Online business management has many potential risks.

(Baonghean) - Online business is increasingly preferred by consumers, because of the conveniences suitable for modern life. However, online transactions still have many potential risks, and the disadvantage always belongs to the consumer.

Currently, there are only 312 e-commerce websites registered in the province out of a total of over 1,000 sites operating under the form of e-commerce. Graphics: Duong Tuan

Trading with “virtual” trust

Online shopping is very attractive to consumers. Always busy with work, Ms. Nguyen Kim Ngan (Hung Dung ward, Vinh city) often goes to the online market. She often buys clothes, cosmetics, household items and local foods... on some online shopping websites. Ms. Ngan said: "Instead of having to spend time going to the shopping center or the market, simply, anywhere I can choose my favorite items by clicking the mouse. I am used to shopping online, so I have searched for some reputable websites. Then, I will receive the goods right at home, very quickly and conveniently".

The increasing demand for online shopping among consumers has strongly promoted the development of this modern business channel in recent times. Many businesses use sales websites as a useful tool to support traditional sales channels and have achieved positive results. Mr. Phan Anh Trung - Store Manager of a fashion brand in Vinh City said: "In addition to 2 shops, we also have 2 websites and 1 fanpage serving online business. To attract customers, we also have a policy that allows customers to try on clothes, return and exchange, and only pay when satisfied. Thanks to that, online sales account for over 60% of our brand's total sales in Nghe An".

Online sales clubs and markets are increasingly flourishing, causing difficulties in managing this form of business, 2

Although it is a modern business channel with many conveniences, however, transactions on the "virtual" market still have many potential risks. Buying and selling is mainly based on trust, so most consumers buy goods based on "luck". There have been many online shoppers who were disappointed and encountered "half-crying, half-laughing" situations. Attracted by impressive advertising images of fashion websites, Ms. Phan Thi Thanh (Nam Giang, Nam Dan) ordered dresses and shirts online. But when she received the product, she was shocked because it was very different from the advertising image on the online website. Ms. Thanh complained: "Even though I bought poor quality goods, not to my liking, I was not allowed to return or exchange them."

In addition, on online markets and groups, many people complain about being ripped off when buying online. Facebook "Old Lady of Time" shared: "I lost 500,000 VND for a dress in Saigon that arrived like a mop, not as advertised." Facebook "Oanh Ca" said she lost nearly 1 million VND but did not get the outfit she wanted, and the owner did not allow her to return it. Currently, thousands of "fake" websites appear every day, and many customers have lost money for online shopping.

Difficult to manage

According to statistics from the Department of Industry and Trade, there are currently about 1,200 websites operating in the electronic form (e-commerce) in the province, but only 312 e-commerce websites have completed the notification and registration procedures with the Ministry of Industry and Trade; operating in accordance with regulations. This means that in addition to the 312 e-commerce websites above, e-commerce websites that have not completed the notification procedures with the Ministry of Industry and Trade are violating Article 27 of Decree No. 52/2013/ND-CP; on the responsibilities of traders, organizations, and individuals owning e-commerce websites selling goods. It is worth mentioning that the violating websites are still operating in the form of e-commerce, so are online transactions as well as goods sold on these sites really guaranteed?

To improve the effectiveness of state management of e-commerce, in recent times, the Department of Industry and Trade has organized many training sessions for representatives of state management agencies at all levels, business associations, cooperatives, and students of some universities in the area on compliance with laws related to e-commerce activities. According to Mr. Nguyen Huy Cuong - Deputy Director of the Department of Industry and Trade: In the coming time, the Department will continue to promote propaganda and communication activities in many different forms so that enterprises and individuals who own e-commerce websites comply with the notification or registration with the Ministry of Industry and Trade, and carry out activities in accordance with the law, related to e-commerce. By the second quarter of 2017, the Department will continue to organize inspection teams and strictly punish e-commerce website owners who violate the law.

Many consumers who like to shop online also encounter funny situations when shopping online (Photo comment at the Nghe An - Ha Tinh Mother & Baby Fair).

In 2015, the interdisciplinary inspection team chaired by the Department of Industry and Trade inspected e-commerce and online business activities in Nghe An province; fined 16 e-commerce websites of enterprises, and collected VND 340,000,000 for the provincial budget. The main violations included: providing e-commerce services without registering with the Ministry of Industry and Trade, e-commerce websites selling goods without fulfilling the obligation to notify the Ministry of Industry and Trade...

However, currently, the authorities only manage online business activities for websites operating in the form of e-commerce. Meanwhile, the number of domain names in the whole province is currently nearly 2,500. In addition, fanpages, Facebook, associations, markets... are used to trade goods, the number of which is currently very large and increasing. Goods sold through these channels often do not have invoices, purchase receipts, the quality of the goods is not verified, so the risk in online transactions increases.

Consumers complain in the markets about being ripped off when buying online.

In fact, currently, a part of consumers still have a mentality of liking cheap or lack of knowledge, not paying much attention to the benefits when buying goods, so they often "fall into the trap" of some unofficial sales sites. Therefore, to avoid disadvantages when buying online, in the context that the management of online business activities is still inadequate, it requires consumers to raise awareness to protect themselves.

Dinh Nguyet