February 2023
Lilian Hsu
With the advancement of technology and the popularity of the Internet, traditional physical marriage intermediary services are gradually evolving into comprehensive dating services that combine online interaction and offline communication, and even incorporating features such as games, real-time audio and video communications, providing the public with diverse channels for developing interpersonal relationships. However, behind the booming dating service industry, consumer disputes have emerged from time to time due to the gap between operators and consumers in terms of their perception of rights and obligations. To address this issue, the Ministry of the Interior (the “MOI”) promulgated the “Guidelines for Dating Services”, the “Regulations Governing the Security Maintenance of Personal Data Files by Dating Service Operators Designated by the Ministry of the Interior”, and the “Mandatory and Prohibitory Provisions Specified in the Standard Terms and Conditions of Dating Service Contract” successively in 2022. The highlights and legal effects of the laws and regulations are discussed below:
1. The Guidelines for Dating Services
The MOI promulgated the Guidelines for Dating Services (the “Guidelines“) on March 18, 2022 to prompt the operators and the consumers using dating services to pay attention to their rights and interests. Although the Guidelines are an administrative guide and not directly binding to the public, they can still serve as a guide for the operators in running their businesses. According to the Guidelines, operators are advised to specifically specify the rights and obligations of both parties in Chinese in the contract or the Terms of Use.
2. The Regulations Governing the Security Maintenance of Personal Data Files by Dating Service Operators Designated by the Ministry of the Interior
Pursuant to the authorization under Article 27, Paragraph 3 of the Personal Data Protection Act (the “PDPA“), the MOI promulgated the Regulations Governing the Security Maintenance of Personal Data Files by Dating Service Operators Designated by the Ministry of the Interior (the “Personal Data Regulations“) on August 30, 2022. The regulated “dating service operators” refer to businesses that operate with the purpose of providing services within Taiwan to facilitate the acquaintance and communication between two parties and charge fees for their services (Article 3 of the Personal Data Regulations).
The Personal Data Regulations require that operators should deploy appropriate management personnel and invest considerable resources to plan, formulate, amend, and implement a security maintenance plan for personal data files and methods of handling personal data after the termination of businesses ( the “Personal Data Maintenance Plan“). Operators are required to complete the Personal Data Maintenance Plan by February 28, 2023 and submit the same to the competent authority for recordation (Articles 4 and 22 of the Personal Data Regulations).
In addition, in the face of security incidents such as theft, tampering, destruction, loss, or leakage of personal data, operators are required to plan relevant response mechanisms to prevent the expansion of consumer damage. If the scale of the incident involves more than 500 entries of personal data, the operator should notify the competent authority within 72 hours after the incident is discovered (Article 8 of the Personal Data Regulations).
The competent authority may impose a fine of NT$20,000 to NT$200,000 in accordance with Article 27 and Article 48 of the PDPA. If further damage is caused to the consumers, the operator shall be liable for damages in accordance with Article 29 of the PDPA.
3. The Mandatory and Prohibitory Provisions Specified in the Standard Terms and Conditions of Dating Service Contract
Pursuant to the authorization under Article 17 of the Consumer Protection Act (the “CPA“), the MOI released on December 16, 2022 the Mandatory and Prohibitory Provisions Specified in the Standard Terms and Conditions of Dating Service Contract (the “Standard Contract Rule“) with a notice period expiring on February 14, 2023. In view of the higher proportion of consumer disputes arising from physical dating services, the Standard Contract Rule only regulate physical and online/offline composite dating service operators, while those who simply provide digital matchmaking services are not subject to this regulation.
The regulatory purpose of the Standard Contract Rule is to reduce consumer disputes and protect the rights and interests of consumers. The content of the regulation includes, but is not limited to, the following: the standard dating service contract is required to specify the charging and refund mechanisms (Points 7 and 17 of the Mandatory Provision of the Standard Contract Rule) and the specific content of the dating services (Point 5 of the Mandatory Provision of the Standard Contract Rule), and operators are required to verbally explain the rights and obligations of a member to consumers before contracting (Point 3 of the Mandatory Provision of the Standard Contract Rule). In addition, operators are prohibited from restricting the consumer’s right to refund (Point 3 of the Prohibitory Provision of the Standard Contract Rule) and stipulating automatic renewal of the contract (Point 9 of the Prohibitory Provision of the Standard Contract Rule) and shall not use terms such as “lifetime” and “permanent” in advertising (Point 7 of the Prohibitory Provision of the Matter).
In case the standard dating service contract formulated by an operator violates the Standard Contract Rule, the terms that should be specified but are not specified shall be deemed specified, and the terms that should not be specified but are specified shall be deemed invalid (Article 17 of the CPA). In addition, the competent authority may impose a fine of NT$30,000 to NT$300,000 on a non-compliant operator (Article 56-1 of the CPA).
The aforementioned laws and regulations were promulgated by the MOI successively over the year. Since the regulatory scope, contents, and legal effects of the laws and regulations vary, it is recommended that the relevant operators re-examine their internal operation processes, personal data protection mechanisms, service contracts, and terms of use to ensure that their business operations comply with legal regulations.
In addition to the typical dating service operators, in view of the increasing diversity of online services, instant messaging software, gaming platforms, and language exchange APPs may also have the function of dating intermediary, the relevant operators also need to review the nature of their services to confirm whether they are subject to the aforementioned regulations to avoid inadvertent violation of the law.
The contents of all materials (Content) available on the website belong to and remain with Lee, Tsai & Partners. All rights are reserved by Lee, Tsai & Partners, and the Content may not be reproduced, downloaded, disseminated, published, or transferred in any form or by any means, except with the prior permission of Lee, Tsai & Partners.
The Content is for informational purposes only and is not offered as legal or professional advice on any particular issue or case. The Content may not reflect the most current legal and regulatory developments. Lee, Tsai & Partners and the editors do not guarantee the accuracy of the Content and expressly disclaim any and all liability to any person in respect of the consequences of anything done or permitted to be done or omitted to be done wholly or partly in reliance upon the whole or any part of the Content. The contributing authors’ opinions do not represent the position of Lee, Tsai & Partners. If the reader has any suggestions or questions, please do not hesitate to contact Lee, Tsai & Partners.