Abstract: This paper is based on discussing the meaning of e-commerce and its legal system, and the basic structure of e-commerce legal system. This paper compares various viewpoints on the connotation of e-commerce from different angles, and determines the generalized theory as the basic starting point; This paper lists the problems caused by e-commerce such as contract law, privacy law, consumer rights protection law, criminal law, procedural law and tax law, and puts forward some countermeasures.

With the establishment and perfection of global information network, the application of network is more and more extensive. E-commerce has become an irresistible trend. The development of information technology is not only related to the development of national economy, but also affects the public's life, involving a series of comprehensive issues such as national policies, laws, information technology development and infrastructure construction. As a big international trading country, China should make positive preparations for the development of global e-commerce, conduct research on the legal system of e-commerce and take the initiative to take corresponding countermeasures.

First, the connotation and characteristics of e-commerce

(A) the connotation of e-commerce

It is generally believed that e-commerce refers to all kinds of business activities conducted by buyers and sellers based on computer networks (mainly the Internet) and adopting corresponding electronic technologies according to certain standards. Its main functions include online advertising, ordering, payment, customer service and market research and analysis, financial accounting and production arrangement, and many other commercial activities developed by interact. It has a narrow sense and a broad sense. E-commerce in a narrow sense only refers to commercial activities conducted through the Internet; Broadly speaking, e-commerce refers to all business activities conducted by using all computer networks, including Internet, Intranet and Extranet.

(B) the characteristics of e-commerce

Compared with traditional business methods, e-commerce has the following characteristics:

1. Streamline circulation. E-commerce does not need wholesalers, specialty stores and shopping malls, and customers order products directly from manufacturers through the network.

2. Save shopping time and increase customer choice. E-commerce provides a wide range of choices for all kinds of consumers through the network, so that customers can buy satisfactory goods without leaving home.

3. accelerate the flow of funds. The capital turnover in e-commerce does not need to be carried out among customers, wholesalers and shopping malls. Instead, it opens an account directly in the bank through the network, which greatly speeds up the capital turnover and reduces commercial disputes.

4. Strengthen communication between customers and manufacturers. Customers explain their needs through the network and order their favorite products, while manufacturers can quickly understand the needs of users and avoid waste in production.

5. Stimulate the alliance and competition among enterprises. Enterprises can know the product performance, price, sales volume and other information of competitors through the network, thus promoting enterprises to carry out technological transformation and improve product competitiveness.

Second, e-commerce challenges to China's legal system and countermeasures

(I) Challenges and Countermeasures of E-commerce to Contract Law The growth of E-commerce will bear the brunt of the severe test of contract law as the basis of commercial law, involving legal provisions of electronic contracts, the effectiveness of electronic signatures and other issues.

1. Identification and authentication of both parties to the transaction. This is mainly aimed at B2B (a mode of e-commerce, the abbreviation of BusinesstoBusiness, that is, business-to-business or inter-business e-commerce mode). A big difference between an electronic contract and a written contract is that the two parties do not necessarily meet, but sign an electronic contract through the Internet. The biggest difficulty in concluding an electronic contract through the Internet is the identification of both parties to the transaction. This problem can be solved by certification centers, and many countries have implemented this measure. Due to the location of the certification center, it is required to be fair, authoritative and credible, and its obligations and responsibilities must be recognized by law. China should improve its legislation, promote the use of electronic signatures and standardize the operation of certification bodies.

2. The legality of the transaction and the validity of the contract. In e-commerce, many transactions are conducted on the Internet without actual physical delivery. This involves the legitimacy of the transaction and the supervision of such transactions. In addition, the entry into force of electronic contracts is also related to this. If a contract is illegal, it will not be protected by the contract law. At the same time, the effectiveness of the contract also involves the issue of how to take effect. E-commerce transactions should meet the requirements of the law and should not be commercial activities that take illegal means to obtain profits. Therefore, first of all, businesses should avoid illegal activities. In addition, the state should strengthen the supervision of the Internet and formulate corresponding laws and regulations to prevent problems before they happen. On the issue of the entry into force of the contract, an agreement has been basically reached. Electronic acceptance arrives at a very fast speed, and the mailing and arrival are almost at the same time, so the effective time will generally not be much different. As for the place of entry into force, because the receiving place of data messages is relatively easy to determine, the Model Law on Electronic Commerce formulated by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law takes the promised place of arrival as the place of entry into force.

