October 28, 2024 7:27 AM
Amazon and Google file parallel lawsuits against fake review website
Amazon has zero tolerance for fake reviews. We have robust and long-standing policies that prohibit review abuse, and suspend, ban, and take legal action against those who violate these policies. Fake reviews are a global problem impacting reviews across multiple industries, and we support collaboration across the private and public sector to help stop this issue.
On October 28, Amazon and Google filed parallel lawsuits to take action against Bigboostup.com, a website that facilitates fake product and business reviews targeting Amazon and Google. The website sold fake product reviews to bad actors to publish on their product listing pages in Amazon’s store and fake reviews of business listings on Google Search and Google Maps.
The parallel filings aim to stop the defendant from deceiving customers with future fake review sales
Consumers heavily rely on product reviews when making purchasing decisions and incentivized reviews mislead customers into believing they are from unbiased and independent customers. The private sector, consumer groups, and governments need to team up to send a clear message that this is unacceptable and work to stop fake reviews for good. Amazon and Google’s efforts help demonstrate the power of industry collaboration around fake reviews.
“Our goal is to ensure that every review in Amazon’s store is trustworthy and reflects customers’ actual experiences,” said Claire O’Donnell, Amazon’s director of Selling Partner Trust & Store Integrity. “The parallel actions with Google further our efforts in protecting customers and our selling partners, and we are proud to team up with a company who is also committed to taking action against bad actors attempting to deceive customers.”
This action is a continuation of Amazon’s broader work to hold bad actors accountable outside their store. Amazon has teams dedicated to uncovering and investigating fake review brokers and took legal action against more than 150 bad actors attempting to engage in reviews abuse across the U.S., China, and Europe in 2023. In addition to using legal action to shut down fake review brokers, Amazon uses sophisticated industry-leading tools that use machine-learning models to analyze reviews for fraudulent patterns and suspicious activity prior to publication. As a result of continued investments, Amazon proactively blocked more than 250 million suspected fake reviews from our store in 2023.
Amazon filed its complaint against Bigboostup.com in the Western District of Washington, while Google filed in the Northern District of California.
October 14, 2024 7:00 AM
Recent lawsuits demonstrate Amazon’s ongoing commitment to combating fake reviews
Product reviews are core to the Amazon shopping experience, providing customers with invaluable insights and honest opinions from fellow shoppers. Amazon understands the pivotal role these reviews play in helping consumers make informed purchasing decisions, and is dedicated to preserving the trustworthiness of reviews.
However, the rise of fake review brokers undermines the trust of customers and jeopardizes the success of selling partners. These bad actors operate fraudulent businesses to facilitate the publishing of fake reviews for financial gain in an attempt to mislead customers and give an unfair advantage to those willing to engage in illegal activities.
A zero-tolerance approach
Amazon takes a zero-tolerance approach to fake reviews, and suspends, bans, or takes legal action against those who violate its policies. The first step is detection and prevention of fake reviews. Advanced technology helps Amazon monitor and enforce its policies to ensure only authentic reviews are published. In fact, in 2023, Amazon proactively blocked more than 250 million suspected fake reviews from its stores worldwide.
Amazon also pursues people who attempt to profit off of fake reviews. The company filed its first lawsuit against fake review brokers in 2015, and continues to pursue fraudsters through legal means. In 2023, Amazon pursued legal action against more than 150 bad actors attempting to engage in review abuse across the U.S., China, and Europe. In July 2024, Amazon filed its first ever joint lawsuit against review brokers with the Better Business Bureau (BBB). The lawsuit seeks to hold an illegitimate business called ReviewServiceUSA.com accountable to the full extent of the law, and prevent them from facilitating fake reviews targeting Amazon’s store, the BBB, and other legitimate companies and organizations.
“At Amazon, we understand that businesses of all sizes rely on product reviews to attract customers and grow their brand,” said Claire O’Donnell, Amazon’s director of Selling Partner Trust & Store Integrity. “In addition to our proactive controls, legal action ensures that we hold these bad actors accountable, stop their illicit schemes at the source, and prevent them from harming customers in Amazon’s store and beyond.”
Lawsuits help put an end to fraudulent schemes
In addition to the joint filing with the BBB, Amazon has filed multiple lawsuits this year against fake review brokers who attempt to facilitate fake reviews in Amazon’s store and other companies. In Amazon v. AMZ Mastery, filed in May 2024, defendants sold fake product reviews, fake seller feedback, and other fake content to bad actors operating Amazon selling accounts across Amazon’s global stores. Defendants also sold fake “Helpful” votes on fake reviews to indicate the review was useful in a purchasing decision. The more “Helpful” votes on a review, the further up that review appears on a product listing page.
In a lawsuit filed against an illegal company called Buyvotesforonlinecontest.com, defendants similarly sold fake “Helpful” votes, as well as fake “Down Votes.” This fraudulent service consisted of defendants clicking on the “Report” button next to negative product reviews on a bad actor’s product listing page in an attempt to have the reviews taken down, making their overall product ratings go up. Amazon’s expert investigators were able to track down these bad actors, and then take action against them.
