By Law No. 30/2002 on electronic transactions and other electronic services, the Competition Authority was entrusted with the supervision of the provisions of the law relating to the information obligations of those providing electronic services. One of the aims of the legislation is to enhance trust in electronic services, in particular by requiring a service provider on the Internet to provide certain specified, standard minimum information about themselves. Consumer protection in electronic commerce shall thus not be inferior to that in traditional commerce.
Icelanders are at the forefront of information technology use. In Statistics Iceland, published on 15 March 2004, are the results of two surveys that Statistics Iceland conducted on the use of technology and the Internet by households and individuals in December 2002 and May 2003. It states, among other things, that 78.1% of households have an internet connection. In 2002, nearly one in ten individuals had their own website on the internet. In 2003, one in five individuals aged 16–74 covered by the survey had ordered or bought a product or service via the Internet.
On 27 January 2004, Statistics Iceland published the results of a survey on the use of information and communication technology and e-commerce by businesses in 2003. It states that 97% of Icelandic businesses have an internet connection; 70% of all companies have their own website; one in five companies sold a product or service from a website in 2002 and 37% of companies bought a product or service via the Internet in the same year.
E-commerce can offer many advantages for consumers. Transactions can be more convenient and cheaper than traditional ones. Consumer trust in e-commerce has a decisive impact on its development, and it is paramount that consumers trust those behind it. The foundation of such transactions is that the service provider provides accessible and detailed information about themselves. The consumer must also be sufficiently informed about the product and service, pricing, payment and delivery terms, the right to complain and return items, as well as technical security. User-friendly websites are therefore crucial in a consumer's choice of retailer.
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