Consumers International - Consumers' Federation of Australia

20 February , 2019

Trusted consumer Internet of Things service or product

A new set of principles, guidelines and checklists cover the key areas that must be taken into account to create a trusted consumer Internet of Things service or product: security; privacy; transparency; supporting vulnerable consumers; customer support and complaint handling; and environment. Consumer IoT Trust by Design 2019 Guidelines and Checklistswas designed in collaboration with…

5 February , 2019

Safer Internet Day: “Together for a better internet”

Safer Internet Day is an annual, worldwide event to help encourage a better internet, with this year’s theme ‘Together for a better internet’ encouraging individuals to create a better internet by developing four, critical skills – Respect, Responsibility, Reasoning and Resilience. The Office of the eSafety Commissioner is the official Committee for Safer Internet Day in Australia—responsible…

30 November , 2018

Consumers Society TV – The Buggle Baby Monitor

This week Consumers International launched a 90-second video that was created in partnership with the Internet Society. The video brings to life some of the security issues with smart devices in the home and is accompanied by five tips to help people connect SMART! Click below to watch the video. CONNECT SMART The number of products and objects connected…

17 October , 2018

CFA Webinar Series Commencing October 30th

CFA’s quarterly webinar series will continue on Thursday 28th February from 1-2pm AEDT with the topic “Participating in a Royal Commission”. The webinar will be hosted by Katherine Temple – Director of Policy & Campaigns, Consumer Action Law Centre, and Ursula Noye – Managing Lawyer (Royal Commission), Consumer Action Law Centre. Katherine and Ursula will share reflections and insights from their involvement in the recent Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking,…

17 October , 2018

4th Industrial Revolution – how does this affect me?

We stand on the brink of a technological revolution that will fundamentally alter the way we live, work, and relate to one another. In its scale, scope, and complexity, the transformation will be unlike anything humankind has experienced before. We do not yet know just how it will unfold, but one thing is clear: the…

29 August , 2018

Consumers International response to G20 digital ministers statement

Consumers International welcomes the G20’s continued recognition of the importance of consumer trust in securing the future growth of the digital economy and their support for developing effective online consumer protection and empowerment with a particular emphasis on disadvantaged and vulnerable consumers including children. The work of the G20 helps to raise awareness of new…

25 July , 2018

ISO Unit Pricing Committee Meet in Japan

The following is an excerpt from an article contributed by John Furbank and Dr Clinton Weeks Many Australian consumers are familiar with and regularly use unit pricing. In Australia Unit Pricing Regulations came into effect in July 2009. However, some unit prices are not easy to read and in other counties there is no unit pricing…

9 July , 2018

New research suggests leading tech companies are making it difficult for users to opt of out sharing personal data

New research published today by Consumers International‘s member the Norwegian Consumer Council suggests that leading tech companies are making difficult for consumers to opt out of sharing their personal data using a variety of design techniques and default settings. Despite the introduction of the EU’s new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which came in to force in…

31 May , 2018

G20 Consumer Summit 2018

The second ever G20 Summit on Consumer Protection was held in Argentina in May 2018. At the invitation of the co hosts, the Argentinian Directorate for Consumer Protection and Consumers International, Professor Gail Pearson represented Australia and spoke on Food Waste and consumer awareness and education. The program focused on the digital economy and protection…

3 May , 2018

Product Safety: A global picture

Consumers International has released a new report: The challenge of protecting consumers from unsafe products: A global picture. The report, based on a survey of 132 organisations in 100 countries, found that national product safety legislation is struggling to adapt to the unprecedented challenges created by technological advances and the transformative nature of international supply chains…

3 May , 2018

Rapid recall: getting unsafe products off the market quickly

The following blog post is reproduced from Consumers International. Product recalls are an important way to remove unsafe products from the marketplace and prevent injury and death. This year the OECD and the International Standards Organisation will be looking at how recalls can be delivered more effectively to ensure consumers are better protected. The right…

7 March , 2018

World Consumer Rights Day 2018: Making Digital Marketplaces Fairer

The following is reproduced from the Consumers International website. The consumer movement marks 15th March with World Consumer Rights Day every year, as a means of raising global awareness about consumer rights and needs. Celebrating the day is a chance to demand that the rights of all consumers are respected and protected, and to protest against…