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The spread of the Internet and Internet-based e-commerce are rapidly changing the paradigm for economic activities of nations and enterprises. The global economy is fast being converted into an e-commerce system, and the size of e-commerce is expected to exceed $7 trillion in 2004, as compared with $430 billion in 2000. E-commerce is expanding in Korea as the number of Internet users increases due to the rise in the distribution of computers and the rapid development of information technology (Awad, 2003:31). Currently, the Korea's e-commerce market is faced with several issues and impedements.
The Korea Information Security Agency states that it received 12,329 complaints on privacy infringement through November 2001, which is roughly a 530% increase over the previous year. Based on that figure, 18,000 to 20,000 complaints on privacy infringement are expected in 2002 (Bae, 2005).
Damage, infringement, and misusage of private information by other persons were the primary types of privacy infringement reported in 2000, followed by reception of unwanted information, non-compliance with requests for private information queries, requests for changes or deletion, and collection of private information without consent from users. Resolution of complaints was the most frequent response to complaints followed by self-correction and reconciliation between related parties (Bae, 2005).
Consumer protection entails establishment of fair competition/trade practices, protection of consumer rights, and resolution of e-commerce related disputes. In the area of fair competition and trading practices, major issues include dissemination of false and/or exaggerated advertisements and information via the Internet, disputes related to domain name usage, network fraud, and unfair competition arising from other unfair collective actions. In consumer rights protection, major concerns are protecting consumer rights in online purchasing, eradication of unfair trade practices, preventing harm to consumers, and protection of privacy. Lastly, in the area of dispute resolution, major concerns include conflicts between jurisdictions and overlapping applicable laws and identifying alternatives to legal action for effective dispute resolution (Bae, 2005).
The Basic Act on e-Commerce and the Electronic Signature Act are the two laws related to security and certification in Korea. The Basic Act on e-Commerce gives e-documents the same legal force as written documents. The law was formulated to improve the viability of e-commerce, protect consumers, and to help implement government policies for promoting electronic commerce. The Electronic Signature Act was passed in February 1999 as a means to ensure the identity of the other party in remote communications in non face-to-face situations and to guarantee the integrity and authenticity of electronically signed documents. Both the Basic Act on e-Commerce and the Electronic Signature Act came into effect on July 1, 1999 (Bae, 2005).
The growth of e-commerce is also giving rise to related problems. Korea possesses the basic requisite conditions to foster a thriving e-commerce such as an advanced IT infrastructure, rising investments in e-commerce led by large companies, and robust growth of the e-commerce market. However, despite the fact that external indices are showing rapid growth, e-business implementation by the business sector as the new engine for growth in the digital age is still lagging behind advanced countries. The reasons the government cites for the delay in the proliferation of e-commerce include lack of collaboration among businesses; uncertainties about the outcome; insufficient investment resources among small- and medium-sized companies; lack of corporate innovation and sincere pursuit of nontransparent business practices; lack of standardization; shortage of trained manpower; and the absence of a standardized payment system (Bae, 2005)
If everyone work together towards a better economy in Korea, e-commerce will bring numerous benefits to the Korean economy.
1. Awad, E. M. (2003) Electronic Commerce: from vision to fulfillment, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, ISBN 013140265X.
2. Kim Sang, Bae (2005) Korea’s e-commerce: Present and Future, Asia-Pacific Review, Vol. 8, No. 1, 2001
Yipshinyi 12:00, 28 Oct 2005 (EST)
