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Google and Amazon are being investigated by the competition and regulator for fake reviews

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The UK’s competition watchdog has opened a probe into tech giants Google and Amazon to assess whether the companies have broken consumer law.

The investigation is focussing on fake reviews on the platforms, assessing whether the pair have done enough to detect and protect online shoppers from false or misleading reviews of goods, services, products and businesses.

The Competition and Market Authority (CMA) first conducted an initial investigation into Amazon and Google in May last year, examining the systems and methods several platforms used to identify and tackle fake reviews.

It said it had also uncovered “specific concerns” over whether the platforms were doing enough to detect suspicious patterns of behaviour from reviewers, including monitoring reviews submitted by the same cluster of users across the same range of products or businesses at a similar time when there is no clear link between them and reviews, suggesting that the writer had been paid or received another form of incentive for posting a positive rating.

Similarly, the CMA is concerned whether the pair was adequately investigating and swiftly removing false reviews, or imposing sanctions to the individual reviewers or businesses behind misleading reviews – including repeat offenders.

Andrea Coscelli, chief executive of the CMA, said the authority was concerned that millions of online shoppers could have been misled by reading fake reviews before spending their money on those recommendations.

“Equally, it’s simply not fair if some businesses can fake 5-star reviews to give their products or services the most prominence, while law-abiding businesses lose out,” he said.

“We are investigating concerns that Amazon and Google have not been doing enough to prevent or remove fake reviews to protect customers and honest businesses. It’s important that these tech platforms take responsibility and we stand ready to take action if we find that they are not doing enough.”

While the CMA has not yet established whether the companies have broken the law in the UK, it could take enforcement action against them if it felt it had sufficient evidence to prove the law had been broken.

These actions could range from securing formal commitments from the companies to improve their practices to taking them to court if required.

“Our strict policies clearly state reviews must be based on real experiences, and when we find policy violations, we take action — from removing abusive content to disabling user accounts,” a Google spokesperson said.

“We look forward to continuing our work with the CMA to share more on how our industry-leading technology and review teams work to help users find relevant and useful information on Google.”

An Amazon spokesperson said that the company “devoted significant resources to preventing fake or incentivised reviews from appearing in our store” to help earn the trust of its customers.

“We work hard to ensure that reviews accurately reflect the experience that customers have had with a product.  We will continue to assist the CMA with its enquiries and we note its confirmation that no findings have been made against our business,” they added.

“We are relentless in protecting our store and will take action to stop fake reviews regardless of the size or location of those who attempt this abuse.”

The CMA’s investigation is the latest in a long line of investigations into fake reviews on platforms with the potential to mislead shoppers.

Facebook agreed to better identify, investigate and respond to fake and misleading reviews in January last year following concerns raised by the FCA about the proliferation of fake reviews in Facebook groups and on eBay, but dozens of Facebook groups trading fake reviews were still active seven months layer, consumer group Which? found.

Another recent investigation from Which? found that five-star reviews for best-selling items on Amazon Marketplace had been exchanged for rewards in attempts to get negative ones removed.

“We have repeatedly exposed fake reviews on websites including Amazon and Google, so this investigation is a positive step. The CMA must now move swiftly towards establishing whether these companies have broken the law,” said Rocio Concha, Which? director of policy and advocacy.

“This should prompt Amazon and Google to finally take the necessary steps to protect users from the growing tide of fake reviews on their platforms and, if they fail to do so, the regulator must be prepared to take strong enforcement action.

“The government must also give online platforms greater legal responsibility for tackling fake and fraudulent content on their sites – including fake and misleading review activity.”

All content in this article is for informational purposes only and in no way serves as investment advice. Investing in cryptocurrencies, commodities and stocks is very risky and can lead to capital losses.
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