Rogue Internet traders face prison sentences as the Government plans to make Britain the worlds' safest place for on-line home shopping. Companies or individuals will be struck off the web if found repeatedly guilty of ripping off the UK's growing numbers of internet shoppers. The measures, in a forthcoming White Paper, include the use of injunctions against dishonest operators and a blacklist of banned sites.
Individuals also risk two years in jail.
Consumer Affairs Minister Doctor Kim Howells is determined to stem the tide of cyberspace crime in the UK, which has rocketed by almost 600 per cent in the last year. It is important that legitimate businesses are not burdened, but equally crucial that we remove the rogues who provide unfair competition. The 450million home shopping market is expanding rapidly as Internet traders seek to entice the 80,000 new users who come on-line every day. The Government crackdown is being developed in conjunction with a European directive on website commerce. At the moment shoppers can only win redress from on-line companies who operate solely in Britain.