3. Validity of electronic signature. Although the principle of "functional equivalence" in China's contract law recognizes the effectiveness of electronic signature, it is not mentioned in the evidence law, and there are certain legal loopholes. We can learn from the technology neutrality principle in American electronic signature law, that is, the traditional password method, asymmetric public key encryption method, smart card method and biometric authentication method cannot be biased and produce any discriminatory requirements; At the same time, we should leave legal space for the future development of technology, and we should not stop at the status quo.

4. Confirmation of electronic contracts. Although electronic contract has the advantages of convenience, quickness and low cost, it also has certain risks. Network security is only a relative concept. No matter how secure encryption or other network security prevention technologies are, it is possible to be breached in theory. Moreover, network viruses or other human factors may lead to the loss of electronic contracts, so try to confirm electronic contracts in the form of written contracts.

(B) The leap-forward development of e-commerce has brought new challenges and countermeasures to the consumer protection law.

1. Online buyers and sellers have unequal status. In online shopping, consumers have to face the pre-set format contract of operators according to their own interests. Contract terms are often overlord terms formulated by operators using their superior economic status, which are beneficial to themselves and not to consumers. These clauses usually include exemption clauses, loss of rights clauses and court jurisdiction clauses. Its essence is to transfer the risks and expenses of the contract to consumers as much as possible. After the consumer chooses to agree, if there is a dispute after the transaction, the merchant will use this to counter the consumer's complaint and put the consumer in a very unfavorable position.

The law pursues fairness and justice, and we should protect the rights and interests of consumers, but we can't think that all online consumption disputes should protect the rights and interests of consumers. When interpreting standard clauses, we should abandon the traditional absolute interpretation and adopt more flexible judgment criteria. At the same time, consumers should also fulfill certain obligations when making online consumption, otherwise they will bear certain legal responsibilities. When providing standard contracts, business operators should convey transaction elements to consumers as accurately and appropriately as possible. This kind of notification should fully consider the network knowledge level of most consumers, so that most consumers can read or understand its content without professional training. In order to avoid consumer disputes caused by misunderstanding.

2. It is difficult to ensure the safety of consumer transactions. In e-commerce, consumers complete transactions through electronic payment, which requires consumers to have electronic accounts. The security of online transactions is a hot issue that consumers are generally concerned about. Consumers often hope to complete the transaction simply and quickly, but they are worried that their economic interests will suffer losses due to improper operation or hacking.

Therefore, effective measures must be taken to find hidden dangers in the trading system and prevent hackers from invading; It is necessary to gradually establish and improve an e-commerce security guarantee system and a secure electronic transaction system with independent intellectual property rights based on information security and network security, with encryption technology and authentication technology as the core; It is necessary to establish a special national certification system, carry out e-commerce certification authoritatively and fairly, and confirm the legitimacy, authenticity and accuracy of the identity of enterprises engaged in e-commerce activities.

3. Internet fraud and false advertisements are rampant, making it difficult for consumers to get a refund after shopping. In e-commerce, consumers can only get to know the products through online publicity and pictures, but they don't know the strict actual quality of the products and the hidden defects and flaws of the products themselves, which makes consumers wait for the actual delivery after ordering online to confirm whether they are consistent with the ordered goods, which easily leads to the inconsistency between the quality, price and quantity of the actually delivered goods and the ordered goods. Consumers who have such problems want to return goods or claim compensation from operators, first of all, they need merchant websites to provide detailed information of operators, but merchant websites often refuse to provide detailed information of operators on the grounds of trade secrets, and consumers can do nothing. In this regard, we can comprehensively use various means to establish a prevention and control system that combines prevention in advance and sanctions afterwards, and strictly prohibit online consumer fraud and false advertisements by formulating special rules to provide consumers with an honest electronic trading environment.

(C) challenges and countermeasures brought by e-commerce to criminal law

In e-commerce activities, the enjoyment of information and the security of information are contradictory. Although we can achieve the goal of controlling network information security by reducing the enjoyment of * * * *, it is obviously not desirable because of choking on food. Therefore, we should actively build a network-oriented information security system, including criminal legal control, to control network information security.

