stopped him, at least temporarily, TBH I’ve lost track of that one.
I’ve got some bad news for you.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/supreme-court-trump-ftc/
The high court said in a brief order that it will also allow Mr. Trump to fire Rebecca Kelly Slaughter from her position at the FTC while it considers the case. It will hear arguments in its December session, and its stay will remain in place until it issues a decision. Justices Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented from the majority’s decision to allow Slaughter’s removal.
Conservatives would hate it so it’s probably a good idea
The FTC has a Bureau of Consumer Protection which is supposed to do that (not to be confused with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which focuses on banking.)
How come fake products are allowed to be sold in the US then?
Because it’s not enough for the department to merely exist—it also has to be adequately funded, led by people committed to its intended purpose, and not actively interfered with by the rest of the administration.
tends to get in the way of profit.
Have you reported any?
Have you learned the process involved in removing fake products?
Should it fall upon me?
Would reporting fake products even have an effect? It doesn’t seem like an effective system right now, considering all the fake products that get to be sold.
Half the people in this country won’t pay taxes to feed starving children, how much money do you think goes towards protecting consumers from predatory counterfeiters?
Not enough! Clearly
Should it fall upon me?
Maybe.
One option is a proactively regulated market where only companies pre-approved by the government can sell anything, and every product must be checked and approved before it’s offered for sale. Such a market won’t have many fake products, but it also won’t have much competition or innovation. It’s also very likely to attract corruption, where the government conditions approvals on unrelated behavior that the current leadership prefers or requires bribes to do business. We’re seeing the former in the USA with the Trump administration for certain types of businesses, and it isn’t pretty.
The current situation for most product categories is a reactively regulated market. Deceptive practices are illegal, but enforcement depends on someone noticing and reporting them. More deceptive products make it to consumers, but more groundbreaking products do as well. It’s hard for government officials to blackmail most businesses.
My pessimistic prediction is that it would be toothless, underfunded, and hamstrung by red tape and loopholes. The rules would probably be written by the same corporations this agency is supposed to monitor.
I’d be in favor of an aggressive, well-funded, and powerful version of this agency, though!
I’d go a step further and say it should apply to digital products too.
Every mobile ad that goes to a product that the ad misrepresents.
Every mobile ad that won’t close when you click “x”.
Every website that loads bogus malware and scareware ads. “YOUR PHONE IS INFECTED!!!”
The mobile space is, if anything, worse than meatspace for fakery and bullshit.
All of those things should be illegal, and many of them are. Ideally, someone would go to jail, but until that happens, might I suggest a solution to block most mobile ads?
Interesting, better or worse than a Pi Hole I wonder? 🤔
It works when you’re not at home, so probably better for a mobile device.
Im going to look through and see if anyone is against this because um. I can’t see why.
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