Bipartisan Bill Introduced to Require Platforms to Authenticate Identity of Some Sellers
The Integrity, Notification, and Fairness in Online Retail Marketplaces (INFORM) for Consumers Act, introduced March 23, would require online marketplaces to authenticate the identity of high-volume, third-party sellers. Lead sponsors Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., say the act would deter counterfeit sales and prevent shoplifting rings from reselling goods online. Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa; Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii; Thom Tillis, R-N.C.; and Chris Coons, D-Del., are co-sponsors.
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The bill would also require websites to post contact information for those sellers.
“Over the last year, Americans have turned to online marketplaces to purchase what they need on a day-to-day basis, especially the elderly who are more at risk and often cannot go to their local store like normal,” Tillis said in the release announcing the bill. “Unfortunately, criminal actors, often from China, are taking advantage of this pandemic to sell dangerous counterfeit goods to unsuspecting Americans.
The American Apparel and Footwear Association applauded the INFORM Act's introduction. The trade group said stolen goods and counterfeit sales online are a rapidly growing problem. “Transparency and accountability on the part of trusted online marketplaces is essential, especially in an age where e-commerce has become so important to providing affordable fashion. However, we currently see limited -- and frankly insufficient -- efforts by many online platforms when it comes to verifying the identities of sellers and monitoring for counterfeits,” AAFA CEO Steve Lamar said. “The burden to flag and seek removal of these counterfeits has unfairly fallen on our member brands.”