Earlier this year, the government published its long-awaited Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill. As well as seeking to boost digital competition, the bill also makes a range of interventions in the consumer space, including tackling fake reviews.
The importance of reviews is clear – consumers want to make more informed and confident decisions, a factor that is more vital in the current economic climate when budgets are so stretched. They’re also invaluable for businesses who want to access customer feedback and hone their business offering accordingly.
However, as the government has correctly identified, there is an issue with bad actors manipulating this valuable source of consumer insight by peddling fake reviews.
At Trustpilot, we define a fake review as a review that is not based on a genuine experience. We dedicate a significant amount of resources to keeping fake reviews off our platform, even going as far as suing businesses engaged in buying fake reviews on our platform. Trust is at the core of our business and we can’t let fake reviews jeopardise that....