SINGAPORE – Amazon, Lazada and Qoo10 have been given the highest anti-scam safety ratings, but Facebook Marketplace has been rated the lowest, in a new rating system that was launched on Saturday (May 14).
The e-commerce marketplace Transaction Safety Ratings (TSR), launched by the Inter-Ministry Committee on Scams, rates the platforms’ anti-scam measures.
The committee was formed in April 2020 to combat scams, and brings together government agencies such as the Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Communications and Information, Monetary Authority of Singapore, and the Ministry of Trade and Industry.
Amazon, Lazada and Qoo10 were each given the maximum rating of four ticks, while Shopee and Carousell received three and two ticks respectively.
Facebook Marketplace received the minimum of one tick.
The six platforms are the first to be involved in the ratings, which will be released annually in April.
The committee also launched the revised Technical Reference 76 (TR 76) on Guidelines for Electronic Commerce Transactions, which provides guidelines to better secure e-commerce transactions.
Minister of State for Home Affairs and Sustainability and the Environment Desmond Tan, who is chairman of the committee, said the new rating system would make the e-commerce environment safer and reduce scams.
“Scams are something that we are watching closely, and are a concern for us,” he added.
“Essentially, the TSR is a rating system to inform consumers on what are the measures they have to look out for in transacting online, and when buying goods online. And at the same time, we also give them the information about the existing e-commerce platforms, and what are the measures they have in place to secure the transactions online.”
Ms Rose Tong, executive director of the Singapore Retailers Association, which was involved in the revision of TR 76, said the ratings helped both consumers and retailers.
She added: “With the ratings and all these features put in place, it also gives the retailers greater assurance that they’re actually on a platform where the consumers themselves would be very assured that they probably won’t be scammed, and it actually also resonates and commensurate with the branding of the various retailers on the marketplace.”
