“When posting opinions and feelings about the results of using cosmetics, health protection foods, and dietary supplements on social networks, influencers must be people who have directly used the products,” Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Nguyen Van Hung said at the National Assembly meeting to listen to the presentation and review the draft Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Advertising on November 8.
I agree with Minister Nguyen Van Hung's opinion that the purpose of advertising must be honest and protect the rights of consumers. To do so, we must require the obligations and responsibilities of those who deliver the advertisement, especially famous people who have influence on the community and the public.
However, the law needs to be clear and define the subject. In this case, it is necessary to clarify the concept of an advertising carrier as an "influencer", and how it is different from a normal advertising carrier.
Another point to determine, the influencer must be someone who has directly used the product. How do you know, if the person delivering the advertisement does not use the product, but they say they have used it, who knows.
Even if the influencer has used the product, how much time does it take to evaluate whether the product is of good quality or poor quality? For example, to evaluate the quality of a functional food, it takes time, not just using it will be effective immediately.
Third, the effectiveness of a cosmetic or dietary supplement depends on the individual’s constitution and physical condition. Therefore, confirming the quality of a product based on a famous person using it does not guarantee that the product is of good quality.
Finally, in the case where the influencer has used the advertised product, does not trust the product quality, but because of money they still inform that the product is good. So, is there any way to determine this deceptive behavior and what sanctions are there?
Legal regulations cannot be based on feelings and emotions, and cannot be understood in many different ways. If the law is qualitative, it cannot be applied to life.
