Recently, some users posted on social platforms that Jingtaotao, an e-commerce software that implements "refund only for all", is suspected of running away with money, and the refund-only mode may be a "Ponzi scheme", which has attracted attention on the Internet.
According to the netizen "Liang Xiang" posted on September 18, the Jingtaotao shopping App was launched and shouted the slogan of "the whole people only refund", and many "wool parties" rushed in to try to buy and then apply for a refund only, and the platform really refunded it, and also compensated. The platform supports the introduction of new users to come in, and the model of giving commissions spreads in the wool party circle in an instant. "However, after the main crowd entered the order to receive the goods and applied for a refund only, the system showed that it would arrive in 30 days, that is, in the past two days, the platform suddenly ran away, claiming to have swept away 2 billion."
Regarding the "Ponzi scheme" and "running away with money" and other statements, the reporter asked the customer service of the Jingtaotao platform on September 20, and the other party replied that he did not run away, "The platform found that some users used the platform activities to maliciously swipe orders to cash out, and the risk control department is currently investigating them one by one."
Customer service denies running away:
Malicious cash-out is being investigated
Will orders from regular users be affected? Will the "Refund Only" feature work? The customer service said that at present, the risk control is investigating the risk account, and the order without problems will be gradually refunded after the investigation is completed. However, the customer service did not respond to the specific refund time. The Home of the APP displays, "If the national refund order has not been processed for more than 15 days, please contact the platform customer service for assistance." ”
According to Red Star News, the relevant person in charge of Jingtaotao said that the statement that the money ran away is not a fact, and the company is operating normally. The person in charge said that Jingtaotao was premeditated by a group of users some time ago "wool", and the company screened abnormal transaction users internally, and found that some of the "professional wool party" involved a huge amount of money, so it strengthened risk control management. At present, various businesses and refunds are in progress. At the same time, the person in charge also revealed that legal procedures will be taken for this part of the users.
On the 21st, the reporter tested and found that the Jingtaotao APP can be downloaded and used normally.
According to public information, the developer of Jingtaotao is Shanghai Jingchobao E-commerce Co., Ltd., which was established in Shanghai in 2019. Tianyancha shows that the company will complete an angel round of financing of 500 million yuan in early 2024, with a total of three shareholders, Lin Xiuqing, Lin Qingxiao, and Lin Jinfan, holding 50%, 27%, and 23% of the shares respectively. Its holding companies include Fujian Genggengjia Investment Co., Ltd. and Fujian Jingtaotao Supply Chain Management Co., Ltd.
The reporter noticed that as early as September 16, the Jingtaotao team issued an announcement saying that the corresponding processing procedures would be launched for some arbitrage wool picking, and for users who shop normally, Jingtaotao will strictly follow the normal process to carry out the nationwide refund operation. "During this process, the user does not need to take any additional action, and the refund will be accurately returned to the original payment channel within the specified time. This operation is fully in compliance with relevant laws, regulations and business norms, and aims to effectively protect the legitimate rights and interests of users."
The "refund-only" mode is an after-sales mechanism launched by major e-commerce platforms, that is, when consumers apply for "refund-only" to the platform, if the merchant does not operate within 48 hours, the system will default to the merchant's agreement to the refund application and automatically initiate a refund. Its original intention was to protect the rights and interests of consumers and crack down on unscrupulous businesses, but in the process of implementation, it provided an opportunity for the "wool party" to take advantage of. A large number of malicious refunds have led to the loss of merchants' profits and also had a negative impact on the e-commerce ecosystem. In the second half of this year, e-commerce platforms have successively adjusted the refund-only rules.
On July 26, Taobao announced that it would optimize the "refund only" strategy, enhance the after-sales autonomy of merchants based on the new version of the experience score, and reduce or cancel after-sales intervention for high-quality stores. The strategy will be implemented on 9 August. On September 4, 1688, Alibaba Group's source factory direct sales platform, announced the "Buyer Protection Service Upgrade Announcement". It is mentioned that from September 12, in order to reduce the operating burden of merchants, 1688 will adjust the "refund only" rule, and through the establishment of special funds, subsidize merchants with a high return rate, and provide them with a green appeal channel.
Three price tags for one product
or suspected of price gouging
The Jingtaotao APP will be launched in early 2024 with the slogan "Refund Only for All", and in actual use, users have two shopping modes to choose from: "Refund Only for All" and "Buy Now". The reporter found that the price of the same product in the "national refund only" mode is much higher than that of "buy now", and the price difference between the two is as high as tens of thousands of yuan. In addition to the above two prices, the product details page in the Jingtaotao app will also indicate the "market price", and the "market price" of some products is more than 10 times the refund price.
Taking the iPhone16Pro with 128G memory as an example, the price of "national refund only" on the Jingtaotao platform is 53327 yuan, and the price of immediate purchase is 7999 yuan, which is the same as the price on Apple's official website. In addition, the product page also marked a market price of up to 129,000 yuan, which is obviously inconsistent with the actual price of iPhone16Pro.
In addition, the "buy now" price of Han Shuhong's five-piece gift box on Jingtaotao is 338 yuan, but the price under the "national refund only" mode is 2251 yuan. It is worth noting that after the price of 338 yuan, the market price of 3377 yuan is marked in gray font, but the reporter inquired about the price of the product in Taobao and Jingdong's official flagship stores are 399 yuan.
According to Wang Hao, an independent lawyer at Shanghai Zhonglian Guangzhou Law Firm, the above behavior is suspected of price fraud and violation of the Consumer Rights Protection Law, and in addition, apps may also constitute unfair competition against other e-commerce platforms and disrupt market order by setting unreasonably high prices and false market prices.
According to the Price Law of the People's Republic of China, price fraud refers to the behavior of business operators to deceive or induce consumers or other business operators to trade with them by using false or misleading price forms or price methods. Fabricating facts or concealing the true situation by means of price marking or price means to deceive or induce consumers or other business operators to conduct transactions with them, regardless of whether the transaction results are formed, constitutes price fraud.
"The main judgments of price fraud include: whether the content of the price is consistent with the actual situation, whether the price indication is based on or comparable, and whether the price behavior is misleading", Wang Hao said, taking the iPhone16 Pro as an example, the price in the "national refund only" mode is very different from the price on Apple's official website and the price of "buy now", and there is no reasonable basis to support this price difference, making it impossible for consumers to obtain accurate information when comparing prices; The market price of Han Shuhong's five-piece gift box marked on Beijing Taotao is 3377 yuan, which is far from the price of Taobao and Jingdong's official flagship store of 399 yuan, which is also suspected of misleading consumers.
"Such behavior may also infringe on consumers' right to information and fair trade. Consumers have the right to obtain true and accurate price information and product value information when purchasing goods, and the behavior of Jingtaotao APP may lead consumers to make wrong consumption decisions without knowing it. Wang Hao said.
Source: Southern Metropolis Daily