Online shopping is becoming more transparent in India. The government has amended the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020, introducing stricter requirements for e-commerce companies covering search results, sponsored products, discounts, seller information and consumer complaints. The new rules will come into force from January 1, 2027.
Sponsored products will have to be clearly identified
When you search for a product, some of the first results may be advertisements rather than products that naturally rank highest.
Under the amended rules, e-commerce platforms will have to clearly disclose sponsored listings. This means consumers should be able to distinguish between an advertisement and an ordinary search result more easily.
Platforms cannot manipulate search results
The government has also introduced provisions against manipulating search results in a way that misleads consumers or reduces the relevance of results to what they searched for.
This could make online searches more useful, particularly when hundreds or thousands of similar products are available on a marketplace.
Discount claims will need more transparency
Another important change concerns price reductions.
When a platform announces that a product is available at a reduced price, both the reduced price and the previous price will have to be displayed. This should make it easier for shoppers to understand the actual extent of a discount instead of relying only on a large percentage-off label.
Consumer complaints will also get more transparency
The amended rules require e-commerce entities to provide consumers with a copy of their complaint as recorded by the company's grievance officer.
This can give consumers a clearer record of what complaint was actually registered and can be useful if the issue later needs to be escalated.
E-commerce platforms will be linked with the National Consumer Helpline
Another significant provision requires e-commerce entities to become partners in the convergence process of the National Consumer Helpline.
The move is aimed at strengthening the connection between online marketplaces and the country's consumer grievance-redressal system. The government said the National Consumer Helpline received more than 17.7 lakh grievances during 2025, with around 29% relating to the e-commerce sector.
What should online shoppers do?
Even after the new rules come into force, consumers should continue checking the details before making a purchase.
Before ordering, compare the price with other platforms, check whether a listing is sponsored, look at the seller's details and read the return and refund policy.
The new rules are expected to give consumers better information and greater transparency, but making an informed purchase will still require checking the details rather than relying only on the first product displayed on the screen.
