RIYADH — The Ministry of Commerce warned against using various ploys for the promotion of goods through social media. Any violations of the provisions of the E-Commerce Law and its executive regulations will be dealt with sternly and the violators will be slapped with fines up to SR1 million in addition to shutting down the erring websites, the ministry sources told Okaz/Saudi Gazette.

The ministry sources noted that it monitored various types of advertisements appearing on social media platforms. Some of these advertisers are misusing the phrase “This is not an advertisement” to promote some goods and some social media celebrities appear in such advertisements.

The ministry sources said that it has monitored such advertisements on social media platforms and that it is verifying whether they are in violation of the provisions of the E-Commerce Law and its executive regulations. The ministry said that it is communicating with the advertised commercial establishments in order to verify whether these ad materials are related to their advertising products or not.

The ministry sources stated that the E-Commerce Law and its executive regulations stipulate that it is necessary to include in the e-commercial advertisement a statement explaining that the material is an advertisement.

The sources noted that the E-commerce Law prohibits the inclusion in an e-advertisement any false display, statement, or claim or any phrases that lead directly or indirectly to deceiving or misleading the consumer. It is also prohibited to include the e-advertisement, any logo or trademark, which the e-service provider does not have the right to use, or include counterfeit marks.

If the e-service provider does not abide by this in contrary to the requirements of the law, then the ministry shall compel him to remove the violation or withdraw the e-advertisement within one day from the date of reporting the violation.

The ministry sources said that it would refer violators to a committee to look into violations of the E-Commerce Law, through which it issues fines of up to SR1 million, in addition to blocking the websites, and preventing them from practicing their activities in the future.

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