MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is urging the e-commerce industry to police its own ranks and to act more promptly when it comes to consumer complaints.

"We encourage the industry to police its own rank. We urge you to be proactive in resolving consumer complaints, ideally within 48 hours upon receiving them, and screen complaints that should go to the government," Trade Secretary Gregory Domingo said in a speech at the Digital Commerce Summit.

The government, he said, believes that implementing rules should not be restrictive and should not hamper the growth of the e-commerce industry.

"We must implement rules that reduce or eliminate illegal or fraudulent activities in order to protect consumers. We must balance both and try to create a vibrant but trusted e-commerce industry," Domingo said.

The Trade Secretary said the government is working with the private sector to develop four areas that support e-commerce industry: information security, data privacy, reliable online payments, and consumer complaints handling.

The DTI is promoting the use of digital signatures to address concerns over the authenticity, privacy and integrity of electronic transactions. It has issued rules on the use of digital signatures in the government offices.

The DTI has also undertaken efforts to enable electronic payment for government services, as well as issued the Data Protection Guidelines for the private sector.

The DTI is also promoting the use of "trust marks" for online businesses, which would boost consumers' confidence in dealing with e-commerce sites.

Jack Madrid, president of DCOM and country manager of Multiply Philippines, said they are working with the DTI in self-regulating the industry. They are also creating a seal which will signify the site's compliance with the code of ethics and regulations that will be approved by DCOM and DTI.

"We will provide that seal of protection to consumers who would be purchasing from the Philippine online sites that would become members of DCOM," Madrid said.