An industry of paid fake reviews is infiltrating major platforms such as: Facebook, google and Trustpilot, consumer group Which? said.
As part of an investigation into the matter, Which? said it could easily use a fake review broker to deliver fabricated positive reviews for a fictitious company on all three platforms.
The consumer group said it was told by a broker that it had made nearly 16,000 reviews for more than 550 clients around the world — a sign of a vibrant industry not being adequately addressed by the tech giants.
It accused Facebook, Google and Trustpilot of not doing enough to prevent fake reviews from appearing on platforms and said that in some cases they were slow to remove flagged reviews and accounts, and that a number of companies called Which? found to use fake reviews stayed online.
Which? said it could easily use a fake review broker to deliver completely made-up positive reviews on Facebook, Google and Trustpilot (Stock image)
Emphasizing the magnitude of the problem, Which? said more than a thousand reviews were removed by the three platforms in the wake of the investigation.
In the Queen’s speech earlier this year, the government outlined plans for a digital, competition and consumer law, which would include a crackdown on fake reviews – something what? has called on the new Prime Minister to introduce himself to Parliament without delay as soon as they take office in the autumn.
“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,” says Rocio Concha, Which? director of policy and advocacy, said.
“Facebook in particular has been repeatedly slow in tackling fake reviews, showing complete disregard for consumers who want to read real reviews.
The government has outlined plans for a new Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act that would give the CMA (Competition and Markets Authority) stronger powers to protect consumers from an avalanche of fake reviews. .
The bill must be submitted to Parliament by the new Prime Minister without delay. In response, a spokesperson for Meta, Facebook’s parent company, said: “We are investigating the accounts that have been brought to our attention.
Which? said it was told by a broker that it had created nearly 16,000 fake reviews for more than 550 clients around the world (Stock Image)
“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.
“Our safety and security teams are continuously working to help prevent these practices.
“We have requested further authentication of the accounts brought to our attention.”
A Google spokesperson said: “We are investing significantly in building technologies and adopting practices that help people find reliable information on Google.
“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.
“We use a combination of human operators and industry-leading technology to closely monitor for fraudulent content 24/7.
“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. ”
Trustpilot said: ‘The issue of fake reviews is constantly evolving, but Trustpilot is constantly working to ensure we take appropriate action against attempts to manipulate reviews on our site, even if those reviews are written by review sellers.
“Over the past 18 months, we’ve introduced new technology that allows us to understand and track complex patterns of potential abuse to identify review sellers and buyers.
“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, we now offer an additional opportunity for consumers to verify their identity on Trustpilot. We plan to do even more in these areas in the future.
‘Several of the companies linked to the Which? investigations were previously subject to Trustpilot’s enforcement processes. Which? reported them to us after fraudulent activity was identified by our fraud detection software.
“We will continue to monitor the businesses’ activities on Trustpilot and will not hesitate to step up their actions where necessary should they continue to abuse our platform.”