EU takes aim at ticket bots, data harvesters

A new EU directive would require sites to inform consumers when the price they are given online is based on their Internet browsing pattern. — AFP Relaxnews

BRUSSELS: EU countries will from Jan 7 begin rolling out tougher laws against online operators who play fast and loose with consumers, including those harvesting personal data or deploying bots to snap up tickets.

The consumer protection rules, from an EU directive to be implemented in every country in the bloc within the next two years, aim to rein in "rogue traders and online tricksters," the EU commissioner for values and transparency, Vera Jourova, said in a statement.