Requirements for Contracts
- Article and Case
The article on ‘Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Regulation’ examines the following aspects: criminal use of technology, proactive engagement by industry, the tracing of the flow of funds, impact of regulation, and forging forward via continuous engagement. All these aspects point to the fear attached to cryptocurrency, especially exploitation for unlawful purposes. The venture of cryptocurrency is, however, seen to be easier for law enforcers than to lawbreakers. There has been a misconception by Blockchain Alliance members that bitcoin transactions are anonymous, but contrary to that, it is easy to track online money. The New York attorney general’s office was investigating alleged fraud and misled investors where prosecutors alleged that Bitfinex covered up to $850 million in losses and thus misled investors. Most of these cases have been left unconcluded, but the court processes have been clear on supporting cryptocurrency transactions. For instance, the September 2018 case between Blockchain.com and Paymium involved unfair competition and false adverts by Paymium. The case was ruled in favour of Blockchain.com. The court found out that Paymium had falsified a lot of its statements in the SEC (Securities Exchange Commission).
- Statutes
Three legal aspects make or break an e-commerce business. These statues are; liability and contractual information, data protection and privacy, and managing fraud and securing electronic transactions. The e-commerce industry, like any other industry, has had to adapt to the increasingly high demand for a legal and regulating environment that has always brought about lawsuits, recall of products, and business closures in some parts of the world. For players in the e-commerce industry, legal statues come in different forms, with each statue presenting a unique challenge and opportunity in equal measure. For an average venture, it is required to clearly define the liabilities and warranties of its products, especially when dealing with third-party vendors. This is to avoid legal litigations by customers in case of product defects for even products that the entity does not manufacture. Data protection and privacy are vital since most e-commerce entities keep sensitive data belonging to customers and whose collection is done through contact forms and registration of customers (Chen, Ramamurthy & Wen, 2012). Incidences that involve payment frauds, including issues related to online security, have grown in the recent past. One of the ways to ensure this security is through ensuring the smooth running of application performance.
- Safe purchasing of consumer goods and services online
Online shopping is an opportunity to compare prices, as pointed out in the article. There is a chance of finding good bargains from across using the internet. This, however, comes with increased risks with criminals online scheming to scam and steal from shoppers. There is a need to research online to establish the legitimacy of online retailers. Additionally, the website a buyer is dealing with must be secure due to online cyber-crimes. It is worth also looking at and understanding the company’s return policy as well as knowing one’s own rights as far as transactions are concerned. For secure payments, the use of credit cards offers more security, alternatively, pay pal assures certain levels of security too. For new shoppers, online shopping has a lot of new experiences and risks in equal measure. Due diligence is key to ensuring one does not get scammed. Online security is paramount both for personal data protection and protection of one’s finances.
References
Chen, Y., Ramamurthy, K., & Wen, K. W. (2012). Organizations’ information security policy compliance: Stick or carrot approach? Journal of Management Information Systems, 29(3), 157-188.
https://cointelegraph.com/news/crypto-in-court-overview-of-the-biggest-lawsuits-worldwide
https://www.acc.com/sites/default/files/resources/vl/membersonly/Article/1489775_1.pdf
https://www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk/en/articles/shop-safely-online