The Inform Act Has Officially Gone Into Effect — Here’s What That Means — Retail Bum

The Inform Consumers Act, which aims to address retailers’ concerns surrounding the rise in organized theft, officially became effective on Tuesday, June 27, 2023.

The law seeks to discourage bad actors from operating on online marketplaces and engaging in sales of stolen, counterfeit, or hazardous products by mandating platforms like Amazon and eBay to verify and exchange information on third-party sellers who engage in a significant number of transactions on their platforms.

The Federal Trade Commission, in collaboration with state attorneys general, will be responsible for enforcing the law. If companies are found to be non-compliant, they could see fines exceeding $50,000 per violation.

“The Act also makes sure online marketplace users have a way to report suspicious conduct concerning high-volume third-party sellers,” says the Federal Trade Commission on its website.

After being introduced by Representatives Jan Schakowsky (D-Illinois) and Gus Bilirakis (R-Florida), the bipartisan legislation named the Integrity, Notification, and Fairness in Online Retail Marketplaces (INFORM) Act, was eventually passed in December as part of a comprehensive spending bill. The bill’s approval came more than a year after its initial…