Australian fashion influencers have been put on notice by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), with misleading testimonials an enforcement priority this year.
ACCC chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb confirmed social media content would be monitored over 2023/2024, after a recent sweep revealed influencers were failing to disclose corporate affiliations.
The ACCC revealed its annual target list at a Committee for Economic Development Australia (CEDA) event in Sydney this week.
"Last month we conducted a sweep to identify misleading testimonials and endorsements by social media influencers," Cass-Gottlieb said. "We are looking at a range of platforms – including Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, YouTube, Facebook and Twitch – with a particular focus on sectors such as fashion, beauty, travel, health and fitness where influencer marketing is widespread.
"In response to an ACCC social media post requesting consumer responses we received more than150 tip-offs from consumers who believed certain influencers had failed to disclose their affiliation with the product or company they were promoting. These tip offs were one source of the influencers that were selected for the sweep."
Cass-Gottlieb said investigations from the sweep are ongoing.
"There is potential for consumer harm if social media influencers do not clearly disclose if there are any commercial motivations behind their posts. The findings from the sweep will inform ACCC compliance and education initiatives and enforcement investigations where we see consumers are at risk of being misled or deceived."