ELECTRONIC COMMERCE [CAP. 426. 1
CHAPTER 426
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE ACT
AN ACT to provide in relation to electronic commerce and to provide for
matters connected therewith or ancillary thereto.
10th May, 2002
ACT III of 2001 , as amended by Acts XXVII of 2002 , VII of 2004
and XIII of 2005 ; Legal Notice 426 of 2007 ; and Acts XXX of 2007 ,
XII of 2010  and XXXV of 2016 .
PART I 
PRELIMINARY
Short title. 1. The short title of this Act is the Electronic Commerce Act.
Interpretation.
Amended by:
XXVII. 2002.59;XIII. 2005.73;XXX. 2007.51, 52;XII. 2010.79;XXXV . 2016.2.2. In this Act, the definitions contained in Article 3 of the
Regulation shall apply and, unless the context otherwise requir es - 
"the Act" means the Electronic Commerce Act and includes,
unless the context otherwise requires, any regulations madethereunder;
"addressee" in relation to an electronic communication means a
person who is intended by the service provider to receive theelectronic communication, but does not include a person acting as a
service provider with respect to the processing, receiving or s toring
of that electronic communication or providing other services wi th
respect to it;
"certificate" means any one of the following:
(a) a certificate for electronic signature;
(b) a certificate for electronic seal; or 
(c) a certificate for website authentication;
"certificate service provider" means the trust service provider  that
issues certificates;
"commercial communication" means any form of communication
designed to promote directly or indirectly, the goods, services  or image
of a company, organisation or person pursuing a commercial,industrial or craft activity or exercising a regulated professi on. The
following  do  not  in  themselves  constitute  commercialcommunications:
(a) information allowing direct access to the activity of
the company, organisation or person, in particular thedomain name of an electronic mail address;
(b) communications relating to the goods, services or
image of the company, organisation or personcompiled in an independent manner, particularly whenthis is without financial consideration;
"competent regulator" means any such public body as may be
designated by the Minister according to the Sixth Schedule to a ct as
the regulatory body tasked with ensuring compliance with this A ct
2 [CAP. 426. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
and, or with the Regulation:
Provided that the Minister may amend such Schedule by
Order in the Gazette, and in doing so may provide for the exerc ise
of the regulatory powers of the regulatory body designated to a ct as
the competent regulator for the purposes of this Act:
Provided further that in doing so the Minister may
designate different public bodies to administer and enforcedifferent provisions of this Act and, or of the Regulation. In doing
so the Minister shall clearly establish the remit of each such public
body ensuring also that there is effective co-ordination betwee n
such bodies;
"consumer" means any natural person who is acting for purposes
which are outside his trade, business or profession;
"coordinated field" means requirements applicable to
information society service providers or information societyservices, regardless of whether they are of a general nature orspecifically designed for them, and covers requirements with wh ich
the service provider has to comply in respect of:
(a) the taking up of the activity of an information society
service, such as requirements concerningqualifications, authorisation or notification;
(b) the pursuit of the activity of an information society
service, such as requirements concerning thebehaviour of the service provider, requirementsregarding the quality or content of the service,including those applicable to advertising andcontracts, or requirements concerning the liability of
the service provider,
but does not cover requirements such as those applicable to goo ds
as such, to the delivery of goods or to services not provided b y
electronic means;
"cross-border infringement" means:
(a) an act or omission contrary to this Act and, or to the
Regulation which takes place in Malta and whichharms or is likely to harm the collective interests ofconsumers residing in a Member State or in MemberStates other than Malta; or
(b) an act or omission contrary to this Act and, or to the
Regulation by a seller or supplier who is established inMalta and which harms or is likely to harm thecollective interests of consumers residing in a MemberState or in Member States other than Malta; or
(c) an act or omission contrary to this Act and, or to the
Regulation which takes place in Malta and whichharms or is likely to harm the collective interests ofconsumers residing in a Member State or in MemberStates other than Malta where the evidence or assetspertaining to the act or omission are to be found inMalta;
      
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE [CAP. 426. 3
"data" means a representation of information, knowledge, facts,
concepts or instructions that has been prepared or is being pre pared
in any manner and has been processed, is being processed or isintended to be processed in an information system, a computersystem or a computer network. Data may be in any form or derive d
from any device or source, in cluding computer memory, computer
printouts, any storage media, electronic or otherwise and punch ed
cards;
"data storage device" means any thing, including a disk, from
which data and information is capable of being reproduced with or
without the aid of any thing or device;
"electronic communication" means information generated,
communicated, processed, sent, received, recorded, stored ordisplayed by electronic means;
"electronic contract" means a contract concluded wholly or
partly by electronic communications or wholly or partly in anelectronic form;
"Electronic Commerce Directive" means Directive 2000/31/EC
of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2000 oncertain legal aspects of information society services, in parti cular
electronic commerce, in the internal market;
"enforcement action" means any form of enforcement action,
however so described, including the imposition of any sanctionsthat an enforcement authority, including the competent regulato r, is
empowered to take at law;
"enforcement authority" means any public entity which at law is
authorised to take enforcement action, but does not include a c ourt
however so described;
"European Commission" or "Commission" means the European
Commission of the European Union;
"information" includes information in the form of data, text,
images, sound or speech;
"information society service" means any service which is
provided at a distance, by electronic means and at the individu al
request of a recipient of the service, whether such service isprovided for consideration or not, and for the purposes of thisdefinition:
(a) "at a distance" means that the service is provided
without the parties being simultaneously present;
(b) "by electronic means" means that the service is sent
initially and received at its destination by means ofelectronic equipment for the processing (includingdigital compression) and storage of data, and entirelytransmitted, conveyed and received by wire, by radio,by optical means or by any electromagnetic means;
(c) "at the individual request of a recipient of the service"
means that the service is provided through thetransmission of data on individual request;
4 [CAP. 426. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
"information system" means a system for generating, sending,
receiving, recording, storing or otherwise processing electroni c
communications;
"information technology requirements" includes software,
network and data storage requirements;
"Member State" means a Member State of the European Union;"Minister" means the Minister responsible for communications;"place of business" in relation to a government, an authority o f a
government, a public body, a charitable, philanthropic or simil ar
institution means a place where any operations or activities ar e
carried out by that government, authority, body or institution;
"prescribed" means prescribed by regulations made by the
Minister in accordance with the provisions of this Act;
"qualified entity" means:
Cap. 378.(a) a registered consumer association within the meaning
of Part IV of the Consumer Affairs Act, and avoluntary organization recognized by the competentregulator as having a legitimate interest in protectingthe collective interests of consumers:
Cap. 378.Provided that before recognizing any such voluntaryorganization as a qualified entity the competentregulator shall consult with the Consumer AffairsCouncil as established under the Consumer Affairs
Act;
(b) in the context of articles 8A, 8B and 8C any
enforcement authority to whom this Act applies;
(c) one or more independent public bodies, having a
legitimate interest in ensuring the protection of thecollective interests of consumers of any servicesregulated by the Electronic Commerce Directive or bythe Regulation in other Member States in which suchbodies exist;
(d) voluntary organizations in other Member States whose
purpose is to protect the collective interests ofconsumers in accordance with the criteria laid down bytheir national law;
(e) one or more organizations recognized by the
competent regulator as collectively representing
information society service providers; or
(f) any qualified entity from a Member State included in
the list of qualified entities as may from time to timebe published by the European Commission;
"recipient of the service" means any person who uses an
information society service for the purposes of seeking informa tion
or making it accessible;
"regulated profession" means any profession within the meaning
of either:
(a) Article 1(d) of the European Council Directive 89/48/
      
