Amazon, Better Business Bureau File Joint Lawsuit Targeting Fake Reviews
Amazon.com and the Better Business Bureau filed a lawsuit last week against a business called ReviewServiceUSA.com that allegedly facilitated the sale of fake, positive reviews on Amazon product listings and Better Business Bureau profile pages. “In exchange for a fee, defendants or their agents used customer accounts that they control to post fake product reviews on the product listing pages of bad actors operating Amazon selling accounts,” alleges the suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Seattle. It’s the first joint lawsuit for Amazon in its long-running battle to weed out fraudulent online reviews from its e-commerce platform.
Total Retail's Take: Fake reviews have long been a thorn in the side of Amazon, and one that the e-commerce giant has spent plenty of time and resources on trying to eliminate. Amazon filed its first lawsuit over fake reviews in 2015, with the company reporting that it blocked more than 250 million suspected fake reviews in 2023. Why such a commitment from Amazon to prevent fake reviews on its marketplace? One, fake reviews can erode consumer trust in the brands and products being sold on the e-commerce platform, costing Amazon potential revenue. Two, the prevalence of fake reviews, which serve to boost fraudsters' brands and products in Amazon's recommendation algorithm, give other potential sellers pause before joining the platform. It's in the best interest of Amazon, its sellers, and consumers to remove fake reviews from the e-commerce site. Thus the latest in a long string of lawsuits to prevent fake reviews from appearing on Amazon.com.
