Securing Digital Trade: A Techno-Legal Analysis of E-Commerce Safeguards in Iraq’s Regulation No. 4/2025
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18452737Keywords:
Consumer Protection; Cybersecurity; Data Privacy; E-commerce; Regulatory Licensing.Abstract
This article evaluates the legal and technical safeguards established under Iraq’s 2025 E-Commerce Regulation and assesses their alignment with international regulatory standards amid rapid developments in the digital trade environment. It argues that the regulation provides a potentially robust legal foundation for digital market governance; however, its effectiveness depends on enforcement capacity and adequate technical and administrative infrastructure. Without these conditions, the sector remains vulnerable to fraud, consumer data breaches, and tax avoidance. Methodologically, the study employs doctrinal legal analysis of the regulation and its relationship with existing domestic legislation, particularly consumer protection law. This is complemented by a structured comparative analysis of global data privacy and e-commerce regulatory frameworks, as well as a descriptive-analytical assessment of Iraq’s digital trade landscape based on national reports and sectoral data. A techno-legal framework is applied to evaluate safeguards for data security, encryption practices, and digital identity governance. The findings indicate that the regulation introduces key protective mechanisms, including vendor licensing, transparency obligations, personal data protection, tax and customs oversight, and supervisory enforcement powers supported by an electronic licensing platform. These measures show partial convergence with internationally recognized consumer and data protection principles. However, challenges persist, including infrastructural limitations, expansion of informal online trade, and limited technical literacy among stakeholders. Academically, this study contributes to debates on digital regulatory capacity in emerging economies by integrating legal analysis with technical compliance dimensions. It highlights the gap between regulatory design and enforcement readiness, offering a framework for assessing techno-legal governance in today's developing digital markets.
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