Prepared by RVG

 signed into law last June 14, 2000

 a landmark legislation in the history of the Philippines
◦ It made the country a legitimate player in the global
marketplace
◦ the Philippine Internet community has played a major role in
pushing for its passage
◦ The Philippines became the fourth in SEA (after Malaysia,
Singapore and Korea) to have e-commerce legislation
 efforts for its passage started as early as 1992 with the
Electronic Evidence Act
 enactment came in response to the global devastation
brought about by the ILOVEYOU virus
 defined Philippine policy on electronic transactions to
enable the country’s players and consumers to actively
participate in electronic trade
 ECA was signed into law on June 14, 2000 by
then President Joseph E. Estrada.
 The corollary Implementing Rules and
Regulations, drafted by the DTI, DBM, and
BSP, were issued on July 14, 2000.
 The Act was based on Senate Bill No. 1902
and House Bill No. 9971 which were both
founded on and patterned after the United
Nations Commission on International Trade
Law (UNCITRAL) Model Law on Electronic
Commerce.
 As far back as 1992, bills were filed in order to
address the issue of electronic commerce.
 Because the Model Law had not yet been formally
drafted and adopted by UNCITRAL at that time
although work had been going on since 1985, the
initial bills such as Senate Bill No. 10 of the 11th
Congress and Senate Bill No. 1523 ( which was heavily
influenced by Singapore’s Electronic Transaction Act )
took a more inflexible, technology-specific approach,
i.e., they were made applicable only to a specific kind
of technology or data process, therefore hindering
the development and adoption of technologies in the
future.
 The Senate Committee saw wisdom behind the
UNCITRAL Model Law, which was released in 1996,
and decided to adhere to its principles and
framework and veer away from the restrictive
approach of the ECA.
◦ Similar to the Model Law, the ECA is made up of two parts.
The first part deals with electronic commerce in general,
while the other focuses on electronic commerce in specific
areas – in this case e-commerce in the carriage of goods.
◦ The ECA, like the Model Law, was intentionally drafted as a
open-ended instrument which may be supplemented or
complemented by future work in the other more specific
areas of electronic commerce.
 While the Act uses the word “e-commerce” in its
title, it does not mean it only applies to strictly
commercial activities. It is also applicable to non-
commercial transactions or activities like
◦ prosecution of libel cases
◦ the giving of termination notice to an employee
◦ proving psychological incapacity.
 It is applicable to the whole extent of legal
relations which may in any way use electronic
data messages
◦ which means all relevant fields of law, may it be public
or private, personal or commercial, remedial or
substantive.
◦ The legal effects of the ECA are all-encompassing and
penetrate every conceivable legal relationship.
1. The ECA is grounded on the functional
equivalent approach.
 According to the Guide to the Model law, the
approach is “based on an analysis of the
purposes and functions of the traditional
paper-based requirement with a view to
determining how those purposes or functions
could be fulfilled through electronic commerce
techniques.”
◦ To illustrate, an electronic contract is given the
same legal recognition and effect as a contract
written on a piece of paper because they perform
the same basic function: it is written evidence of a
meeting of the minds between the parties.
◦ The logic behind this approach is that the legal
validity of any act or information does not depend
on the form or the medium in which it is contained,
whether it be on paper or in a person’s hard disk.
◦ The ECA itself enumerates the three kinds of electronic data
messages: electronic “writings”, electronic “signatures”, and
“originals”. They respectively correspond to paper-based
writings, handwritten signatures, and documents which
need to be kept in their original form – like bills of lading.
 By using the same terminologies as those found in existing laws,
the objective of the ECA is to allow electronic documents, as
functional equivalents, to be used in lieu of the paper
documents.
◦ For example, even if the Civil Code Commission never had
an idea of electronic documents at the time of the drafting
of the Code for obvious reasons, electronic signatures may
be used within the context of the Civil Code because they
perform the same function as manually written signatures.
 The functions of a manual signature are basically same as an
electronic one.
2. The ECA is technologically neutral.
 the Act does not espouse or favor any particular
technology.
 The reason behind this is that the Act seeks to
uphold the legal validity of all kinds of
communications techniques even to those which
are considered less advanced like the facsimile,
telecopy or voice data.
 The idea is that no communication technique
should be excluded because future technical
development should be openly accommodated.
 ECA defined important terms such as
computer, electronic data message, electronic
signature, and electronic document
 It gave legal recognition to electronic data
messages, electronic documents, and
electronic signatures. (Sections 6 to 13)
◦ in so doing, it put electronic data messages and
digital signatures on the same legal status as
paper-based documents and manually executed
signatures
 Provided guidelines for retention and storage
of documents in electronic form
 It allowed the use of such electronic writings and
signatures in both commercial and non-
commercial transactions, thereby giving legal
effect and validity to these electronic transactions
◦ Allowed the formation of contracts in electronic form.
(Section 16)
◦ Made banking transactions done through ATM
switching networks absolute once consummated.
(Section 16)
◦ Parties were given the right to choose the type and
level of security methods that suit their needs.
(Section 24)
◦ Provided the mandate for the electronic
implementation of transport documents to facilitate
carriage of goods.
 This includes documents such as, but not limited to,
multi-modal, airport, road, rail, inland waterway,
courier, post receipts, transport documents issued by
freight forwarders, marine/ocean bill of lading, non-
negotiable seaway bill, charter party bill of lading.
(Sections 25 and 26)
 It laid down the State policy to promote
the universal use of electronic
transactions in the government and by
the general pubic
◦ Mandated the government to have the
capability to do e-commerce within 2
years from effectivity of the law or before
June 19, 2002. (Section 27)
 Mandated RPWeb to be implemented.
(Section 28)
◦ RPWeb is a strategy intended to connect all
government offices to the Internet and provide
universal access to the general public.
◦ The DOTC, NTC, and NCC were tasked to come
up with policies and rules that shall lead to
substantial reduction of costs of
telecommunication and Internet facilities to
ensure the implementation of RPWeb.
 Made cable, broadcast, and wireless physical
infrastructure within the activity of
telecommunications. (Section 28)
 Empowered the DTI to supervise the

