FIGHT BACK : CRACKING DOWN ON INTERNET FRAUD.

Byline: David Horowitz 

One of the great attractions of the Internet is that it is wide open and unregulated, an international forum for the free exchange of ideas and information. But the Internet is also a marketplace where goods and services are offered for sale and where money changes hands, and cyberthieves roam the Net.

The Federal Trade Commission watches the Internet for outright fraud. But the state of California is trying to take consumer protection a step further by extending the laws that regulate catalog and telemarketing sales to on-line retailers. The proposed law was introduced by Assemblywoman Jackie Speier, a longtime advocate of consumer protection.

Under Speier's bill, businesses on the Internet would have to reveal their true business names and addresses, state their refund policies clearly, ship orders within 30 days and provide a cost-free way for customers to contact them and resolve disputes. These businesses would also have to abide by all other California laws governing catalog sales.

It's a bold move, and one that seems to have the backing of both Republicans and Democrats in Sacramento. But the question remains, if it becomes law, what effect will it have on the Internet? Speier says the state has the power and authority to regulate companies doing business in California, no matter where that company may be based. And legally, that may be true. But the problem of trying to locate and identify scam operators on the Internet and then bringing some sort of legal action against them can be staggering.

Does that mean that any effort by the states to enact on-line business laws are a waste of time? I don't think so. Sure, it's too much to expect that all the bad guys will get caught. But such laws will at least give states the authority to take action against those operators who are caught ripping people off.

No matter what laws are passed, on-line shoppers will still have to watch out for themselves. Fortunately, the tip-offs to the rip-offs are basically the same as those for telephone solicitations:

Never give out your credit-card number or other financial information on the Internet. Credit thieves sometimes set up Web sites or pose as agents of on-line services just for the purpose of collecting account numbers.

Don't make stock purchases or other investments via the Internet without checking out the offering thoroughly with the SEC and/or your state securities and corporations authority.

And be wary of Web sites that want to know more about you than they are willing to tell about themselves.

MEMO: David Horowitz's column appears on Saturdays.