As a normative means, criminal law is lagging behind in its application, that is, it usually appears as a more mandatory means of adjustment when an act endangering society has not been adjusted by other laws or the adjustment is not strong enough. Because criminal law adopts penalty method, criminal law control is the most mandatory and severe method for network information security, especially computer crime, and plays a role of guarantee and backing in the whole legal control system. The current development of e-commerce has brought a series of challenges to criminal legislation.

1. Shortcomings of existing sentencing range and types of punishment. We should innovate the types of punishment, that is, introduce qualification punishment; Property punishment and qualification punishment can also be widely applied, that is, all articles and equipment related to crime are confiscated and criminals are deprived of their qualifications to engage in a certain occupation or activity. As an additional punishment, its duration can be determined by referring to the provisions on deprivation of political rights in the existing qualification punishment. For example, any IsP (service provider) is prohibited from accepting criminals, and criminals are prohibited from engaging in occupations directly related to computer systems.

2. Difficulties in criminal justice. The borderless network makes it easy for computer criminals to commit transnational crimes. With the continuous development of the Internet, transnational crime accounts for an increasing proportion of all computer crimes, which brings about the problem of criminal jurisdiction. At present, it is difficult for China's criminal law to have an effect on computer network crimes against China from abroad, so it is necessary to strengthen the coordination of international jurisdiction.

3. Handling of unit crimes. Although the criminal responsibility of individual crimes such as the direct implementers, participants and supervisors of harmful behaviors can be investigated according to law, this treatment is not a long-term solution after all. Therefore, it is the best choice to improve criminal legislation and clearly stipulate that units can constitute computer crimes. (D) E-commerce challenges to China's traditional taxation and countermeasures.

E-commerce has enabled enterprises to break the restrictions of region, national boundaries, time and space, and the number of companies operating cross-regional and transnational businesses has increased dramatically. Small and medium-sized enterprises that cannot develop international business can also enter the international market through the network. In this sense, networking has accelerated the process of globalization of international trade. The rapid growth of e-commerce sales has also opened a new world for turnover tax sources in China. However, we should also see that the growing e-commerce also poses new challenges to China's traditional taxation.

1. E-commerce blurs the confirmation of tax obligation. Because e-commerce has the characteristics of anonymity, untraceability, globality and decentralized management, and the transmission of information on the Internet may pass through many countries, and even the final sellers and customers cannot be confirmed under the existing conditions, it is difficult to identify the identity of e-commerce taxpayers.

2. E-commerce complicates tax administration. The specific manifestations are as follows: (1) The reduction of tax points of commercial intermediaries increases the risk of tax loss; Paperless e-commerce challenges the traditional tax inspection methods.

3. The development of computer encryption technology to protect transaction security has increased the difficulty for tax authorities to obtain information. Because e-commerce on the computer network platform has special requirements for transaction security, computer encryption technology has been constantly innovated and widely used in e-commerce, and taxpayers can hide relevant information through the double protection of super passwords and users, which makes it more difficult for tax authorities to collect information and the tax inspection work more and more complicated.

4. Legal liability is difficult to define. The operation mode of e-commerce is different from the manual operation mode of traditional trade in terms of transaction time, place and mode. The current tax collection and management methods are not in place, which will lead to a blank area of legal responsibility for e-commerce, and it is impossible for taxpayers and taxpayers of e-commerce to bear legal responsibility. This will inevitably lead to the imbalance of law enforcement and ultimately affect tax collection and management. Therefore, it is an urgent and realistic task to do a good job in e-commerce taxation.

1. Standardize and improve scientific and effective tax policies. At present, from the reality of our country, while developing e-commerce, we should grasp the overall coordination and foresight of relevant tax laws, learn from the beneficial practices of developed countries, and determine the basic policy concept of e-commerce taxation.

2. Adhere to the tax neutral policy. Taxation should be neutral, and there is no distinction between advantages and disadvantages for any business form. Similar economic income should be treated equally in taxation, regardless of whether such income is obtained through online transactions or traditional transactions.

