Dishonest Tiktok and Instagram influencers face ACCC crackdown

Dishonest TikTok and Instagram influencers are facing a crackdown from the National Consumer Protection Agency.

Australia’s Competition and Consumer Commission has begun investigating more than 100 influencers in response to more than 150 tips from consumers. The Flash comes after celebrity influencer Kim Kardashian was fined $1 million (almost $1.5 million) in the United States for failing to disclose that her $250,000 was paid for the promotion were paid in a cryptocurrency.

ACCC chairwoman Gina Cass-Gottlieb said most of the leads are about beauty, lifestyle, parenting and fashion influencers who have not disclosed their affiliation with the product or company they are promoting.

“The number of leads reflects the community’s concern about the ever-growing number of manipulative marketing techniques on social media designed to take advantage of consumers or coerce them into purchasing goods or services,” she said.

“We have already heard that some law firms and industry bodies have notified their clients of the ACCC’s action and reminded them of their advertising disclosure requirements.”

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The sweep, which will run in the coming weeks, aims to identify deceptive marketing practices across the digital economy.

The ACCC will review social media platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, YouTube and Facebook, as well as the live streaming service Twitch. The sweep will target fashion, beauty and cosmetics, food and beverage, travel, health, fitness and wellbeing, parenting, games and technology.

The ACCC also considers the role of other parties such as advertisers, marketers, brands and social media platforms in facilitating wrongdoing.