New rules for online shopping begin on August 1

New regulations aimed at protecting consumers who shop online will begin to be implemented as of August 1. Within the scope of the regulation, new rules will come into effect in many areas, from discount sales to social media advertisements, and from AI-supported content to consumer reviews.

Hakan Çevikoğlu, President of the Electronic Commerce Operators Association, stated that campaign advertisements offering discounts or different advantages will also be subject to the rules applied to discount sales advertisements.

THE LAST 10 DAYS WILL BE TAKEN AS THE BASIS FOR DISCOUNT CALCULATIONS

According to information reported by the Türkiye newspaper, the price to be used for comparison in discount sales will be the lowest price applied in the 10 days prior to the campaign. The regulation aims to prevent product prices from being raised first and then shown as if they were discounted.

"ADVERTISEMENT" LABEL MANDATORY IN SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS

Social media content creators will be required to clearly use the terms "advertisement" or "promotion" in posts they make in exchange for payment, free products, services, or event participation.

AI-GENERATED ADVERTISEMENTS MUST BE IDENTIFIED

In advertisements where digital characters that are difficult to distinguish from real people are created with artificial intelligence, this situation will need to be stated clearly and understandably.

With the regulation, the scope of bans on advertisements regarding services offered by fortune tellers, mediums, and astrologers, as well as the promotion of illegal betting, gambling, and games of chance, will also be expanded.

TIME LIMIT REDUCED FOR CONSUMER REVIEWS

The response time granted to sellers or service providers before consumer complaints are published has also been changed. The current 72-hour period will be reduced to 48 hours. If no response is provided within this period, consumer reviews can be published directly.