Amazon is taking legal action against administrators of more than 10,000 Facebook groups for allegedly trying to orchestrate fake reviews on Amazon in exchange for free products or money.
Amazon Sues Social Media Group Admins Over Alleged Fake Reviews
A statement issued by Amazon on how it is targeting social media review scammers says the groups are created to recruit people willing to post misleading and incentivized reviews of Amazon stores.
According to the statement, groups created to manage fake reviews are present in the US, UK, France, Germany, Spain, Italy and Japan.
Amazon constantly monitors reviews
The online retail giant constantly monitors reviews and says it will use the information identified in the legal action to remove fake reviews that have been commissioned by fraudsters that have not yet been detected by its advanced technology and expert researchers.
The rise of online shopping means that consumers no longer rely solely on word of mouth recommendations. Instead, shoppers use online reviews to gain valuable information about a product that will help them make purchasing decisions.
For businesses selling on Amazon, it’s important that product reviews are honest and trustworthy. Fake reviews could mean you’re unfairly losing sales to competitors. Dishonest negative reviews can also damage a seller’s reputation, which can be detrimental to a small business.
Eliminate review scammers
Referring to the importance of demand in weeding out the authors of fake reviews, Dharmesh Mehta, Amazon’s vice president of Selling Partner Services, said: “Our teams stop millions of suspicious reviews before customers see, and this demand continues, another step to discover the authors who operate on social networks.
“Proactive legal action targeting bad actors is one of the many ways we protect customers by holding bad actors accountable.”
One of the groups behind the fake reviews and identified in the lawsuit is known as “Amazon Product Review.” The group had over 43,000 members until Meta took it down in early 2022.
Amazon prohibits fake reviews
Amazon strictly prohibits fake reviews. The retailer employs more than 12,000 people worldwide to help protect Amazon sellers online, including protecting them from fake reviews.
Since 2020, Amazon has reported over 10,000 fake review groups in Meta. More than half of these groups have been removed by Meta for policy violations. The company notes how previous legal actions it has taken have been effective in shutting down major review corridors.
While many small businesses may tend to have a love-hate relationship with reviews, few can deny that reviews need to be honest and trustworthy in order to work. Amazon’s lawsuit against groups involved in monetizing fake reviews highlights the importance of review culture in today’s consumer environment and the value of honest reviews.
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