Concerned about fake Amazon reviews? FTC now officially bans them for good

Fake Amazon reviews are easy to come by, especially in the age of AI, where such comments could be easily automated. There is even a social media called SocialAI where you’re the only human user and the rest are AI NPCs, commenting on all your posts & spamming your feed.

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) previously announced a final rule that bans the sale and purchase of fake, AI-generated reviews and testimonials online back in August. And now, Lina Khan, the FTC’s commissioner, announces on X that the ruling comes into effect as of today.

“If you encounter any of these prohibited practices, you can report them to @FTC at: https://reportfraud.ftc.gov,” Khan mentions in the tweet, allowing the FTC to impose penalties on those who knowingly violate it.

There has been an ongoing effort to combat fake Amazon reviews, not only on that specific marketplace but everywhere on the net. The FTC has also previously taken action against companies like Roomster for pumping 5-star reviews and Fashion Nova for burying negative ones.

Earlier this month, Amazon launched new lawsuits against fake review brokers, including a joint case with the Better Business Bureau. The marketplace giant also said that it’s proactively blocked over 250 million fake reviews in 2023 alone, besides pursuing legal action against more than 150 bad actors globally.

Last year, Mozilla acquired also Fakespot, an online service that helps users filter out fake reviews, unreliable sellers, and counterfeit products, and integrated it into the browser as an anti-AI Review Checker.