Democrats Announce ‘Stopping Grinch Bots Act’ To End Holiday Gift Scalping
Image ID 159613690 © via Molly100 | Dreamstime.com
House and Senate Democrats have teamed up to introduce the ‘Stopping Grinch Bots Act’, which aims to put a stop to algorithms purchasing entire inventories of holiday gifts before reselling them at scalpers’ prices.
The bill was announced by Representative Paul Tonko of New York, Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, Senator Charles Schumer of New York, and Senator Ben Ray Luján of New Mexico.
“These bots don’t just squeeze consumers, they pose a problem for small businesses, local retailers, and other entrepreneurs trying to ensure they have the best items in stock for their customers,” said Representative Tonko.
“Our Grinch Bots Act works to level the playing field and prevent scalpers from sucking hard-working parents dry this holiday season. I urge my colleagues to join me in passing this legislation immediately to stop these Grinch bots from stealing the holiday,” he continued.
These ‘Grinch bots’ work by using software algorithms to automatically purchase entire sites’ inventories, and because they’re digital, they move quicker than any regular human would be able to.
According to CNET, in recent years, these bots have become so advanced that they can even bypass security measures set up by online retailers.
Notably, this same bill had been brought up back in 2018 but wasn’t passed then. While it’s unclear if this time will see it be put into action, it’s certainly time lawmakers did something about the unscrupulous resellers who deprive others of reasonably-priced gifts in favor of inflated price points.
[via CNET, cover image via Molly100 | Dreamstime.com]
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