Amazon agrees with CMA to crack down on fake reviews

Amazon has reached an agreement with the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to enhance its systems for tackling fake reviews and a deceptive practice known as “catalogue abuse.”

These undertakings align with the new Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCCA), which explicitly bans bogus online endorsements.

The CMA’s investigation into Amazon stemmed from concerns that the company was not doing enough to protect consumers from misleading reviews. Online reviews significantly influence purchasing decisions, with around 90% of consumers using them.

The CMA estimates that up to £23 billion of UK consumer spending annually is potentially influenced by these online opinions.

Central to the agreement is addressing “catalogue abuse,” a practice where sellers illicitly hijack the reviews of popular, well-performing products and link them to entirely different and separate items.

This artificially inflates the new product’s star rating, severely misleading consumers. For instance, a customer might believe they are purchasing 5-star headphones, only to find the glowing reviews are, in fact, for a mobile phone charger.

To combat these issues, Amazon has committed to implementing robust processes to swiftly detect and remove both fake reviews and catalogue abuse. Crucially, the agreement includes stringent sanctions for offenders:

• Businesses found engaging in catalogue abuse or using fake reviews face penalties, including outright bans from selling on the platform.
• Users who post fake reviews, whether positive or negative, risk being banned from writing any further reviews, with all their previous submissions deleted.
• Amazon will also ensure clearer and more robust mechanisms for both consumers and businesses to report suspicious activity easily.

This move follows earlier undertakings secured by the CMA from Google regarding similar fake review concerns.

Says Sarah Cardell, Chief Executive of the CMA:

“So many people use Amazon, from buying a new bike lock to finding the best coffee machine – and what’s clear is that star ratings and reviews have a huge impact on their choices. That’s why these new commitments matter and help set the standard.

“They mean people can make decisions with greater confidence – knowing that those who seek to pull the wool over their eyes will be swiftly dealt with.”

Adds Rocio Concha, Which? Director of Policy and Advocacy:

“For too long unscrupulous sellers have been able to trick consumers with fake and manipulated reviews – despite Amazon and other retailers claiming to have robust processes in place to block and remove them. Which? has campaigned for years for the CMA to have new powers to crack down on this with multi-million pound fines.

“It’s positive that the CMA is now proactively sweeping the biggest review platforms and the regulator should not hesitate to take strong enforcement action against any companies not complying with the rules.”