Ho Chi Minh City promotes solutions to detect and handle counterfeit goods on e-commerce platforms. Photo: Ngoc Le
KOL, e-commerce platform must take the lead
Recently, many cases related to smuggled and counterfeit goods have been exposed with the support of some influential accounts in the community. Ms. Vo Thi Ha Linh - Director of Ha Linh Official Trading and Service Joint Stock Company pointed out that there are 2 common forms when KOLs and KOCs participate in promoting sales.
In the first case, they are the ones who import or manufacture the products for distribution. "They are the sellers, so they certainly understand the origin of the goods, so it cannot be said that they were deceived," Ms. Linh emphasized.
In the second case, they are an "extended arm" from the brand or e-commerce platform to the consumer, doing affiliate marketing but not manufacturing or distributing. When participating in promotion, according to regulations, if sponsored or receiving commission, it must be clearly disclosed.
From a platform perspective, Mr. Nguyen Lam Thanh, representative of TikTok Vietnam, said that in the context of rampant counterfeit goods, platforms, sellers, and KOLs and KOCs must unite to fight against violations. He noted that consumers need to clearly distinguish between e-commerce platforms with payment functions and registered with the Ministry of Industry and Trade and platforms that are not licensed for payment.
TikTok currently implements a trial purchase mechanism to check the quality of goods. Each year, the platform removes hundreds of thousands of accounts that violate the law. However, Mr. Thanh frankly admitted: "Platforms can only temporarily stop sales, or worse, remove accounts, but cannot handle them thoroughly like the authorities."
Difficulty in tracing sellers, need support from consumers
Mr. Nguyen Quang Huy - Deputy Head of the Market Management Department of Ho Chi Minh City - said that the situation of counterfeit goods trading on digital platforms is increasingly complicated. Many sellers intentionally hide their identities and do not leave clear transaction information, making it difficult to trace. Even goods are stored in apartments, deep alleys, or transported through intermediaries, making it very difficult to verify.
Mr. Huy cited a case where a relative once ordered goods through a website with a professional interface but was not registered with the Ministry of Industry and Trade, and did not clearly state the business or warehouse address. Although advertised as genuine goods, they were actually counterfeit.
“Consumers need to be bold in reporting counterfeit goods instead of just ignoring them because they are cheap. That leniency inadvertently encourages violations,” Mr. Huy affirmed.
Mr. Huy also admitted that the inspection and handling work is currently limited because some officers have not met professional requirements. To increase efficiency, the HCMC Market Management Department proposed applying technology such as AI to automatically detect the sale of prohibited and counterfeit goods on platforms and social networks; combining Big Data to analyze operating rules, thereby building effective and focused inspection plans.
According to Captain Vo Minh Nghia - an officer of the Department of Cyber Security and High-Tech Crime Prevention (PA05), Ho Chi Minh City Police, livestream sales and digital marketing are being transformed with many new tricks. He recommends that KOLs and KOCs need to be especially careful with the content they post, and must continuously improve their understanding of the products and brands they cooperate with to ensure that they provide correct and sufficient information to consumers.
“Although the authorities are trying to investigate and handle the violations, the methods of violation change very quickly. I hope that KOLs and KOCs will be more responsible to the community and share more knowledge about cyber security with their followers. If they violate the law, they can be subject to administrative or criminal penalties depending on the severity,” Mr. Nghia emphasized.
In addition, many e-commerce platforms and associated businesses have pioneered in signing a commitment to participate in the program "Green Tick responsibility on e-commerce", showing support for efforts to combat counterfeit and poor quality goods and together with Ho Chi Minh City to spread the program to the entire e-commerce ecosystem, towards a healthy and transparent business environment.
Source: https://ttbc-hcm.gov.vn/tphcm-siet-hang-gia-bang-tick-xanh-va-ung-dung-ai-1019018.html
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