development of e-commerce in the country

and to come up with policies and regulations
to facilitate the growth of e-commerce.
(Section 29)
 Provided guidelines as to when a service

provider can be held liable. (Section 30)

 Authorities and parties with the legal right can
only gain access to electronic documents,
electronic data messages, and electronic
signatures for confidentiality purposes and shall
not share or convey these to any other person.
(Sections 31 and 32)
 Hacking or cracking (unauthorized access)
including the introduction of computer viruses
became punishable by a fine from P100k to the
maximum commensurate to the damage with
imprisonment from 6 months to 3 years. (Section
33)
 Piracy through the use of telecommunication
networks, such as the Internet, that infringes
intellectual property rights became
punishable. The penalties are the same as
hacking. (Section 33)
 All existing laws such as the Consumer Act of

the Philippines shall also apply to e-

commerce transactions. (Section 33)
 Electronic documents face the issue of their
admissibility as evidence.
◦ Important questions that need to be answered are:
 What is an ‘original’ electronic document?
 How does one authenticate electronic documents?
 Does the best evidence or the hearsay rule apply to
electronic documents?
 In the field of taxation, with regard to online
purchase of goods between individuals in
different States, where is the tax situs of the
transaction?
 Problems on venue and jurisdiction
◦ For example, in which Regional Trial Court should
one file a libel suit against a person who made
malicious postings on an electronic message board?
 Violation of privacy and security
◦ together with the technological development comes
more advanced and less detectable ways of
violating the privacy and security of others
 Issues on intellectual property rights
◦ Does one’s right to a trade name also include the
exclusive right to use it as a domain name?
 Issues on other cybercrimes
 The ECA is a significant first step in
developing the Philippine legal system in
order for it to meet the issues and problems
brought about by electronic transactions and
digital relations in the 21th Century.
 The use and the development of

electronic/digital technologies is so fast-

paced and so far-reaching that it would be
foolish to think that the passage of the ECA
would resolve all those issues.
 There are other major legal issues concerning electronic
commerce which have been intentionally left out of the ECA
such as problems of jurisdiction, digital signatures, privacy,
cybercrime, and intellectual property.
◦ These issues are meant to be addressed by subsequent legislation
or regulation in the near future.
 The ECA is not a cure-all, but it simply laid the foundation for
electronic transactions in the country.
◦ While the ECA is the first law which specifically dealt with electronic
commerce, it was not meant to provide a definitive solution to
other perplexing legal issues.
◦ It is only through subsequent legislation, jurisprudence,
governmental control and regulation, and market forces that e-
commerce will fully take its hold and its benefits fully utilized.
◦ The ECA was intended not to be an end in itself, but as a
springboard to launch the country into the digital age.
 Financing for Information Technology Build-Up
(SME-FIT)
 DTI Administrative Order #8: Prescribing
Guidelines for the Protection of Personal Data in
Information and Communication Systems in the
Private Sector
 Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Circular No. 542:
Consumer Protection for Electronic Banking
 DTI-DOF Joint Administrative Order #2:
Guidelines Implementing R.A. 8792 on Electronic
Payment and Collection System (EPCS) in
Government
 Executive Order No. 810: Institutionalizing
the Certification Scheme for Digital
Signatures and Directing Application of
Digital Signatures in E-Government Services
 Insurance Commission Circular Letter 2014-

47: Guidelines on Electronic Commerce of

Insurance Products
 http://ross17.blogspot.com/2009/09/summary-of-
ra-8792-e-commerce-law_15.html
 https://michaeldizon.wordpress.com/2008/12/02/g
uide-to-the-philippine-electronic-commerce-act/
 http://www.searchinfluencer.com/2006/11/republic
-act-8792-e-commerce-law-of.html
 http://www.bsp.gov.ph/regulations/regulations.asp?
type=1&id=1025
 http://cs100-
alarnroyke.blogspot.com/2009/09/summary-of-ra-
8792.html
 http://www.galexia.com/public/research/assets/unct
ad_asean_ecommerce_review_2013/unctad_asean_ec
ommerce_review_2013-THE-5.html