The State Internet Information Office and the State Administration for Market Regulation jointly issued the "Regulations on Internet Evaluation Activities."

Recently, the Cyberspace Administration of China and the State Administration for Market Regulation jointly issued the "Regulations on Internet Evaluation Activities" (hereinafter referred to as the "Regulations"). A relevant official from the Cyberspace Administration stated that the purpose of the "Regulations" is to standardize internet evaluation activities, maintain fair market competition order, and protect the legitimate rights and interests of citizens, legal persons, and other organizations. In recent years, internet evaluation has rapidly gained popularity, with evaluation entities conducting tests, comparative analysis of data, referencing professional testing results, or expressing user experiences to provide consumers with reference for shopping. However, some internet evaluations have problems such as exaggerated promotion, evaluation without testing, and integration of testing and marketing, which not only affect consumer trust and shopping experience but also disrupt the market environment. The introduction of the "Regulations" is necessary to promote the healthy development of internet evaluation activities, optimize the business environment, and protect the legitimate rights and interests of enterprises. The "Regulations" stipulate that entities engaging in internet evaluation activities should comply with laws, regulations, and relevant national provisions, follow business ethics, public order, and good customs, and adhere to the principles of objectivity, fairness, comprehensiveness, and accuracy. The "Regulations" require that entities engaging in internet evaluation activities, involving testing of product functions, performance, etc., should commission testing institutions with legal testing qualifications to conduct tests according to relevant standards and technical specifications. For food testing, the testing party should have the corresponding qualifications, not use non-standard methods, and not evaluate items without national standard testing methods. The "Regulations" also require that if a product has not been tested, evaluations based solely on subjective feelings should be clearly indicated. Website platforms should strengthen the management of internet evaluation information content and promptly handle related complaints and reports. A relevant official from the Cyberspace Administration stated that internet evaluation activities should adhere to the requirements of the "Regulations," regulate their own behavior, maintain fair competition market order and the legitimate rights and interests of third parties, and uphold a clear online space. In the next step, the cyberspace and market supervision departments will strengthen the supervision of internet evaluation activities and enforce laws against illegal activities. Regulations on Internet Evaluation Activities In order to standardize internet evaluation activities, maintain fair competition in the market, and protect the legitimate rights and interests of citizens, legal persons, and other organizations, this regulation is formulated based on the laws and regulations such as the Cybersecurity Law of the People's Republic of China, the E-Commerce Law of the People's Republic of China, and the Anti-Unfair Competition Law of the People's Republic of China. I. Internet evaluation activities referred to in this regulation are behaviors of evaluation entities that evaluate product quality, functions, cost-effectiveness, etc., through testing, comparative analysis of data, referencing professional testing results, or expressing user experiences and publish the testing process and evaluation results online in the form of pictures, videos, live streams, etc. Submissions by consumers of specific products for the purpose of sharing consumer experience information do not fall within the scope of internet evaluation activities as referred to in this regulation. The testing mentioned in the regulation refers to the use of technical conditions, equipment, environmental facilities, professional skills to conduct measurement experiments on products. If relevant laws, regulations, and departmental rules have other provisions on the qualifications and capabilities of entities conducting testing, those provisions shall apply. II. Entities engaged in internet evaluation activities should comply with laws, regulations, and relevant national provisions, follow business ethics, public order, and good customs, adhere to the principles of objectivity, fairness, comprehensiveness, and accuracy, maintain fair competition in the market, and uphold the legitimate rights and interests of third parties while also maintaining a clear online space. III. Samples selected for internet evaluation should be ordinary goods that consumers can purchase from the market and whose sources are traceable, not special items prepared for evaluation activities. Entities engaged in internet evaluation activities that accept third-party commissions, sponsorships, or have an interest relationship with the relevant parties of the evaluation samples should make significant disclosures. IV. Entities engaged in internet evaluation activities that involve testing of product functions, performance, etc., should commission testing institutions with legal testing qualifications to conduct tests according to relevant standards and technical specifications, and clearly indicate the standards and technical specifications on which the tests are based. Testing samples, data, images, videos, etc., should be saved according to regulations to ensure that the testing data and results are traceable. If the country has mandatory regulations on the standards and technical specifications for the tests, these regulations should be followed. For related testing projects that already have national standards or industry standards, national standards or industry standards should be prioritized. If other standards or non-standard methods are needed for testing, differences with national standards or industry standards should be explained; if non-standard methods are used, methodological verification should be conducted in advance. For food testing, the testing party should have the corresponding qualifications, not use non-standard methods, and not evaluate items without national standard testing methods. V. If a product has not been tested and evaluations are based solely on perception, observation, experience, etc., subjective feelings, this should be clearly indicated, and during the information display process, it should be prominently marked as "for personal experience only" or "subjective feelings, for reference only." VI. Entities engaged in internet evaluation activities should not conduct horizontal or vertical comparisons of similar products using different standards or methods, selectively quote information from testing reports out of context, elevate the reputation of evaluation samples by disparaging other products, use insulting language, provide false descriptions of products, or maliciously defame products. VII. Except in cases where advertising is prohibited by laws and regulations, those who promote goods or services through internet evaluation or other forms and attach purchase links or other buying methods in the evaluation contents should prominently mark it as "advertising." VIII. Organizations or individuals engaged in internet evaluation activities should verify the qualifications and authenticity of testing institutions related to evaluation activities, testing reports, etc., and should not commission testing institutions without the necessary qualifications or display or reference fake qualification certificates or testing reports. IX. Entities engaged in internet evaluation activities should voluntarily accept government supervision, social supervision, promptly and properly handle complaints and reports. False or inaccurate information already published should be promptly deleted to mitigate any negative impact. X. Website platforms should strictly implement laws and regulations and the requirements of these regulations, strengthen the management of internet evaluation information content, increase efforts to deal with illegal and irregular information, and promptly handle complaints and reports of infringements in internet evaluations. XI. The cyberspace department and the market supervision and administration department should strengthen the supervision and management of internet evaluation activities according to their responsibilities and establish a sound mechanism for transferring clues, sharing information, and conducting consultations. XII. Internet evaluation activities that violate laws and regulations or the requirements of these regulations should be dealt with by the cyberspace department and the market supervision and administration department according to their responsibilities. If suspected of a crime, they shall be transferred to judicial authorities for processing. This article is a reprint from the "Cyberspace China" WeChat official account; GMTEight Editor: Li Fo.