Fake Trustpilot Reviews Being Sold Online

The BBC found out in a recent investigation that five-star reviews on Trustpilot, a leading global review website, are being bought and sold online. Additionally, it was discovered that some Amazon shoppers are being offered full refunds for good reviews.

The UK government’s Competition and Markets Authority says that such reviews affect as much as £23 billion in consumer spending in the country per year. US analysts also say that potentially around half of the reviews on websites such as Amazon are unreliable.

It is said that Amazon’s prohibition of “incentivized reviews”, where customers are offered free products or refunds for positive reviews merely drove the practice underground.

Source: BBC