Republic of Korea: Adopted revised FTC Guidelines on Consumer Protection in e-commerce on greenwashing

On 31 August 2023, the Korean Fair Trade Commission (FTC) announced revisions and enforcement of guidelines related to environmental labeling and advertising, as well as consumer protection in electronic commerce (e-commerce). The revised Guidelines aim to address issues of "greenwashing," which involves misleading or exaggerated environmental claims in marketing and advertising. In addition, the revisions are designed to enhance law enforcement consistency and protect consumers from deceptive practices. The Guidelines remind businesses to be more diligent in making marketing claims with environmental or ecological implications and to ensure that they align with the guidelines to prevent greenwashing. In this context, the Guidelines provide examples of advertising claims that it considers to be deceptive and greenwashing. The revised Guidelines enter into force on 1 September 2023.