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE [CAP. 426. 5
EEC of the 21 December 1988 on a general system for
the recognition of higher education diplomas awardedon completion of professional education and training
for a duration of at least three years; or
(b) Article 1(f) of the European Council Directive 92/51/
EEC of the 18 June 1992 on a second general systemfor the recognition of professional education andtraining to supplement Directive 89/84/EEC;
"Regulation" means Regulation number 910/2014 of the
European Parliament and of the Council of 23 July 2014 onelectronic identification and trust services for electroniccommunications in the internal market and repealing Directive1999/93/EC;
"service provider" means any person established in Malta
providing an information society service;
"transaction" includes a transaction of a non-commercial nature ;
Cap. 490. "Tribunal” means the Administrative Review Tribunal
established by article 5 of the Administrative Justice Act;
"Union" means the European Union.
PART II
APPLICATION OF LEGAL REQUIREMENTS TO 
ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS AND TRANSACTIONS
Validity of 
electronic transactions.3. For the purposes of any law in Malta and subject to the
other provisions of this Act, a transaction is not deemed to beinvalid merely because it took place wholly or partly by means of
one or more electronic communications.
Excluded laws.
Amended by:
IV . 2004.48;XXX. 2007.53;XXXV . 2016.4.4.(1) Unless otherwise prescribed, the provisions of this Act
and of the Regulation shall not apply to those activities or ar eas as
are listed in the Fifth Schedule. The Minister may, afterconsultation with the competent regulator, by notice in the Gaz ette,
amend the Fifth Schedule.
(2) Where the Minister is of the opinion that -
(a) technology has advanced to such an extent, and access
to it is so widely available, or
(b) adequate procedures and practices have developed in
public registration or other services, so as to warrantsuch action, or
(c) the public interest so requires,
he may, after consultation with that Minister as in his opinion  has
sufficient interest or responsibility in relation to the matter , by
Order in the Gazette extend the application of this Act or aprovision of this Act to or in relation to a matter specified i n
subarticle (1) above, including the applicability to a particul ar area
or subject, or for a particular time, for the purposes of a tri al of the
technology and procedures, subject to such conditions as he thi nks
fit.
6 [CAP. 426. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
Requirement or 
permission to give information in writing.
Amended by:
XXVII. 2002.59.5.(1) If under any law in Malta a person is required or
permitted to give information in writing, that requirement shal l be
deemed to have been satisfied if the person gives the informati on
by means of an electronic communication:
Provided that -
(a) at the time the information was given, it was
reasonable to expect that the information would bereadily accessible so as to be useable for subsequentreference; and
(b) if the information is required to be given to a person,
or to another person on his behalf, and the firstmentioned person requires that the information begiven in accordance with particular informationtechnology requirements, by means of a particularkind of electronic communication, that person’srequirement has been met; and
(c) if the information is required to be given to a person who
is neither a public body nor to a person acting on behalfof a public body, then the person to whom theinformation is required or permitted to be given, consentsto the information being given by means of an electroniccommunication;
(d) if the information is required to be given to a person,
or to another person on his behalf, and the firstmentioned person requires that a particular action betaken by way of verifying the receipt of theinformation, that person’s requirement has been met.
(2) For the purposes of this article, giving information
includes, but is not limited to, the following:
(a) making an application;
(b) making or lodging a claim;
(c) giving, sending or serving a notification;
(d) lodging a return;
(e) making a request;
(f) making a declaration;
(g) lodging or issuing a certificate;
(h) lodging an objection; and
(i) making a statement.
(3) For the purposes of this article, a requirement or
permission in relation to a person to give information shall ex tend
to and shall be equally applicable to the requirement or inform ation
which is stated to be sent, filed, submitted, served or otherwi se
transmitted and includes similar or cognate expressions, thereo f.
Signature. 6. (Deleted by Act XXXV . 2016.5 .).
      
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE [CAP. 426. 7
Requirement or 
permission for production of document and integrity.
Amended by:
XXVII. 2002.59.7. (1) Unless otherwise provided by or under this Act, if
under any law in Malta, a person is required to produce a docum ent
that is in the form of a paper, or of any other substance or ma terial,
that requirement is deemed to have been satisfied if the personproduces, by means of an electronic communication, an electroni c
form of that document:
Provided that:
(a) having regard to all the relevant circumstances at the
time of the communication, the method of generatingthe electronic form of the document provided areliable means of assuring the maintenance of theintegrity of the information contained in the document;
(b) at the time the communication was sent, it was
reasonable to expect that the information contained inthe electronic form of the document would be readilyaccessible so as to be useable for subsequentreference;
(c) if the document is required to be produced to a person
who is neither a public body nor to a person acting onbehalf of a public body, then the person to whom thedocument is required to be produced, consents to theproduction by means of an electronic communication ofan electronic form of the document;
(d) if the document is required to be given to a person, or
to another person on his behalf, and the firstmentioned person requires that an electronic form ofthe document be given, in accordance with particularinformation technology requirements, by means of aparticular kind of electronic communication, theperson’s requirement is satisfied; and
(e) if the document is required to be given to a person, or
to another person on his behalf, and the firstmentioned person requires that a particular action betaken by way of verifying the receipt of theinformation, the person’s requirement is satisfied.
(2) For the purposes of this article, the integrity of informati on
contained in a document is only maintained if the informationremains complete and unaltered, save for -
(a) the addition of any endorsement; or
(b) any change not being a change to the information,
which is necessary in the normal course ofcommunication, storage or display.
(3) For the purposes of article 8 (1) and (2), the production by
means of an electronic communication of an electronic form of adocument or the generation of an electronic form of a documentshall not give rise to any liability for infringement of the co pyright
in a work or other subject matter embodied in the document.
Retention of 
information, documents and communications.8.(1) If under any law in Malta, a person is required to
record information in writing, that requirement is deemed to ha ve
been satisfied if the person records the information in electro nic
8 [CAP. 426. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
form:
Provided that such information in electronic form is readily
accessible so as to be useable for subsequent reference and itcomplies with such regulations as may be prescribed.
(2) If under any law in Malta, a person is required to retain, f or
a particular period, a document that is in the form of a paper or of
any other substance or material, that requirement is deemed to have
been satisfied if the person retains an electronic form of thedocument throughout that period:
Provided that if -
(a) having regard to all the relevant circumstances at the
time of the generation of the electronic form of thedocument, the method of generating the electronicform of the document, provided a reliable means ofassuring the maintenance of the integrity of theinformation contained in that document; and
(b) at the time of the generation of the electronic form of
the document, it was reasonable to expect that theinformation contained in the electronic form of thedocument would be readily accessible so as to beuseable for subsequent reference; and
(c) it complies with such regulations as may be
prescribed.
(3) For the purpose of subarticle (2), the integrity of
information contained in a document is only maintained if theinformation has remained complete and unaltered, save for-
(a) the addition of any endorsement; or
(b) any change not being a change to the information,
which is necessary in the normal course ofcommunication, storage or display.
(4) If under any law in Malta, a person is required to retain, f or
a particular period, information that was the subject of anelectronic communication, that requirement is deemed to have be en
satisfied if that person retains, or causes another person to r etain, in
electronic form, that -
(a) at the time of commencement of the retention of the
information, it was reasonable to expect that theinformation would be readily accessible so as to beuseable for subsequent reference; and
(b) having regard to all the relevant circumstances, at the
time of commencement of the retention of theinformation, the method of retaining the information inelectronic form provided a reliable means of assuringthe maintenance of the integrity of the informationcontained in the electronic communication; and
(c) throughout that period that person also retains, or
causes another person to retain, in electronic form,such additional information obtained as is sufficient toenable the identification of the following:
      
