The Trade Office of Viet Nam in the Netherlands urged firms to be cautious when doing business with new partners in Netherlands via the Internet.

The warning was issued after several Vietnamese firms asked the trade office for help as they struggled to contact partner companies they had found via the internet. Some firms had already made advance payments for contracts.

The trade office said these partner companies were found to have addresses and business registrations on their websites that differed from the information in their registrations.

In some cases, the trade office could not reach these companies via phone or email. In other cases, the trade office went to the address on the websites but could not meet the companies’ representatives because the address was a private home.

The trade office said that before doing business or making advance payments to any new partner companies in the Netherlands, Vietnamese firms should contact the trade office for a consultation, and study the legality of the partner carefully to avoid risks.

Firms can access the Eurotrade Market Network at www.consumergoodsdistribution.com and www.eurotradeconcept.eu to get information about potential business partners. — VNS