eBay and Facebook have made a pledge to stop the circulation of fake reviews on their platforms so hopefully sellers will have to worry less about fake competition. In June we reported that the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) urged eBay to conduct an “urgent review” of the marketplace to prevent the sale of fake reviews. On both platforms fake review services were being sold and used by sellers to creating a false sense of security for consumers and an unfair situation for sellers with genuine feedback.
The CMA have made it clear that marketplaces have a responsibility to make sure harmful content isn’t advertised or sold. The manipulation caused by such content can be damaging towards the trust of consumers, lured in by the appearance of misleading reviews that eventually cause confusion and the loss of trust towards marketplaces and honest sellers who work hard to ensure the service that they provide customers is at a professional standard.
“We maintain zero tolerance for fake or misleading reviews and will continue to take action against any seller that breaches our user polices. We welcome today’s CMA report, as well as their acknowledgement of our ongoing enforcement work on this issue”
-Spokesperson, eBay
What is being done to prevent the fake reviews?
Since June Facebook has removed 188 groups and disabled 24 user accounts, and eBay has permanently banned 140 users.
According to CMA both platforms have announced that they will be putting measures in place to help prevent fake reviews appearing in the future. Facebook will start using systems to detect and remove such content and eBay have already improved their current filters to identify and block listings that offer the sale of fake reviews.
“Fake reviews are really damaging to shoppers and businesses alike. Millions of people base their shopping decisions on reviews, and 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.
We’re pleased that Facebook and eBay are doing the right thing by committing to tackle this problem and helping to keep their sites free from posts selling fake reviews.”
– Andrea Coscelli, Chief Executive, CMA