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE [CAP. 426. 9
(i) the origin of the electronic communication;
(ii) the destination of the electronic communication;
(iii) the time when the electronic communication was
sent;
(iv) the time when the electronic communication was
received; and
(d) at the time of commencement of the retention of the
additional information specified in paragraph ( c) it
was reasonable to expect that the additionalinformation would be readily accessible so as to beuseable for subsequent reference; and
(e) it complies with such regulations as may be
prescribed.
(5) For the purposes of subarticle (4), the integrity of the
information which is the subject of an electronic communication  is
only maintained if the information remains complete and unalter ed,
save for -
(a) the addition of any endorsement; or
(b) any change not being a change to the information,
which arises in the normal course of communication,storage or display.
Internal market.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.6.8A. (1) Subject to the provisions of sub-article (4), any
requirement that falls within the coordinated field shall apply  to the
provision of an information society service by a service provid er
established in Malta, irrespective of whether that service isprovided in Malta or in another Member State.
(2) Subject to the provisions of sub-article (4) an enforcement
authority with responsibility in relation to any requirement in  sub-
article (1) shall ensure that the provision of an information s ervice
by a service provider established in Malta complies with thatrequirement irrespective of whether the service is provided inMalta or in another Member State, and any power, remedy orprocedure for taking enforcement action shall be available to s ecure
compliance.
(3) Subject to the provisions of sub-articles (4) and (5), no
requirement shall be applied to the provision of an informationsociety service by a service provider established in a Member S tate
other than Malta for reasons which fall within the coordinated field
if the application of the requirement would restrict the freedo m to
provide information society services to a person in Malta from that
Member State.
(4) Subarticles (1), (2) and (3) shall not apply to the fields s et
out in the Seventh Schedule to this Act.
(5) The reference to any requirements the application of which
would restrict the freedom to provide information society servi ces
from another Member State in sub-article (3) does not include a ny
requirement maintaining the level of protection for public heal th
and consumer interests established by European Union law.
10 [CAP. 426. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
Derogations from 
article 8A.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.6.8B. (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of article 8A(3), an
enforcement authority may take measures, including applying anyrequirement which would otherwise not apply by virtue of articl e
8A(3), in respect of a given information society service, wherethose measures are necessary for reasons of -
(a) public policy, in particular the prevention,
investigation, detection and prosecution of criminaloffences, including the protection of minors and thefight against any incitement to hatred on grounds ofrace, sex, religion or nationality, and violations ofhuman dignity concerning individual persons;
(b) the protection of public health;
(c) public security, including the safeguarding of national
security and defence; or
(d) the protection of consumers, including investors,
and are proportionate to those objectives.
(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of article 8A(3), in any case
where an enforcement authority is not party to the proceedings,  a
court may, on the application of any person or of its own motio n,
apply any requirement which would otherwise not apply by virtueof article 8A(3) in respect of a given information society serv ice, if
the application of that law or requirement is necessary for andproportionate to any of the objectives set out in sub-article ( 1).
(3) Subarticles (1) and (2) shall only apply where the
information society service prejudices or presents a serious an d
grave risk of prejudice to an objective as stated in sub-articl e (1)( a)
to (d).
(4) Subject to the provisions of sub-articles (5) and (6), an
enforcement authority shall not take the measures in sub-articl e (1)
unless it:
(a) asks the Member State in which the service provider is
established to take measures and the aforesaid MemberState does not take such measures or the measurestaken are considered by the enforcement authorityconcerned as inadequate; and
(b) notifies the European Commission and the Member
State in which the service provider is established of itsintention to take such measures.
(5) Nothing in sub-article (4) af fects the commencement of any
legal proceedings or the investigation of any offence or breach ,
however so described, by any enforcement authority.
(6) If it appears to the enforcement authority that the matter i s
one of urgency, it may take the measures under sub-article (1)without first applying the requirements of sub-article (4).
(7) In a case where a measure is taken pursuant to sub-article
(6), the enforcement authority shall notify the measures taken,  to
the European Commission and to the Member State concerned inthe shortest time possible thereafter stating in writing the re asons
for urgency.
      
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE [CAP. 426. 11
General 
information to be provided.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.6.8C. (1) Without prejudice to other information requirements
as may be established at law, a service provider shall makeavailable to the recipient of the service and where appropriate  or
requested, to the enforcement authority responsible at law inensuring compliance, including where applicable to the competen t
regulator, in a form and manner which is easily, directly andpermanently accessible, the following information:
(a) the name of the service provider;
(b) the geographic address where the service provider is
established;
(c) the details of the service provider, including his
electronic mail address, which allow him to becontacted rapidly and communicated with in a directand effective manner;
(d) where the service provider is registered in a trade or
similar public register, the trade or other such registerin which the service provider is entered and hisregistration number, or equivalent means ofidentification in that register;
(e) where the activity is subject to an authorisation
scheme, the particulars of the relevant supervisoryauthority;
(f) where the service provider is a member of a regulated
profession -
(i) any professional body or similar institution with
which the service provider is registered;
(ii) the professional title of the provider and the
Member State where it has been granted; and
(iii) a reference to the applicable professional rules
in the Member State of establishment and themeans to access them;
(g) where the service provider undertakes an activity that
is subject to value added tax, the identification numberreferred to in Article 22(1) of the Sixth CouncilDirective 77/388/EEC of 17th May 1977 on theharmonisation of the laws of the Member Statesrelating to turnover taxes - Common system of valueadded tax: uniform basis of assessment; and
(h) when a service provider sends unsolicited commercial
communications, details of how users of the servicecan register their choice regarding unsolicitedcommercial communications, which details must beprominently displayed on the website of the serviceprovider and at every point where users of the serviceare asked to provide information when accessing thewebsite of the service provider.
(2) Where the service provider refers to prices, such prices
shall be indicated clearly and unambiguously and, in particular ,
shall indicate whether they are inclusive of any tax, however s o
described, and delivery costs.
12 [CAP. 426. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
Provision of 
information in commercial communications.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.6.8D. In addition to any other information requirements that may
be established at law, a service provider shall ensure that anycommercial communication provided by him, which constitutes orforms part of an information society service shall -
(a) be clearly identified as a commercial communication;
(b) clearly identify the person on whose behalf the
commercial communication is made;
(c) clearly identify as such any promotional offer,
including any discount, premium or gift, and ensurethat any conditions which must be met to qualify for itare easily accessible, and presented clearly andunambiguously;
(d) clearly identify as such any promotional competition
or game and ensure that any conditions forparticipation are easily accessible and presentedclearly and unambiguously; and
Cap. 586. (e) without prejudice to the provisions of the Data
Protection Act and of any other laws regulating dataprotection, clearly identify details of how users of theservice can register their choice regarding unsolicitedcommercial communications, which details must beprominently displayed at every point where users ofthe service are asked to provide information.
Regulated 
professions.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.6.8E. (1) This article establishes and regulates the right under
the Act to make a commercial communication which is part of, orconstitutes, a service provided by a member of a regulatedprofession.
(2) Without prejudice to any other provision of the Act
permitting a restriction or limitation of the right to which th is
article applies, a body which at law is responsible for a regul ated
profession may, in exercise of any powers vested in it at law t o
regulate the activities of its members, make the exercise by amember of the profession of the right to which this article app lies,
subject to compliance with specified conditions as referred to in
sub-article (3).
(3) The conditions that may be so specified are those that may
reasonably be regarded as appropriate for the purpose ofmaintaining the standing and integrity of the profession concer ned
and ensuring adherence by its members to the requisite standard s
and, in particular, for the purpose of ensuring -
(a) the independence, dignity and honour of the
profession, and
(b) compliance with obligations of professional secrecy
and fairness towards clients and other members of theprofession.
No requirement for 
prior authorisations.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.6.8F. Subject to the provisions of article 8G, the provision of
information society services by a service provider shall not besubject to any prior authorisation:
      
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE [CAP. 426. 13
Cap. 399.Provided that the provision of such information society
services shall be without prejudice to authorisation schemes wh ich
are not specifically and exclusively targeted at information so ciety
services, or which are covered by the Electronic Communications(Regulation) Act or any regulations made thereunder.
Notification 
requirement.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.6.8G. (1) For the purposes of this article only, "services" means
any such information society services to which the provisions o f
this article may apply consequential to any designation that th e
competent regulator may make in accordance with sub-article (2) .
(2) Before providing services, a service provider shall
complete and file a notice with the competent regulator which s hall
be made in such form and include any such information as thecompetent regulator may require:
Provided that such information shall be limited to what is
necessary for the competent regulator to identify the serviceprovider and the services he provides:
Provided further that the competent regulator may, with the
prior written approval of the Minister, designate such othercategories of service providers to complete and file a notice i n
accordance with this article as the competent regulator may fro m
time to time consider necessary.
(3) The service provider shall notify the competent regulator if
such a service provider ceases to provide the notified service or if
there is any change in the details of the notice previously fil ed.
Such notification shall be made within thirty days of cessation  of
service provision or of the change to the notified information.
(4) The competent regulator shall establish and maintain a
register of those service providers that have notified the comp etent
regulator in accordance with this article. Such register shall be
accessible to the public and shall contain such information as the
competent regulator considers appropriate.
Non-applicability 
of certain articles to the activities or areas listed in the Fifth Schedule of the Act.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.6.8H. Articles 8A to 8F shall not apply to the activities or areas
listed in paragraphs ( a), (b), (c) and ( d) of the Fifth Schedule.
PART III
ELECTRONIC CONTRACTS
Electronic 
contract.9.(1) An electronic contract shall not be denied legal effect,
validity or enforceability solely on the grounds that it is who lly or
partly in electronic form or has been entered into wholly or pa rtly
by way of electronic communications or otherwise.
(2) For the purposes of any law relating to contracts, an offer,
an acceptance of an offer and any related communication, includ ing
any subsequent amendment, cancellation or revocation of the off er,
the acceptance of the contract may, unless otherwise agreed by the
contracting parties, be communicated by means of electronic
14 [CAP. 426. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
communications.
Formation of 
electronic contract.
Amended by:
VII. 2004.49.Substituted by:XXX. 2007.54.10. (1) Unless otherwise agreed by parties who are not
consumers, where the recipient of the service places his orderthrough technological means:
(a) an electronic contract is concluded when after placing
his order, the recipient of the service has received fromthe service provider an acknowledgement of receipt ofthe order made by the recipient:
Provided that the service provider must acknowledge
receipt of the order made by the recipient withoutundue delay and by electronic means; and
(b) the order made by the recipient and the
acknowledgement of receipt are deemed to have beenreceived when the parties to whom they are addressedare able to access them.
(2) Unless otherwise agreed by parties who are not consumers,
the service provider shall provide the recipient of the service  with
effective and accessible technical means to identify and correc t
handling and input errors and accidental transactions prior to the
conclusion of the contract.
(3) The provisions of subarticle (1)( a) and of subarticle (2)
shall not apply to contracts concluded exclusively by electroni c
mail or by equivalent individual communications.
Information 
requirements relating to electronic contracts.Substituted by:VII. 2004.50.
Amended by:
XXX. 2007.52;XXXV . 2016.3.11. (1) Unless otherwise agreed by parties who are not
consumers, and without prejudice to any consumer rights under t he
provisions of any other law, the service provider shall provideinformation in clear, comprehensive and unambiguous termsregarding the matters set out in the First Schedule, which Sche dule
may by notice in the Gazette, be amended by the Minister afterconsultation with the competent regulator:
Provided that any such information shall be provided to the
addressee prior to the placement of the order by him.
(2) Unless parties who are not consumers have agreed
otherwise, a service provider shall indicate which relevant cod es of
conduct he subscribes to and provide information as to how thos e
codes can be consulted electronically.
(3) Where the service provider provides terms and conditions
applicable to the contract to the addressee, the service provid er
shall make them available to the addressee in a way that allows  the
addressee to store and reproduce them.
(4) The provisions of subarticles (1) and (2) shall not apply to
contracts concluded exclusively by exchange of electronic mail or
by equivalent individual communications.
PART IV
TRANSMISSION OF ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS
Time of dispatch. 12. (1) If an electronic communication enters a single
information system outside of the control of the originator, th en,
      
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE [CAP. 426. 15
save as otherwise agreed between the originator and the address ee
of the electronic communication, the dispatch of the electroniccommunication occurs at the time when it enters the informationsystem.
(2) If an electronic communication enters successively two or
more information systems outside of the control of the originat or,
then, unless otherwise agreed between the originator and theaddressee of the electronic communication, the dispatch of theelectronic communication occurs when it enters the first of tho se
information systems.
Time of receipt.
Amended by:
XXXV . 2016.7.13. (1) If the addressee of an electronic communication has
designated an information system for the purpose of receivingelectronic communications, then, save as otherwise agreed betwe en
the originator and the addressee of the electronic communicatio n or
as otherwise required under the Regulation, the time of receipt  of
the electronic communication is the time when the electroniccommunication enters the information system.
(2) If the addressee of an electronic communication has not
designated an information system for the purpose of receivingelectronic communications, then, save as otherwise agreed betwe en
the originator and the addressee of the electronic communicatio n,
the time of receipt of the electronic communication is the timewhen the electronic communication comes to the attention of theaddressee.
Place of dispatch 
and receipt.14. (1) Save as may be otherwise agreed between the
originator and the addressee of an electronic communication -
(a) the electronic communication is deemed to have been
dispatched at the place where the originator has hisplace of business; and
(b) the electronic communication is deemed to have been
received at the place where the addressee has his placeof business.
(2) For the purposes of the subarticle (1) -
(a) if the originator or the addressee has more than one
place of business, and one of those places has a closerrelationship to the underlying transaction, that place ofbusiness shall be deemed to be the originator’s or theaddressee’s place of business; and
(b) if the originator or the addressee has more than one
place of business, but paragraph ( a) does not apply, the
originator’s or the addressee’s principal place ofbusiness shall be deemed to be the originator’s or theaddressee’s place of business; and
(c) if the originator or addressee does not have a place of
business, the originator’s or the addressee’s place ofbusiness shall be deemed to be the originator’s oraddressee’s ordinary residence.
16 [CAP. 426. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
Attribution of 
electronic communication.15. (1) Save as otherwise agreed between the originator and
the addressee of an electronic communication, the originator of  an
electronic communication is bound by that communication only ifthe communication was sent by him or under his authority.
(2) Nothing in subarticle (1) shall affect the operation of any
law that makes provision for-
(a) the conduct engaged by a person within the scope of
the person’s actual or apparent authority to beattributed to another person; or
(b) a person to be bound by conduct engaged in by another
person within the scope of the other person’s actual orapparent authority.
(3) An electronic communication between an originator and an
addressee shall be deemed to be of the originator if it was sen t by
an information system programmed to operate automatically by oron behalf of the originator.
(4) An addressee shall have the right to consider each
electronic communication received by him as a separate electron ic
communication and to act on that assumption, except to the exte nt
that such communication is a duplicate of another electroniccommunication and the addressee knew or should have known, hadhe exercised reasonable care or used any agreed procedure, that  the
electronic communication was a duplicate.
Communications 
by registered mail.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.8.15A.  Wherever any legal requirement exists to communicate by
way of registered mail, this requirement shall be deemed to besatisfied by the use of a qualified electronic registered deliv ery
service by all parties participating in the communication:
Provided that this article shall come into force on such date
as the Minister may expressly determine by order in the Gazette .
PART V
PROVISION OF SIGNATURE CERTIFICATION SERVICES
Accreditation of 
signature certification service providers.16. (Deleted by Act XXXV . 2016.9. ).
Supervision of 
signature certification service providers that issue qualified certificates.
Amended by:
XIII. 2005.74.17. (Deleted by Act XXXV . 2016.9. ).
Liability of 
signature certification service providers.18. (Deleted by Act XXXV . 2016.9. ).
PART VI 
INTERMEDIARY SERVICE PROVIDERS
Mere conduit. 19. (1) Where an information society service is provided, and
such service consists in the transmission, in a communicationnetwork, of information provided by the recipient of the servic e, or
      
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE [CAP. 426. 17
the provision of access to a communication network, the provide r
of such a service shall not be liable, otherwise than under aprohibitory injunction, for the information transmitted. Provid ed
that such provider:
(a) does not initiate the transmission;
(b) does not select the receiver of the transmission; and
(c) does not select or modify the information contained in
the transmission.
(2) The acts of transmission and of the provision of access
referred to in subarticle (1) hereof, include the automaticintermediate and transient storage of the information transmitt ed in
so far as this takes place for the sole purpose of carrying out  the
transmission in the communication network, and provided that th e
information is not stored for any period longer than is reasona bly
necessary for the transmission.
Caching.
Amended by:
XXXV . 2016.3.20. Where an information society service is provided, and such
service consists in the transmission, in a communication networ k,
of information provided by a recipient of the service, the prov ider
of that service shall not be liable for damages for the automat ic,
intermediate and temporary storage of that information, perform ed
for the sole purpose of making more efficient the information’sonward transmission to other recipients of the service upon the ir
request. 
Provided that:
(a) the provider does not modify the information;
(b) the provider complies with the conditions on access to
the information;
(c) the provider complies with any conditions regulating
the updating of the information;
(d) the provider does not interfere with the technology
used to obtain data on the use of the information; and
(e) the provider acts expeditiously to remove or to bar
access to the information upon obtaining actualknowledge of any of the following:
(i) the information at the initial source of the
transmission has been removed from thenetwork;
(ii) access to it has been barred;
(iii) the Court or other competent regulator has
ordered such removal or barring.
Hosting. 21. (1) Where an information society service is provided, and
such service consists in the storage of information provided by  a
recipient of the service, the provider of that service shall no t be
liable for damages for the information stored at the request of  a
recipient of the service. 
Provided that:
(a) the provider does not have actual knowledge that the
activity is illegal and is not aware of facts or
18 [CAP. 426. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
circumstances from which illegal activity is apparent;
or
(b) the provider, upon obtaining such knowledge or
awareness, acts expeditiously to remove or to disableaccess to the information.
(2) Subarticle (1) shall not apply when the recipient of the
service is acting under the authority or the control of the pro vider
of the service.
Obligations of 
intermediary service providers.22. Information society service providers shall promptly
inform the public authorities competent in the matter of any al leged
illegal activity undertaken or information provided by recipien ts of
their service and shall grant to any such authority upon reques t
information enabling the identification of recipients of their service
with whom they have storage agreements:
Provided that nothing in this Part of the Act shall be
interpreted as imposing an obligation on information societyservice providers to monitor the information which they transmi t or
store or to actively seek facts or circumstances indicating ill egal
activity in connection with the activities described in article s 19 to
21.
PART VII
GENERAL
Prohibition on 
misuse of electronic signatures, signature creation devices, certificates and fraud.
Amended by:
XXXV . 2016.10.23. (1) No person shall access, copy or otherwise obtain
possession of or recreate the electronic signature creation dev ice or
an electronic seal creation device of another person withoutauthorisation, for the purpose of creating, or allowing or caus ing
another person to create an unauthorised electronic signature o r
electronic seal using such signature device.
(2) No person shall alter, disclose or use the electronic
signature creation device or an electronic seal creation device  of
another person without authorisation, or in excess of lawfulauthorisation, for the purpose of creating or allowing or causi ng
another person to create an unauthorised electronic signature u sing
such electronic signature creation device or an electronic sealcreation device.
(3) No person shall create, publish, alter or otherwise use a
certificate or an electronic signature or electronic seal for a ny
fraudulent or other unlawful purpose.
(4) No person shall misrepresent his identity or authorisation
in requesting or accepting a certificate or in requesting suspe nsion
or revocation of a certification.
(5) No person shall access, alter, disclose or use the electroni c
signature creation device or an electronic seal creation device  of a
certificate service provider used to issue certificates without  the
authorisation of the certificate service provider, or in excess  of
lawful authorisation, for the purpose of creating, or allowing or
causing another person to create, an unauthorised electronicsignature or electronic seal using such electronic signature cr eation
      
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE [CAP. 426. 19
device or an electronic seal creation device.
(6) No person shall publish a certificate, or otherwise
knowingly make it available to anyone likely to rely on thecertificate or on an electronic signature or electronic seal th at is
verifiable with reference to data such as codes, passwords,algorithms, public cryptographic keys or other data which are u sed
for the purposes of verifying an electronic signature or electr onic
seal, listed in the certificate, if such person knows that -
(a) the certificate service provider listed in the certificate
has not issued it; or
(b) the subscriber listed in the certificate has not accepted
it; or
(c) the certificate has been revoked or suspended, unless
such publication is for the purpose of verifying anelectronic signature or electronic seal created prior tosuch revocation or suspension, or giving notice ofrevocation or suspension.
(7) No person shall use cryptographic or other similar
techniques for any illegal purpose.
Supervisory body 
for the purposes of the Regulation.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.11.23A.  (1) The competent regulator shall be responsible for the
supervisory tasks stated in the Regulation and in doing so shal l in
particular:
(a) supervise qualified trust service providers established
in Malta ensuring through ex ante  and ex post
supervisory activities, that such qualified trust serviceproviders and the qualified trust services that theyprovide, meet the requirements laid down in theRegulation;
(b) take action if necessary, in relation to non-qualified
trust service providers established in Malta through ex
post supervisory activities, when informed that those
non-qualified trust service providers or the trustservices they provide allegedly do not meet therequirements laid down in the Regulation.
(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the tasks onerous on
the competent regulator as stated in sub-article (1), the compe tent
regulator shall be responsible for the following:
(a) cooperating with other supervisory bodies and provide
them with assistance in accordance with Article 18 ofthe Regulation;
(b) analysing the conformity assessment reports referred
to in Articles 20(1) and 21(1) of the Regulation;
(c) informing other supervisory bodies and the public
about breaches of security or loss of integrity inaccordance with Article 19(2) of the Regulation;
(d) reporting to the European Commission about its main
activities in accordance with paragraph 6 of Article 17of the Regulation;
20 [CAP. 426. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
(e) carrying out audits or requesting a conformity
assessment body to perform a conformity assessmentof the qualified trust service providers in accordancewith Article 20(2) of the Regulation;
(f) cooperating with the Office of the Information and
Data Protection Commissioner in Malta, in particular,by informing that Office without undue delay, aboutthe results of audits of qualified trust serviceproviders, where personal data protection rules may inthe opinion of the competent regulator have been
breached;
(g) granting qualified status to trust service providers and
to the services they provide and to withdraw this statusin accordance with Articles 20 and 21 of theRegulation;
(h) informing the body responsible for the national trusted
list referred to in Article 22(3) of the Regulation aboutits decisions to grant or to withdraw qualified status:
Provided that such a requirement shall not apply if the
competent regulator also performs the tasks of thebody referred to in this paragraph;
(i) verifying the existence and correct application of
provisions on termination plans in cases where thequalified trust service provider ceases its activitiesincluding how information is kept accessible inaccordance with point (h) of Article 24(2) of theRegulation;
(j) requiring that trust service providers remedy any
failure to fulfil the requirements laid down in theRegulation;
(k) establishing, maintaining and publishing trusted lists
in accordance with Articles 22(1) and 22(2) of theRegulation, and notifying the Commission in relationthereto in accordance with Article 22(3) of theRegulation; and
(l) notifying the Commission in relation to any lists in
accordance with Articles 31(1) and 39(3) of theRegulation.
Non-compliance 
with the Regulation.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.11.23B.  Unless stated otherwise in this Act, where applicable, any
non-compliance with the provisions of this Act or of theRegulation, shall constitute a breach of this Act, and shall betreated accordingly by the competent regulator who shall as itconsiders appropriate take the necessary regulatory measures inaccordance with its powers at law.
Non-compliance 
with the Act and powers of the competent regulator.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.11.23C.  Unless stated otherwise in the Act, a breach of any of the
provisions of the Act shall be subject to any such sanctions as  the
competent regulator is empowered by law to impose.
      
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE [CAP. 426. 21
Offences and 
penalties.
Amended by:
L.N. 426 of 2007.Substituted by:XXXV . 2016.12.24. Any person contravening articles 20, 22 and 23 of the Act,
or Articles 19(2), 20(1), 21(1), 21(3), 23 and 24 of the Regula tion,
shall be guilty of an offence and shall on conviction be liable  to a
fine ( multa ) of not more than two hundred and fifty thousand euro
(€250,000) or to imprisonment not e xceeding two years or to bot h
such fine ( multa ) and imprisonment, and in the case of a continuous
offence to a fine not exceeding two thousand, five hundred euro(€2,500) for each day during which the offence continues:
Provided that where any proceedings are undertaken by the
Commissioner of Police under this sub-article, the Commissionerof Police shall in writing notify the competent regulator of th e
taking of such proceedings and of the final outcome of the same .
Disputes between a 
service provider and a consumer.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.13.24A.  (1) Where a dispute however so described arises between
a service provider and a consumer further to a complaint by aconsumer alleging an infringement of the Act or of the Regulati on
as are enforced by the competent regulator, any party to such adispute may refer the dispute to the competent regulator:
Provided that in making a complaint the consumer must
prima facie  show that he has been affected by the act or omission of
the service provider giving rise to the complaint.
(2) Upon receipt of any reference as aforesaid, or upon
otherwise becoming aware of any such dispute that the competentregulator believes should be investigated, the competent regula tor
shall notify all the parties to the dispute that the matter is being
investigated. In doing so, the competent regulator shall regula te its
own procedure, which procedure shall, as far as is reasonablypossible, be transparent, simple, inexpensive and conducive to a
prompt and fair settlement of the dispute, and shall afford allparties to the dispute reasonable opportunity to make theirsubmissions and to produce any relevant information:
Provided that the competent regulator may decide not to
initiate an investigation in accordance with this article where  it is
satisfied that other means of resolving the dispute in a timelymanner are available to the parties, or if legal proceedings inrelation to the dispute have been initiated by any party to thedispute, or if another public authority is already investigatin g the
same dispute.
(3) The competent regulator in resolving any disputes referred
to it under this article, may issue directives to the service p rovider
requiring that service provider to comply with any measure thecompetent regulator may specify for the resolution of the dispu te.
Such directives may, having regard to its determination of thedispute and to all other relevant matters, include an order to effect
the reimbursement of payments received or to make compensationpayments. Such payments may also include the whole or part of t he
costs of any party relating to the engagement of a lawyer and, or of
a technical adviser in relation to any submissions relating to the
dispute.
(4) The competent regulator shall make publicly available any
administrative procedures it may from time to time establish inrelation to the handling of any disputes referred to it under t his
22 [CAP. 426. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
article.
(5) The provisions of this article shall be without prejudice to
the right of the consumer to have recourse, in accordance withMaltese law, to any other body empowered to resolve any suchdisputes and, or to any out-of-court dispute resolution process es,
however so described.
(6) In issuing a decision under this article the competent
regulator shall state the reasons on which it is based, and sha ll,
subject to such requirements of commercial confidentiality as i t
may deem appropriate, notify the parties to the dispute with a copy
of the decision.
(7) The competent regulator shall publish notice of a decision
given under this article and shall state from where copies of, or
information regarding the decision, may be obtained.
Issue of a 
compliance order.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.13.24B.  (1) Where the competent regulator feels it is reasonably
appropriate or necessary for the protection of consumers, it ma y, of
its own initiative or on a written application to it by a quali fied
entity, issue a compliance order against a service provider or any
other person for one or more of the following purposes:
(a) requiring any person to take any measures specified in
the compliance order, within the time specified in theorder to ensure that the provisions of the Act and, or ofthe Regulation are complied with; or
(b) requiring any person to cease and desist from
committing a breach of the Act and, or of theRegulation.
(2) The competent regulator shall when issuing a compliance
order under this article:
(a) notify a copy of the compliance order on each person
against whom the order is made;
(b) include with the compliance order, information about
the right to contest the order before the Tribunal; and
(c) briefly state the reasons for issuing the compliance
order, which reasons shall be notified to each personagainst whom the order is issued and, if any, to thequalifying body on whose application the order isissued.
(3) No precautionary warrant or other similar order under this
or any other law shall be issued by the Tribunal or by any cour t
restraining or restricting the competent regulator from issuing  a
compliance order under this Act.
(4) A compliance order issued by the competent regulator shall
come into force with immediate effect, unless the order provide s
otherwise.
Application for the 
issue of a compliance order.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.13.24C.  (1) Where a qualified entity wishes to seek a compliance
order, it shall submit a written application to the competentregulator whereby it must satisfy the competent regulator that it
tried to achieve the cessation of the infringement in consultat ion
      
