Internet Businesses Exploit Users

By Tim Alper

Contributing Writer

Internet users are surrendering their human rights online, according to a top European expert speaking at the OECD Ministerial Meeting in Seoul. She also warned that this issue was potentially more harmful for Asians than it was for Westerners.

Willemien Bax, the deputy director general of the European Union Bureau of Consumers, said companies were exploiting Internet users through online contracts that forced people to sign away basic freedoms, and spoke of a ``global threat to human rights.''

``People are being asked to give up their rights too easily, and they often have little or no choice in the matter. That means personal data about them can be distributed without their knowledge,'' she said.

``If people buy online, they should be entitled to enjoy the same rights they have with offline purchases. But there is currently no provision for people to get their money back or return goods or services with Internet transactions. That needs to change,'' she said.

Bax also said the problem was even more severe in Korea than it was in Europe. She explained, ``Asia has a lot fewer consumer organisations to protect individuals against companies that are trying to exploit their data than we do in Europe. Korea needs a stronger safety net to provide help to ordinary people.''

End-user agreements often come included in the box when you buy new software products. It is unfair to give people contracts to sign after they have already bought a product, according to Bax. Other companies are throwing in bits of legislation from other countries, or asking people to waive their rights with their user agreements.

She said, ``These contracts are offered up at the point where consumers have already agreed to purchase the software, or have no option other than to tick 'yes' in a box. Too often, companies include provisions in arrangements which allow them to give other parties access to personal data.''

And Bax seems to think that the goals of the OECD meeting - to address the concerns of ``The Future Internet Economy'' ― will not be met if companies are allowed to continue to force people into agreements that only benefit businesses.

``It's true that Internet trade is going up, but cross-border transactions are still not that popular. That is because traders have nobody turn to if something goes wrong. They need an international central help point they can turn to for support, but nothing of the sort exists,'' she said.

Bax also highlighted potentially dangerous new legislation that was already being drawn up in France to combat copyright infringements. This law could allow the government to force Internet Service Providers to monitor and even disconnect people found illegally downloading copyrighted material.

Under such proposals, which Bax said were also being considered by other countries, gross injustices would be possible. She said, ``If you cannot get Internet access nowadays, you cannot do business or interact socially. Cutting people's Internet access completely because of copyright violations is wrong. A better solution has to be found.''