Online advertising fraud has become so brazen that some suspicious investment promoters have been using a photograph of Hon Hai Precision Industry Co founder Terry Gou (郭台銘) to lure unsuspecting people to put money into their seemingly foolproof venture.
No matter how many times I report this advertisement as spam, it keeps popping up on my browser.
Fraud cases have topped the list of investigations by local prosecutors’ offices for the past five years, with drug crimes in second place, and the gap is widening quickly, the High Prosecutors’ Office said.
It is true that “technology increases productivity,” but this also applies to fraud. High-tech communication allows fraudsters to peddle their deception across borders, and the Internet facilitates the spread of deceitful information, ready to catch anyone naive enough to take the bait.
Small-loan advertisements stuck to telephone poles can be removed, and the parties behind them penalized. If an account is found to be fraudulent, you can call an anti-fraud hotline to report it.
However, deceptive social media posts and accounts can only be investigated by law enforcement agencies while waiting for Internet platforms to suspend the enterprise. There is no law or regulation to prevent this activity from happening in the first place.
The concept of environmental, social and corporate governance has become a selling point for companies to bandy around in promotions, but when it comes to Internet security, most of the tech giants shut their eyes as if the matter is outside their jurisdiction. These corporations make Internet users take responsibility for screening out suspicous ads.
In light of increasing incidents, Google Taiwan is making investment service advertisers obtain authorization from the Financial Supervisory Commission before publishing their advertisments.
The rule seems strong, but fraudsters are more than up to the challenge. If they change tack and begin posting fraudulent part-time job ads, would Google require these advertisers to require Ministry of Labor permission?
Countries cannot rely on Internet operators to handle such situations on their own. This is why Europe and the US are beginning to update relevant laws and regulations.
The Online Safety Bill under review in the UK would oblige Internet operators to review ads for content that should be removed, and the Kids Online Safety Act proposed in the US has been designed to oversee children’s consumption of social media.
These bills are not only a tightening of Internet content rules, but also relate to information security. They establish authorities and regulations to ensure that Internet operators review content thoroughly — and remove suspicious publicity.
Taiwan could learn from these bills. Article 2, Paragraph 5 of the Organization Act of the Ministry of Culture (數位發展部組織法) says that the soon-to-be-launched Ministry of Digital Development is to manage the formulation, guidance and supervision of matters related to national information security policies, regulations, planning and resource allocation.
The new ministry could use its authority to legislate appropriate Internet content security measures.
It is time that steps are taken to ensure that fraudulent online messaging is blocked in a timely manner and under an appropriate legal framework so that the public can enjoy a safe and secure online environment.
Chuang Chia-wei is a district prosecutor in Miaoli.
Translated by Lin Lee-kai
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