Sally Sara: Millions of Australians are expected to shop for bargains today as Black Friday sales get underway. But an ABC News Verify investigation has identified 57 online shopping websites engaging in deceptive and misleading conduct, pretending to be Australian businesses when they are instead international import operations. The websites advertise heavily on Facebook and Instagram. Consumer Group Choice and the ACCC are calling on social media giants to do more, to check the identities of their advertisers and crack down on dishonest behaviour. Matt Martino reports.
Matt Martino: With names like Vogue Melbourne, Sydney Starlista and Beaumont Gold Coast, customers might think they're shopping locally. But these are just three of 57 online shopping websites identified by ABC News Verify, set up to look like boutique Australian online fashion businesses. Rosie Thomas is the director of campaigns at Consumer Watchdog Choice.
Rosie Thomas: They've identified that there are certain cohorts of consumers in Australia who really value and will pay to support a locally owned small business.
Matt Martino: When ABC News Verify dug a little deeper into these online stores, it became clear they are mass-produced digital stores, selling cheap and often poor quality products imported directly from Asia. The stores have a strong and seemingly unchecked presence on Meta's social media platforms, Facebook and Instagram, with pages and ads funnelling shoppers straight to these websites.
Rosie Thomas: We think at a minimum, Meta should be verifying the identities of the businesses that it's taking money from to advertise on their platforms.
Matt Martino: Online shoppers who fork out for unsatisfactory purchases are often left with little practical recourse for international returns or exchanges, and are often hundreds of dollars out of pocket. In a statement, Meta said it was investigating the pages flagged by ABC News Verify, saying...
Meta: Meta doesn't want scams on our platforms, and we are continuing to invest in tools and technology to prevent them. The safety of our users is of utmost importance, and we continue to work with industry, the government and law enforcement to protect Australians from scams.
Matt Martino: Catriona Lowe, the deputy chair of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, says all customers shopping online in Australia, even the businesses who turn out to be based overseas, have rights.
Catriona Lowe: So if consumers do feel that they've been misled by this conduct, we encourage them to get in contact either with our info centre or with their state and territory fair trading agencies.
Matt Martino: And with Black Friday sales well underway and Christmas shopping around the corner, the ACCC has this advice for people buying online.
Catriona Lowe: Be wary of websites that you're not familiar with, including if you might have received adverts about them on social media. A really good thing to do is to check online forums and review sites, because often you might find that other consumers will be talking about the experience that they've had, whether that's a positive or a negative.
Sally Sara: That's Catriona Lowe, deputy chair of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, ending that report from Matt Martino.