One billion. That’s how many new people are expected to start using the Internet in the course of 2016. With the vast majority of the residents of developed nations already online, the bulk of that huge growth (a 33% increase from the estimated 3 billion users currently on the Web worldwide) will be in developing nations. This will bring the need for consumer protections into sharper focus.

Fraud is a large concern, but other issues, such as the need for transparency in matters such as online transactions, are also inadequately addressed by policy in many countries. And to a large degree, government regulation is not enough on its own, particularly because it is often reactive and domestic in application — any protections enacted by one government stop at the border.

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