We should stick to the appropriate preferential tax policies. E-commerce is still in its infancy in China, and we should adopt encouraging policies to support this emerging thing. Compared with high-tech enterprises, China should give such enterprises appropriate tax incentives to encourage more enterprises to conduct online transactions and open up new tax sources.

4. Adhere to the policy of international tax coordination and cooperation. The development of e-commerce has further accelerated the process of globalization and integration of the world economy, and the international community should carry out more extensive tax coordination to eliminate the obstacles to international trade and capital flow caused by exercising their respective tax jurisdictions. In addition, strengthening international tax coordination and cooperation can effectively reduce the possibility of tax avoidance.

To sum up, it is necessary and urgent for us to establish a corresponding collection and management system, but we should rationally realize that the establishment of this system must not be "collection and management" because of "taxation". While establishing the necessary system to guarantee the national fiscal revenue, we must support and encourage the development of domestic e-commerce in principle and strategy, and realize the optimal balance between the interests of the government and taxpayers in tax collection and management.

(E) Challenges and countermeasures of e-commerce to procedural law

E-commerce is a trading mode in which commercial transactions are conducted through the Internet or proprietary network systems, and payment is made by electronic money without time, space and geographical restrictions. Then how to establish the jurisdiction of disputes; How to establish the time and place when the electronic contract is signed and takes effect; The data information can be easily modified without leaving any trace. How to confirm the original electronic contract? The identifiability and acceptability of data messages and whether they can be used as evidence. In addition to the newly promulgated contract law, the existing laws in China all recognize that electronic contracts are legal and effective, and there are no provisions on most of the above legal issues. In e-commerce, the seller can set up an electronic mall to sell goods online, and the buyer can surf the Internet through mobile phones, televisions, computers and other terminals and shop in the electronic mall established online. The development of e-commerce poses many challenges to the current procedural law.

With the development of e-commerce, the location of the parties often becomes less important for resolving disputes. To solve international e-commerce disputes, we should develop in the direction of formulating unified international civil litigation procedures and unified substantive norms, so as to truly solve the disputes arising from global e-commerce.

(6) In the e-commerce environment, the means of invading privacy are constantly innovating and becoming more and more hidden.

With the application and popularization of e-commerce, some businesses, driven by interests, take various technical means to obtain and use their information without the knowledge or reluctance of network users, which infringes on the privacy rights of network users. In this environment, the means of violating the right to privacy are constantly innovating and becoming more and more hidden. Therefore, China must adopt special legislation to encourage industry self-discipline, educate network users and establish a legal protection system for personal data. How to ensure the security of network privacy data is a problem faced by any country that develops e-commerce. In the information age, the principle of protecting network privacy should be to strive for balance-not only to ensure that privacy is not infringed, but also to prevent privacy protection from becoming an obstacle to the free flow of information so as to exert its economic value. At present, the network economy represented by e-commerce is not only in the initial stage at home, but also in the exploration period from naive to mature internationally. Such a relatively rational adjustment period is the right time for the legislative work to proceed cautiously and actively. Therefore, the improvement of the law has become an important part of adjusting the network economy.

Since the Internet itself has no national boundaries, laws on various norms of the Internet will inevitably encounter international coordination problems in terms of jurisdiction and international judicial cooperation. The differences in privacy protection between the United States and the European Union have endangered whether American enterprises can enter the EU e-commerce field. It can be seen from the contradiction between the European Union and the United States about the right to privacy of network and e-commerce that the protection of the right to privacy of network and e-commerce needs international coordination, that is, on the one hand, we need our laws to provide perfect privacy protection for our users and foreign users, on the other hand, we also need the laws and systems of other countries to protect the right to privacy of our users. In addition, we can also see that the United States, as an advocate and controller of the network, is not very active in protecting the right to privacy because it can master the privacy and secrets of users in other countries in this way, thus achieving the purpose of controlling enterprises in other countries. So this requires us to improve our privacy protection system as soon as possible; On the other hand, in coordination with some corresponding countries, it puts forward the requirements and standards of China users' network privacy protection. In order to improve the legal environment of China's market economy as soon as possible and create a good environment for the smooth development of China's accession to the WTO.