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE [CAP. 426. 23
with either the party against whom the order is being sought or  with
both such a party and another qualified entity of the Member St ate
in which the order or a similar injunction is being sought:
Provided that the competent regulator shall only consider a
written application if the qualified entity shows to the satisf action
of the competent regulator that the cessation of the infringeme nt
was not achieved within twenty days after the request forconsultation was received.
(2) Where the qualified entity is from another Member State,
the competent regulator shall treat the list of qualified entit ies
published by the Commission as conclusive proof of the legalcapacity of the legal entity to present such written applicatio n in
Malta.
(3) The competent regulator shall, at the request of a qualified
entity from Malta, communicate to the Commission the name andobjects of such an entity and that such qualified entity should  be
added to the list of qualified entities so as to facilitate the  redress of
infringements which occur in other Member States.
(4) Before proceeding with the issue of a compliance order
under article 24B, the competent regulator shall, if it conside rs it to
be possible and reasonable to do so, seek first to achieve volu ntary
compliance by the service provide r and other persons involved, in
accordance with the Act and, or the Regulation or any other lawdealing with consumer protection.
Discretion of the 
competent regulator to issue a compliance order.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.13.24D.  (1) It shall be at the discretion of the competent regulator
whether or not to issue a compliance order after a written requ est
by a qualified entity has been made to it in terms of article 2 4B.
(2) If the competent regulator decides not to issue a compliance
order after an application has been made to it by a qualified e ntity,
the competent regulator shall, within two days from the date of  its
decision not to issue an order as sought, notify in writing thequalified entity and the persons against whom the compliance or der
is sought, with its decision stating the reasons thereof.
(3) A qualified entity may within twenty days from when it
notifies the competent regulator in writing with a request for the
issue of a compliance order, apply to the Tribunal requesting t he
Tribunal to order the competent regulator to issue a compliance
order under article 24B. The person against whom the order isrequested and the competent regulator shall be parties to theproceedings before the Tribunal, and it shall be the duty of th e
qualified entity to notify such other parties accordingly.
Appeals from a 
compliance order.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.13.24E.  (1) A person against whom a compliance order has been
made, may, within twenty days from receipt of notification of t he
compliance order, appeal in writing to the Tribunal for therevocation or amendment of the compliance order, giving detaile d
grounds for the request. The competent regulator and whereappropriate any qualifying entity that may have requested the i ssue
of the compliance order, shall be notified with the appeal and shall
have twenty days from the date when they are notified with theappeal in which to reply.
24 [CAP. 426. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
(2) The Tribunal may confirm, change or cancel the
compliance order as it considers appropriate, provided that in doing
so the Tribunal shall in all instances state its reasons.
(3) Where an appeal is instituted under this article the
compliance order shall remain in force unless the Tribunal, at the
request of the party contesting the order, specifically orders that the
compliance order shall be suspended pending the outcome of theappeal, subject to such conditio ns and amendments to the order as
the Tribunal may determine:
Provided that in deciding any such request for a suspension
of the compliance order, the Tribunal shall give its reason in
writing for its decision.#
Cases to be heard 
and determined with urgency.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.13.24F.  (1) Appeals instituted under articles 24D and 24E shall
be heard and determined by the Tribunal with urgency and asexpeditiously as possible.
(2) The Tribunal, at the request of any of the parties to the
proceedings before it, may abridge any time limits establishedunder this Act in relation to the conduct of the appeal before it:
Provided that in doing so the Tribunal shall state its reasons
in writing.
No need to prove 
actual loss.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.13.24G.  The competent regulator when issuing a compliance order
under the Act shall not be required to prove:
(a) actual loss or damage; or
(b) actual recklessness, negligence or fault on the part of
the service provider or person against whom the orderis made.
Taking of other 
measures to ensure compliance.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.13.24H.  (1) Without prejudice to any other powers it has at law, the
competent regulator may, in writing, order any person to cease and
desist from committing any cross-border infringement and, or fr om
acting in breach of any of the provisions of the Act, and, or o f the
Regulation.
(2) The competent regulator may, in issuing an order under
sub-article (1) require the person concerned to provide it with  a
written undertaking whereby that person agrees to cease and des ist
from any such breach and which undertaking shall include anyconditions as the competent regulator may consider necessary inthe circumstances.
(3) A person who makes an undertaking in accordance with this
article and who subsequently acts in breach of any conditions s tated
in the undertaking, shall be liable to the imposition of anadministrative fine by the competent regulator not exceeding th e
sum of twenty-five thousand euro (€25,000) and, or five hundredeuro (€500) for each day during which the failure to comply wit h
the undertaking persists:
Provided that the imposition of a fine under this sub-article
shall be without prejudice to any other sanctions however sodescribed that the competent regulator may impose at law.
      
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE [CAP. 426. 25
Competent 
regulator may require publication.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.13.24I.  (1) The competent regulator may, for the better
information of the public, require the service provider or pers on
against whom the compliance order has been issued, at the expen se
of the latter to communicate in any manner the competent regula tor
considers appropriate, including publication in at least two da ily
newspapers:
(a) a copy in full or in part -
(i) of a compliance order made under article 24B;
and, or
(ii) a copy of an undertaking given under article 24H
or an abstract of any such order and, or of anysuch undertaking; and, or
(b) a corrective statement in relation to any contravention
of the Act and, or of the Regulation.
(2) Any communications required in terms of sub-article (1)
must be made within seven days from receipt of a notice issued by
the competent regulator requiring the service provider or perso n
concerned to make any such communications. Where the saidcommunications are not effected as aforesaid, the competentregulator may proceed to issue the communications itself and an y
expenses incurred by the competent regulator in issuing anycommunications made by it in accordance with the provisions ofthis article shall be recoverable as a civil debt from the pers on
against whom the compliance order was issued.
Right of appeal.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.13.24J.  Any person aggrieved by a decision however so described
taken by the competent regulator in accordance with the Act andhaving a legal interest to contest such a decision, may appeal to the
Tribunal:
Provided that in the case of a contestation of any matter
relating to the issue of a compliance order as provided for in this
Act, the procedures as stated in articles 24D and 24E shall app ly.
Consultation with 
and by other enforcement authorities.
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.13.24K.  (1) The competent regulator may request the advice of
and where appropriate shall consult with any other enforcementauthority in the exercise of any  of its functions under the Act  and,
or the Regulation.
(2) In acting in accordance with any of the provisions of this
Act, an enforcement authority shall, in all instances, first co nsult
and act in co-ordination with the competent regulator.
Power to make 
regulations.
Amended by:
VII. 2004.51;XIII. 2005.75;L.N. 426 of 2007;XXXV . 2016.3, 14.25. (1) The Minister may make regulations to provide for any
matter related to electronic commerce however so described,electronic identification, trust services, electronic transacti ons, and
any such other matters as may be complementary or related there to,
in order to give fuller effect to the provisions of this Act, a nd in
particular, but without prejudice to the generality of the afor esaid,
such regulations may provide for -
(a) any derogation from or restriction in relation to any
cross-border transaction where this is necessary forone of the following reasons -
26 [CAP. 426. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
(i) public policy, in particular the protection of
minors, or the fight against any incitement tohatred on grounds of race, sex, religion, politicalopinion or nationality;
(ii) the protection of public health;
(iii) public security;(iv) consumer protection;
(b) identifying:
(i) transactions;
(ii) requirements or permissions to give information
in writing;
(iii) requirements or permissions to produce
documents;
(iv) requirements to retain information, documents
and communications;
(v) trust services;
that may be exempt from any provision of this Act;
(c)(Deleted by Act XXXV . 2016.14 .);
(d)(Deleted by Act XXXV . 2016.14 .);
(e) any matter relating to commercial communications,
including, but not limited to matters relating to:-
(i) information to be provided in commercial
communications;
(ii) unsolicited commercial communications;
(iii) commercial communications by regulated
professions;
(f) the authorisation to the competent regulator to impose
administrative fines or sanctions on any person actingin contravention of any provision of this Act or of anyregulation made thereunder:
Provided that -
(i) any administrative fine provided for by
regulations made under this article shall notexceed tthe amount of twenty-five thousand euro(€25,000) for each offence and two thousand andfive hundred euro (€2,500) for each day duringwhich failure to observe the provisions of this
Act or of any regulation made thereunder
persists;
(ii) administrative fines stipulated in paragraph (i)
of this proviso may be increased by regulationup to a maximum of one hundred and twenty-five thousand euro (€125,000) and twelvethousand and five hundred euro (€12,500) foreach day during which any contraventionpersists, respectively;
      
