Saudi Arabia shuts down 184 Chinese websites for marketing fake products: Report

Saudi Arabia has shut down 184 Chinese websites for targeting the Saudi market with poor and adulterated goods and fake offers, Gulf News reported.

The websites also failed to offer consumers the option of return and exchange and after-sales services and instead deluded buyers with the quality of the offered products, Al Jazirah newspaper reported.

The ministry blocked all these sites that do not include the store's data, address and contact numbers along with customer service.

It urged the general public to deal with trusted stores, and not to respond to ads promoted through social media for the unknown.

Authorities realised that the people are getting attracted to the advertisements in Arabic, which have links attached to them. When they blocked one such site, five other websites opened and sales through it.

Saudi officials said 184 sites had been launched with the aim of attracting more people at the same time as they were also blocked.

Consumer products such as electronics, perfumes, bags, shoes, clothes and cosmetics were sold through these online websites.

Following the discovery of the scam, the ministry conducted further research on the sites and action was then taken against them.

The ministry said the closure was due to a lack of information about the online store, address, phone number and user care facility. The ministry urged people to buy only from reputable online stores.

( With inputs from ANI )