Trust In Reviews? Amazon And Partners Want More
Posted on 11/08/2023
Companies such as Amazon rely heavily on reviews. However, among a certain set of users, the system can be controlled. In response, Amazon, Booking.com, Expedia Group, Glassdoor, Tripadvisor, and Trustpilot announced the launch the Coalition for Trusted Reviews, a cross-industry collaboration committed to protecting access to trustworthy consumer reviews worldwide. Members will define best practices for hosting online reviews and sharing methods of fake review detection, aiming to stop fake reviews.
The project was initiated when companies met in October 2022 in San Francisco for the Fake Reviews Conference, organized by Tripadvisor. Attendees heard from experts in government, academia and the industry at large on common challenges and potential mitigation approaches related to the issue of fake reviews. This resulted in the establishment of a formal coalition to collaborate on public education and ongoing information sharing between members, in an effort to decrease review fraud.
The group has agreed to engage in several key areas to protect consumers and partners from fake reviews, including:
- Industry Alignment. Developing common standards and definitions for use throughout the industry around what constitutes a fake review and other content moderation nomenclature and measurement.
- Best Practice Sharing. Defining best practices for hosting online reviews and sharing information on updated content moderation process and methods of fake review detection.
- Information Sharing. Sharing information relating to how fraudulent actors operate, such as companies selling fake reviews to businesses seeking to unfairly and improperly improve their reputations.
- Advocacy. Engaging with academics and public policy leaders to promote the benefits to consumers of review content and support industry efforts to combat fake reviews from being published.
The coalition says it will uphold standards of integrity, transparency, and accountability through collaborative initiatives. Another conference is set for early December.
Dharmesh Mehta, Amazon’s VP of Worldwide Selling Partner Services said: “Customer reviews are an important part of the shopping experience, and the goal of this coalition is to ensure every review reflects customers’ actual experiences. Amazon is aggressively fighting fake review brokers to protect our customers and selling partners, but these fraudsters are a global problem, impacting multiple industry sectors. Through greater collaboration and sharing across industries, including information on fraudsters’ tactics and how they operate, we can more effectively shut down fraudulent review activity, deter other bad actors from attempting to game our systems, and protect more consumers.”
