The Royal Gazette announced on July 9 that the Electronic Transactions Development Agency (ETDA) has compiled a list of 19 high-impact digital platforms subject to enhanced regulation under Section 20 of the existing Digital Platform Services (DPS) royal decree. This directive took effect on July 10.
Under Section 20, these platforms are required to perform business risk assessments and implement risk management strategies. They handle the sale or advertising of products that are regulated by official standards and are subject to special compliance measures due to their potential impact on economic stability, financial security, and public trust in digital systems.
Included in this list are major platforms such as Shopee, Lazada, One2car.com, Grab, Kaidee.com, SIA E-Auction System, LINE Shopping, Alibaba, NocNoc, AliExpress, Thisshop, Rakmao, Taobao, SCGHome, ONESIAM Application, ReadyPlastic Auction, ROOTS Platform, Temu, and eBay. The list will undergo annual review to ensure continued compliance.
In addition, the ETDA and its partners are actively working to combat fraudulent and illegal online advertising. Last year, such deceptive ads caused damages exceeding 19 billion baht.
Furthermore, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Lazada, Shopee, and LINE Shopping have collaborated to use application programming interfaces (APIs) to prevent the sale of unauthorized health products. Surachoke Tangwiwat, FDA secretary-general, mentioned that the FDA has partnered with Mahidol University’s Institute for Population and Social Research and the Institute of Field Robotics at King Mongkut’s University of Technology, Thonburi, to develop an AI system capable of efficiently identifying advertisements for smuggled or unlabeled health products. This initiative also receives support from the World Health Organization’s Thailand office.
The Public Health Ministry regards these initiatives as a significant advancement in consumer protection within the digital landscape. They combine technology, policy, and cross-sector cooperation to bolster public confidence that health products purchased online are safe and of high quality.
