International Consumer Protection and Enforcement Network (ICPEN)

The International Consumer Protection and Enforcement Network (ICPEN) is an organization composed of consumer protection authorities from almost 40 countries, whose aim is to:

• Protect consumers’ economic interests around the world,
• Share information about cross-border commercial activities that may affect consumer welfare,
• Encourage global cooperation among law enforcement agencies.

General (international)

• Consumers International: A worldwide non-profit federation of consumer organizations, dedicated to the protection and promotion of consumer interests.
• BEUC - The European Consumers' Organisation
• International Chamber of Commerce (ICCWBO): A world business organization of companies and associations from 130 countries formed to promote international trade, investment and the market economy system worldwide.
• OECD Consumer Policy Committee (CPC): The focal point within the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) for consumer issues is its Consumer Policy Committee.
• OECD Committee for Information Computer and Communications Policy
• Transatlantic Consumer Dialogue (TACD): A forum of US and EU consumer organisations which develops joint consumer policy recommendations to the US government and European Union to promote consumer interests.
• European Commission’s Directorate for Health and Consumer Affairs
• European Consumer Centres Network (ECC-Net): An EU-wide network designed to promote consumer confidence by advising citizens on their rights as consumers and providing easy access to redress, particularly in cases where the consumer has made a cross-border purchase
• FIN-NET is a financial dispute resolution network of national out-of-court complaint schemes in the European Economic Area countries (the European Union Member States plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway) that are responsible for handling disputes between consumers and financial services providers, i.e. banks, insurance companies, investment firms and others

General (national)

• National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG): The association for state attorneys general in the U.S., whose responsibilities typically include consumer protection law enforcement.

Telemarketing and Internet fraud:

• PhoneBusters: established in January 1993, PhoneBusters is the Canadian Anti-Fraud Call Centre managed on a tripartite basis by the Ontario Provincial Police, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and the Competition Bureau Canada. PhoneBusters plays a key role in educating the public about specific fraudulent telemarketing pitches. The call centre also plays a vital role in the collection and dissemination of victim evidence, statistics, documentation and tape recordings which are made available to outside law enforcement agencies. The original mandate of PhoneBusters was to prosecute key individuals in Ontario and Quebec involved in telemarketing fraud under the Criminal Code of Canada. Its mandate now also includes facilitating prosecution by United States agencies through extradition, and by the Competition Bureau under the Competition Act. PhoneBusters is the central agency in Canada that collects information on telemarketing, advanced fee fraud letters (Nigerian letters) and identity theft complaints. The information is disseminated to the appropriate law enforcement agencies. The data collected at PhoneBusters is a valuable tool in evaluating the effects of various types of fraud on the public. It also helps to prevent future similar crimes from taking place.
• National Fraud Information Center (NFIC): A project of the U.S.-based National Consumers League, a private non-profit organization, which provides consumer information regarding telemarketing and Internet fraud and maintains a complaint database.
• Better Business Bureaus (BBB): A web site provided by the Council of Better Business Bureaus for the U.S. and Canada, containing business and consumer alerts and permitting the filing of online complaints.

E-commerce:

• Global Business Dialogue on electronic commerce (GBDe) is a worldwide, CEO-led, business initiative, established in January 1999 to assist the development of a global policy framework for the emerging online economy.
• Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Electronic Commerce Steering Group (APEC): A cooperative governmental effort to facilitate the growth and development of electronic commerce.
• Electronic Commerce Research Center: The Electronic Commerce Research Center is part of the Information Technology Research Institute at the University of Jyväskylä, Finland, and offers research, training and consulting in issues related to electronic commerce.
• eLab:  Vanderbilt University's eLab is a pioneering academic research center dedicated to the study of human behavior, particularly in online environments. 

Source: International Consumer Protection and Enforcement Network (ICPEN)