British consumer group Which? warned about paid false reviews infiltrate major platforms such as Facebook, Google and Trustpilot.
As part of an investigation, Which? found that it could easily use a fake review broker to deliver numerous inauthentic positive reviews for a fictitious company on all three platforms.
Which? said it was told by a broker that it had made nearly 16,000 reviews for more than 550 clients around the world.
“Facebook, Google and Trustpilot aren’t doing enough to shut out a fake review industry that has been thriving for years and profiting from misleading reviews,” said Rocio Concha, Which? director of policy and advocacy.
“Facebook in particular has been repeatedly slow in tackling fake reviews, showing complete disregard for consumers who want to read real reviews,”
In the wake of this investigation, more than a thousand fake reviews have been removed by the three platforms.
Earlier this year, the government had outlined plans for a Digital, Competitor and Consumer Account which would act against false assessments.
In response, a spokesperson for Meta, Facebook’s parent company, said: “We are investigating the accounts that have been brought to our attention.”
“We have devoted significant time and resources to addressing this issue and will continue to do so. Fraudulent and deceptive activities are not allowed on our platforms, including offering or trading fake reviews,’
Meta has requested further authentication of the accounts brought to its attention and added that its safety and security teams were continuously working to help prevent these practices.
“Our policy clearly states that reviews should be based on real experiences, and when we find policy violations, we take prompt action ranging from content removal to account suspension and even lawsuits,” said a Google spokesperson.
Google uses a combination of human operators and technology to closely monitor fraudulent content around the clock.
“We encourage users and business owners to report suspicious activity to us so we can keep the information on Maps accurate and reliable”
“While the vast majority of our reviews are authentic, our work to stay one step ahead of scammers is never done, and in this case, our teams continue to investigate, remove content and block accounts associated with malicious activity. “
The average UK household spends around £900 each year, which is directly influenced by online reviews.
Trustpilot said it was constantly working to ensure it took appropriate action against attempts to manipulate reviews on its site, including those written by review sellers.
“Over the past 18 months, we’ve introduced new technology that allows us to understand and trace back complex patterns of potential abuse to identify sellers and buyers of reviews,” a Trustpilot spokesperson said.
“This has enabled us to take legal action against companies that buy fake reviews and to partner with other social media platforms to remove review sellers,”
In addition, consumers now have the option to verify their identity on Trustpilot.
LAKE : Amazon sues 10,000 Facebook group admins for fake reviews
LAKE : Google pays $90,000,000 to settle legal battle with app developers