The Consumer Voice

Ready to catch up on the latest updates and initiatives from our BEUC members in Europe? ⤵️

In 🇩🇪, @Bundesverband@verbraucherzentrale.social urges the EU to include consumer protection in AI rules: https://www.vzbv.de/pressemitteilungen/ki-regulierung-verbraucherrechte-jetzt-oder-nie

@warentest@bird.makeup found that out of 21 toothpastes for kids half contained titanium dioxide, an additive forbidden in the EU. https://www.test.de/kinderzahnpasta-im-test-4947022-0/?m_i=_yb_vpwf92NNz56pZtl892TWmKGca0Uirm1IOjuFsjoCCnYVwXnp9xDRZgOyLNWSeVPk8JAl5KDGMMt85ihMM9FAkzy2hbb__E&wt_mc=owned.newsletter.rdnews.dl.2023-10-24_zaehne.4947022

In 🇸🇮 ZPS has launched a survey about heat pumps and home heating preferences. Share your experience now! https://www.1ka.si/a/2d0169c2

The EU is supposed to come up with rules to help consumers more easily combine different operators or types of transport. This could promote train travel across Europe.

Will these rules ever see the light of day? It's totally up in the air at the moment. We'll discuss the merits of multimodal transport legislation anyway: https://app.smartsheet.com/b/form/2b6887d8348547fdac75e6ecb2e97c86.

4/10 shampoos tested by 🇩🇰 member Forbrugerrådet Tænk contain harmful chemicals that present health risks. https://www.bt.dk/forbrug/tjek-din-shampoo-stor-andel-indeholder-skadelige-stoffer

Consumers are in frequent, intimate, and often prolonged contact with cosmetic products. European rules must change to protect them from dangerous ingredients, including endocrine disruptors. https://www.beuc.eu/sites/default/files/publications/BEUC-X-2022-050_Targeted_revision_of_the_Cosmetic_Product_Regulation.pdf

An investigation by the European Chemicals Agency found toxic chemicals present in childcare products: https://echa.europa.eu/-/echa-s-investigation-finds-toxic-chemicals-present-in-childcare-products.

In a compilation of product tests by consumer organisations across Europe, BEUC recently highlighted the presence of harmful chemicals across many types of products. We call on the EU to act and deliver a toxic-free life: https://www.beuc.eu/press-releases/preventable-yet-everywhere-harmful-chemicals-found-all-kinds-consumer-products.

The United States recently announced that it no longer supports the inclusion of rules on cross border data flows and source code in ongoing trade negotiations about e-commerce at the World Trade Organization.

In order to protect people's digital rights, we now call on the EU to follow suit: https://www.beuc.eu/sites/default/files/publications/BEUC-X-2023-138_Time_to_rethink_EU_digital_trade_policy.pdf.

Why? Because commitments in trade agreements become an obligation countries have to comply with when adopting and implementing their own laws.

Consumers need a right to be free of all online tracking. Practices involving profiling consumers to exert personalised pressure preying on vulnerabilities or weaknesses, should be banned. https://www.beuc.eu/sites/default/files/publications/BEUC-X-2023-113_Fairness_of_the_digital_environment_survey_results.pdf

We're bidding farewell to Mastodon but fear not, we're just a click away on other platforms:

BlueSky: @beuc.bsky.social
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/beuc-the-european-consumer-organisation/

Stay in the loop, and let's keep the conversation going!

We visited the Consumer Council of Northern Ireland in Belfast this week.

They gave BEUC staff a very warm welcome and valuable insights into their consumer policy work and that of other actors - government, regulators, a charity working on debt advice - in Northern Ireland.

The BEUC network is stronger with the Consumer Council as a member organisation.

📢#CybersecurityAwarenessMonth

Our members regularly test how secure connected products are; and the results are often concerning. In 🇧🇪 Test Achats/Test Aankoop found 61 vulnerabilities in 17 products: https://www.test-achats.be/hightech/smart-home/dossier/hackers-appareils-connectes?isFromNewsletter=1
To protect people from hackers, we need to set minimum cybersecurity requirements for connected consumer products in the EU's Cyber-Resilience Act.
𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗰𝘆𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝘁𝗼𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲

📢#CybersecurityAwarenessMonth

Our members regularly test how secure connected products are; and the results are often concerning. In 🇧🇪 Test Achats/Test Aankoop found 61 vulnerabilities in 17 products like robot vacuum cleaners or smart door alarms. https://www.test-achats.be/hightech/smart-home/dossier/hackers-appareils-connectes?isFromNewsletter=1

To protect people from hackers, the answer is to set minimum cybersecurity requirements for connected consumer products in the EU's Cyber-Resilience Act.
𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗰𝘆𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝘁𝗼𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲.

Research conducted by BEUC members found that everyday consumer products are awash with harmful chemicals. Lawmakers must act now to deliver a #ToxicFreeFuture for consumers. https://www.beuc.eu/press-releases/preventable-yet-everywhere-harmful-chemicals-found-all-kinds-consumer-products

Today we were visited by the EU Chemicals Agency to discuss our policy and communications work, priorities, and input to EU agencies.

BEUC will soon publish a report about chemicals in consumer products, reflecting on the EU's 2020 Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability.