Internet Fraud Protection Photo by Moises Saman Attorney General Eliot Spitzer announces the formation of an Internet Bureau within his office to handle fraud and other cyberspace issues. At left, the National Consumers League's National Fraud Information Center on the Web. Legitimate businesses, as well as consumers, have a stake in curbing abuse. The bureau, launched this year with three attorneys, including Halligan, is one of the first in the country. D.C. The reports of alleged fraud increased from 1,280 in 1997 to 7,752 in 1998, while Internet commerce doubled.
Online auctions are the source of two-thirds of the complaints.
Consumer advocates don't turn two thumbs down on the Internet. Increasingly, however, attention is being given to the thorny issues of cyberspace commerce and consumer protection. They include questions that can arise in trying to police what amounts to a global marketplace and in interpreting how to apply basic consumer protection rules to a new technology. Regulators say they have enforcement tools to attack cyberspace fraud, but are adding more. The Federal Trade Commission has taken 58 enforcement actions since 1994 involving Internet promotions or sales, including investment schemes and advance-fee loans.