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE [CAP. 426. 27
Cap. 12.(iii) regulations made under this paragraph may
prescribe that any such administrative penalty orsanction shall be due to the competent regulatoras a civil debt constituting an executive title forthe purposes of Title VII of Part I of BookSecond of the 
Code of Organization and Civil
Procedure  as if the payment of the amount of the
fine had been ordered by a judgement of a courtof civil jurisdiction;
(iv) such regulations may also prescribe any right of
appeal from decisions of the competent regulatorto impose an administrative sanction;
(g) procedures to be established for out of court schemes,
for the settlement of disputes arising in relation toinformation society services including appropriateelectronic measures;
(h) the compliance with any international obligation
entered into by Government in relation to any aspectof electronic commerce regulated by or under this Act;
(i) the definition of requirements and procedures for the
designation of appropriate public or private bodiesauthorised to assess the conformity of qualifiedelectronic signature creation devices and qualifiedelectronic seal creation devices with the requirementsof the Regulation, as well as the designation itself of
such bodies; and
(j) any fees and, or charges, however so described, that
may be payable in relation to any matters regulated byor under this Act or by or under the Regulation.
(2) The Minister may also by regulations amend the Schedules
to this Act and prescribe anything that may or is required to b e
prescribed under this Act.
English text to 
prevail.26. In the case of conflict between the Maltese and English
texts of this Act, the English text shall prevail.
28 [CAP. 426. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
(a) the name and address where the service provider is establish ed;
(b) the electronic-mail address where the service provider can b e contracted in a
direct manner;
(c) the registration number of the service provider in any trade  register or of any
professional body if applicable;
(d) where the activity of the service provider is subject to an authorisation, the
activities covered by the authorisation granted to the service provider and the
particulars of the authority providing such authorisation;
(e) the Value Added Tax (V AT) registration number of the service  provider where
the service provider undertakes an activity that is subject to VAT;
(f) the different steps to follow to conclude the contract;(g) the technical means for identifying and correcting input err ors prior to the
placing of the order;
(h) the language or languages in which the contract may be concl uded;
(i) a statement of whether the concluded contract will be filed by the service
provider and whether it will be accessible;
(j) in relation to a regulated profession:
- any professional body or similar institution with which the se rvice
provider is registered,
- the professional title and the Member State where it has been granted,
and
- a reference to the applicable professional rules in the Member  State of
establishment and the means to access them.
SECOND SCHEDULE
(Article 2)
Requirements for Qualified Certificates
(Deleted by Act XXXV . 2016.17. ).Amended by:
VII. 2004.52;XXX. 2007.52;XXXV . 2016.16.FIRST SCHEDULE
(Article 11)
Information Requirements
Relating to Electronic Contracts
      
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE [CAP. 426. 29
THIRD SCHEDULE
(Article 2)
Requirements for Signature Certification Service 
Providers Issuing Qualified Certificates
(Deleted by Act XXXV . 2016.17. ).
FOURTH SCHEDULE
(Article 2)
Requirements for Secure Signature-Creation Devices
(Deleted by Act XXXV . 2016.17. ).
(a) the field of taxation;
(b) matters in relation to information society services covered by any laws
relating to data protection including the Data Protection Act, the Processing of
Personal Data (Electronic Communications Sector) Regulations and the Electronic
Communications (Personal Data and Protection of Privacy) Regula tions ;
(c) questions in relation to agreements or practices governed by  competition
law;
(d) the following activities of information society services:
(i) the activities of notaries or equivalent professions to the extent that they
involve a direct and specific connection with the exercise of p ublic
authority,
(ii) the representation of a client and defence of his interests  before the
courts,
(iii) gambling activities which involve wagering a stake with mo netary value
in games of chance, including lotteries and betting transaction s;
(e) contracts that create or transfer rights over immovable prop erty other than
leasing rights;
(f) contracts of suretyship granted and on collateral security f urnished by
persons acting for purposes outside their trade, business or pr ofession;
(g) the law governing the creation, execution, amendment, variat ion orFIFTH SCHEDULE Added by:
VII. 2004.53.
Amended by:
XXX. 2007.55.(Article 4)
Activities or areas listed in accordance with article 4
30 [CAP. 426. ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
revocation of:
(i) a will or any other testamentary instrument;
(ii) a trust; or(iii) a power of attorney;
(h) any law governing the making of an affidavit or a solemn dec laration, or
requiring or permitting the use of one for any purpose;
(i) the rules, practices or procedures of a court or tribunal ho wever so
described;
(j) any law relating to the giving of evidence in criminal proce edings;
(k) any contracts governed by family law.
In accordance with the provisions of article 2 within the conte xt of the definition
"competent regulator", the following public authority is being designated as the
competent regulator for all the purposes of the Act and of the Regulation:
The Malta Communications Authority:
Provided that unless stated otherwise in the Malta Communicatio ns Authority Act
(Cap. 418), the provisions of Part VI entitled "Enforcement and  Sanctions" of that
Act shall apply in relation to the exercise by the Malta Commun ications Authority of
any of its regulatory functions as the competent regulator, in particular where the
Malta Communications Authority as the competent regulator consi ders that a breach
of the Act or of the Regulation may be liable to the imposition  of a sanction as
provided for in article 31 of the Malta Communications Authorit y Act (Cap. 418).
1. To the extent that the following national laws implement the Directives
referred to in the Annex to the Electronic Commerce Directive n amely:
(a) the Copyright Act (Cap. 415), and the Patents and Designs Ac t (Cap.
417) insofar as these laws relate to copyright, neighbouring ri ghts,
rights referred to in Directive 87/54/EEC and Directive 96/9/EC  as well
as industrial property rights;Added by:
XXXV . 2016.18.SIXTH SCHEDULE
(Article 2)
Designation of competent regulator in accordance 
with article 2
Added by:
XXXV . 2016.18.SEVENTH SCHEDULE
(Article 8A)
Fields excluded in accordance with article 8A(4)
      
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE [CAP. 426. 31
(b) article 5 of the Banking Act (Cap. 371) insofar as it relate s to the
emission of electronic money by institutions in respect of whic h
Member States applied one of the derogations provided for in ar ticle
8(1) of Directive 2000/46/EC;
(c) the Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable S ecurities
and Management Companies Regulations (S.L. 370.11);
(d) the European Passport Rights for Insurance and Reinsurance
Undertakings Regulations (S.L. 403.14).
2. The freedom of the parties to a contract to choose the applic able law.
3. Contractual obligations concerning consumer contracts.4. Formal validity of contracts creating or transferring rights in real estate
where such contracts are subject to mandatory formal requiremen ts of the law of the
Member State where the real estate is situated.
5. The permissibility of unsolicited commercial communications b y electronic
mail.