eBay and Facebook get tough on fake reviews, banning dozens of groups as a result of the British watchdog probe into the problem.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) remarked that both Facebook and eBay agreed to step up efforts to detect, investigate and respond to fake and misleading reviews after it ordered them last year to address the problem.
It has been reported that Facebook removed 188 pages and groups and disabled 24 accounts that were involved in the fake review trade. eBay permanently banned 53 users who were selling fake review services on the auction site and temporarily suspended another 176 users.
In a statement, CMA’s chief executive, Andrea Coscelli said:
“Fake reviews are really damaging to shoppers and businesses alike. Millions of people base their shopping decisions on reviews… if these are misleading or untrue, then shoppers could end up being misled into buying something that isn’t right for them – leaving businesses who play by the rules missing out.”
While eBay and Facebook get tough on fake reviews, the number of bans is a drop in the ocean. The problem is reported to be pandemic, with some reports suggesting that 75% of Amazon reviews are fake.
This deception affects on the entire retail ecosystem from manufacturers, retailers to consumers. Revenue does not flow to the best product on the market, rather to the most scrupulous sellers. Action from all major review platforms is needed asap to address this issue.
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