50% electricity saving device: Be careful or you will lose money and get sick

Impersonating and "deifying" floating devices

According to experts, there is currently no direct plug-in device on the market that has been proven to save energy. Most of the devices advertised as saving energy on social media platforms operate on principles that are difficult to verify, many products are just simple capacitors, without microchips and cannot measure the actual energy saving efficiency. Notably, up to now, this product has not been inspected, licensed and confirmed for effectiveness by the authorities in Vietnam.

The account “Gia dung 24h” blatantly edited and inserted the image of a famous editor of Vietnam Television into a ridiculous commercial about energy-saving devices (Photo: Cut from the commercial).

Despite the lack of scientific basis and the lack of confirmation of its effectiveness by authorities, energy-saving devices are still widely advertised on social media platforms. Just by typing in the keyword “energy-saving devices”, users can see hundreds of results with all kinds of products, most of which are labeled “Japanese technology”. Many promotional videos even cut and paste images of electricity bills that have dropped significantly after installing this device, along with the assertion that it is a “treasure for the hot summer”.

In a recently posted advertisement clip of the account “Gia dung 24h” on Facebook with more than 7 million views, 15 thousand likes and more than 5 thousand comments, it affirmed: “Energy-saving devices imported from Japan will help your family reduce from 40% to 50% of monthly electricity bills”.

In this clip, "Gia Dung 24h" also combined the images of two MCs of Vietnam Television into the advertisement content with the introduction: "Hey guys, this is a Japanese energy-saving device signed with Vietnam Electricity Group. With only 150 thousand VND/unit, it will help save half of the monthly electricity bill. Last month, my family did not use this energy-saving device, the electricity bill was about 2 million VND. After using it, the electricity bill was only over 900 thousand VND/month. Therefore, this device is super energy-saving" .

Another website also brazenly impersonates the Vietnam Electricity Group logo to advertise the sale of floating energy-saving devices (Photo: Cut from an advertising clip for energy-saving devices).

Notably, the account “Northern Electricity - Power Saving Devices” advertised the sale of nearly 5,000 products and brazenly impersonated the Vietnam Electricity Group by using the logo of the Vietnam Electricity Group as the background image. In a recently posted clip, the page advertised: “Using power saving devices, turning on the air conditioner only costs 4,000 VND of electricity/night. With this, you don’t have to worry about your electricity bill during the hot season . ”

Not only do these social networking sites crudely impersonate Vietnam Electricity, their advertising clips also contradict each other in their content. This shows dishonesty, even signs of consumer fraud...

Many potential dangers

Faced with a series of potential safety and legal risks from energy-saving devices of unknown origin, it is essential to identify and raise awareness of this type of product. These “divine” advertisements not only pose a potential risk of fraud but also directly threaten the lives and property of consumers.

Energy-saving devices are being heavily advertised on social media platforms as the weather in the North begins to enter hot days (Photo: Cut from advertising clip).

Lawyer Diep Nang Binh - Head of Tinh Thong Law Office said that the situation of advertising energy-saving devices with ambiguous, untrue information or exaggerating the uses without any scientific basis or actual certification from a competent authority is an act of providing false information, directly violating Clause 9, Article 8 of the 2012 Advertising Law. At the same time, it violates the 2023 Law on Consumer Protection on the responsibility to provide accurate and complete information and prohibits deceptive acts that confuse consumers.

The legal consequences for these violations may include administrative sanctions under Decree 38/2021/ND-CP, including: Fines, forced removal of advertisements and correction of information. In serious cases, causing great damage or significant illegal profits, fraudulent advertising may also be prosecuted under Article 197 of the 2015 Penal Code (amended in 2017).

In addition, the advertisement describes that the devices are often sold as hand-carried goods, illegally imported, the seller is not registered for business and does not issue VAT invoices. This violates the regulations on business registration under the Enterprise Law 2020 and the Commercial Law 2005.

Using unlicensed energy-saving devices puts consumers at risk of device safety, including fire and electrical leakage (Photo: Cut from advertising clip).

Lawyer Diep Nang Binh analyzed: "Since these devices have not been inspected, licensed or confirmed for effectiveness and safety by any agency in Vietnam, when used, consumers will face risks of fire or electric leakage that endanger their lives. If the scale and nature of the fraudulent act is large enough to appropriate an amount of VND 2 million or more from the buyer, the seller may be prosecuted for criminal liability for fraud and appropriation of property under Article 174 of the 2015 Penal Code."

In addition, unregistered business and failure to issue invoices are clear signs of tax evasion, which can lead to tax arrears and administrative penalties for tax violations or even criminal prosecution if the amount of tax evasion is large.

Unauthorized use of personal images (editor) or reputation, logo of organizations (TV stations, Vietnam Electricity Group) is an act of infringement of personal rights and rights to reputation, brand protected by the 2015 Civil Code and the Law on Intellectual Property.

“Consumers should boldly exercise their right to complain and denounce when detecting signs of fraud to protect their own interests and contribute to cleaning up the business environment. At the same time, be wary of somewhat “divine” advertisements about saving electricity. If they want to reduce their electricity bills, consumers should choose reputable electronic products that have been tested, use electricity wisely, prioritize Inverter devices and maintain them regularly,” emphasized Lawyer Binh.

Electricity saving devices that have not been inspected, licensed or certified for efficiency or safety by any agency in Vietnam will pose many risks of fire or electric leakage, endangering the health and lives of consumers.

Bao An

Source: https://congthuong.vn/thiet-bi-tiet-kiem-50-tien-dien-can-than-tien-mat-tat-mang-387231.html