Multiple Faces Detected
December 6th, 2019
Do you check out the products you want to buy online before purchase?
Maybe you use online reviews before hiring professional services or downloading an app. Unfortunately, one scam on the rise involves fake online reviews. This happens when you read a bunch of overwhelmingly positive reviews, with four or five-star ratings, and think you’ll get a great deal.
However, if you fall for fake review scams, you could end up losing cash and being unsatisfied with your purchase. Some fake reviews are on scammer sites and might lead to your credit card information being stolen, should you enter it!
Recent News on Fake Reviews
Fake online reviews aren’t only a theory, and they happen all the time. One company, Sunday Riley Modern Skincare, has just settled with the Federal Trade Commission for its use of fake skincare reviews.
Just what did the company do?
They wanted to sell more of their products through Sephora, so they ordered employees to post great reviews. Their staff also clicked “dislike” on any (real) negative reviews. Through the FTC’s settlement, the company has, essentially, been ordered not to do it again and thus avoided a fine.
How did Sunday Riley get away with fake reviews for so long?
Once Sephora caught on to the suspect reviews, they removed them. Sunday, Riley then tried to use a VPN or Virtual Private Network to hide their IP address and post more fake reviews. The FTC’s settlement did suggest that future misconduct could lead to civil fines in the future.
Fake reviews are often easy to spot as they are just a little too good to be true. They sound promotional, only have 4 or 5 stars, and flood the site at once or occur incrementally. To avoid fake reviews, the FTC suggests choosing the website you use for comparative reviews well.
Is the poster a verified buyer?
Also, look to more than one site and compare the reviews. If each site has identical reviews, you’re dealing with a bot or fake online review. If you suspect a fake online review, make sure that you purchase the product from a trusted retailer with an excellent return policy, just in case.
Although taking the time to verify whether a review is accurate, it will save you time and money in the long run. Don’t buy a purchase just because AI technology has posted excellent reviews using a bot.
Scammers never rest, but Social Catfish doesn’t either. We can background check anyone you meet online – from sellers to buyers, to company phone numbers, logos and photographs, usernames, and more. Search Social Catfish today and empower yourself with our proprietary algorithm, which can search by name, email address, phone number, username, and image.
Use the information you discover to protect yourself and your wallet. Social Catfish scans the top search engines, public databases, and social accounts. Don’t fall for fake online reviews, search instead!
