Some of the most used platforms for travel and online shopping said Tuesday they91裸聊视频檙e going to team up to battle fake reviews.
Amazon, reviews site Glassdoor and Trustpilot, as well as travel companies Expedia Group, Booking.com and Tripadvisor said in an announcement they91裸聊视频檙e launching a coalition that aims to protect access to 91裸聊视频渢rustworthy consumer reviews91裸聊视频� worldwide.
The companies said the members of the group, which will be called Coalition for Trusted Reviews, will look for best practices for hosting online reviews and share methods on how to detect fake ones. That will include developing standards for what constitutes a fake review and sharing information about how bad actors operate.
Phony reviews have long plagued online marketplaces despite their efforts to eradicate it. Much of the problem is fueled by brokers who solicit fake customer reviews through social media platforms, encrypted messaging apps and other channels in exchange for money, free items or other benefits. Brokers can solicit positive reviews to boost sales for businesses or sellers. They can also also post negative reviews for competitors in order to tank their sales.
Last month, Amazon said two review brokers in China were sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison and three years of probation after using messaging apps to advertise and sell fake reviews to Amazon selling accounts. The company has filed a flurry of other lawsuits in the past year against operators that it says were doing similar things. Last year, it also that it alleged were coordinating bogus reviews in exchange for money or free products.
Facebook groups trading reviews for Google and Trustpilot, which allows users to leave feedback for businesses, were also discovered earlier this year by the British consumer watchdog group 91裸聊视频淲hich?91裸聊视频�
Federal regulators have also been aiming to crack down on bogus reviews aiming to deceive consumers. In June, the Federal Trade Commission that, among other things, would prohibit businesses from selling or obtaining fake reviews, suppressing honest reviews and selling fake social media engagement.
Businesses would also be prohibited from creating or controlling a website that claims to provide independent opinions about its products and employing other practices like 91裸聊视频渞eview hijacking,91裸聊视频� which makes reviews for one product appear like they were written for different ones. If the proposal is adopted, violators can be face penalties.
Becky Foley, Tripadvisor91裸聊视频檚 vice president for Trust & Safety, said in a statement included in the news release that combating operators behind fake reviews will be 91裸聊视频渁n immediate area of focus91裸聊视频� for the coalition.
91裸聊视频淭hese actors often operate outside of jurisdictions with a legal framework to shut down fraudulent activity, making robust cooperation even more important,91裸聊视频� Foley said.
The companies said the coalition is a result conversations that came out of a 91裸聊视频淔ake Reviews91裸聊视频� conference that was organized by Tripadvisor and held last year in San Francisco. They said they will meet in early December at a second conference that will be organized by Amazon and held in Brussels.
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