In March, Amazon obtained a first-of-its-kind judgment in a case against a fraudulent company facilitating fake seller feedback, Auction Sentinel, resulting in the website domain being transferred to Amazon. Most recently, Amazon filed lawsuits against Lotstrade and ReviewerAgency, both operated by defendants who facilitated fake reviews and other fake content in Amazon’s store. Lotstrade also operated as a searchable database where defendants posted bad actors’ products and solicitated reviewers to leave fake reviews in exchange for full product refunds.
Holding bad actors accountable
Amazon is committed to ensuring reviews remain a trustworthy, insightful resource for customers. The company continues to hold bad actors accountable through legal means in an effort to stop fake reviews at the source and protect customers, selling partners, and its store. By taking legal action, Amazon sends a strong message that these illicit practices will not be tolerated. Advanced technology, expert investigators, and continued collaboration with industry partners, associations, and law enforcement agencies will help prevent review abuse worldwide.
The lawsuits referenced were filed in King County Superior Court under case numbers:
- BBB: 24-2-16106-6 SEA
- AMZ Mastery: 24-2-12185-4 SEA
- Buyvotesforonlinecontest.com: 24-2-19168-2 SEA
- Auction Sentinel: 22-2-12548-9 SEA
- Lotstrade: 24-2-22064-0 SEA
- ReviewerAgency: 24-2-22063-1 SEA
May 1, 2024 7:00 AM
Lawsuits against fraudsters target the source of fake reviews
One lawsuit resulted in a first-of-its kind judgment for Amazon in a case against a fake review broker.
Amazon continues to take legal action against fake review brokers worldwide. These brokers knowingly conducted illegal activity intended to deceive Amazon customers and harm Amazon selling partners by facilitating fake reviews and other fake content.
Fake reviews are primarily being driven by an illicit “fake review broker” industry. These brokers portray themselves as legitimate businesses and approach customers directly through websites, social media channels, and encrypted messaging services, soliciting them to write fake reviews in exchange for money, free products, or other incentives.
Amazon is aggressively fighting fake reviews, using a combination of machine-learning models along with expert investigators to ensure that every review in our store is authentic and reflects customers’ actual experiences. In addition to our proactive technology, one effective way to shutting down fake review brokers completely is legal action. By taking legal action, Amazon is targeting the source of the problem, preventing fake reviews from ever being seen by a customer. As a result of continued investments, Amazon proactively blocked more than 250 million suspected fake reviews from our store in 2023.
“Customers rely on product reviews to make informed purchase decisions, and these fraudsters need to be held accountable for intentionally deceiving Amazon customers, harming our selling partners, and abusing our store,” said Claire O’Donnell, Amazon’s director of Selling Partner Trust & Store Integrity. “We will continue pursuing fake review brokers in order to maintain a trustworthy shopping experience.”
In March, Amazon obtained a judgment against a fake review broker in Amazon v. Auction Sentinel. Owners and operators of the website auctionsentinel.com sold fake five-star “verified” seller feedback to bad actors operating Amazon selling accounts in order to artificially inflate the bad actors’ ratings in Amazon’s store. Defendants also offered a “Stealth Account Setup Service” that assisted in the creation of fraudulent selling accounts for bad actors who would otherwise be ineligible to create a new selling account in the Amazon store. The court ultimately granted disgorgement damages, requiring defendants to give up any profits made as a result of their illegal conduct. The website domain has since been transferred to Amazon.
Amazon made progress on three additional lawsuits that help ensure the trustworthiness of product reviews:
- Amazon v. AmzonReview.com: The website AmzonReview.com sold fake positive product reviews and used Amazon customer accounts in their control to publish fake content, using a second website to specifically target bad actors selling Kindle products.
- Amazon v. Dragon-Dealz.com: Owners and operators of Dragon-Dealz.com provided a platform for bad actors operating Amazon selling accounts to offer refunds to prospective reviewers on product purchases in Amazon’s store in exchange for a fake positive review of the bad actors’ products. The defendants targeted bad actors operating in the U.S., Canada, Germany, Italy, and UK.
- Amazon v. Reviewerschannel.com: The owners and operators of Reviewerschannel.com facilitated fake positive product reviews and fake positive seller feedback by offering product refunds to prospective reviewers. Defendants targeted prospective reviewers in the U.S., Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Spain, United Arab Emirates, and UK.
Amazon pioneered online product reviews, having introduced them in 1995 to help customers make informed shopping decisions. Amazon has zero tolerance for fake reviews and is committed to ensuring reviews remain a trustworthy, insightful resource for customers. These legal actions represent a continuation of Amazon’s efforts to protect its customers and selling partners, and we will continue holding fraudsters accountable.
Learn more about Amazon’s actions to ensure trustworthy reviews: