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Google, which accounts for the majority of UK searches, will make significant changes to its review processes to fight back against fake reviews of UK businesses, according to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). The regulator has said the search engine will warn companies that have artificially boosted their star rating, and the review function of the worst offenders will be shut down, meaning they cannot get new reviews. Moreover, people who post fake or misleading reviews repeatedly will be banned from posting any more reviews, no matter where they are in the world.
The measures only pertain to reviews for UK businesses when searching on Google or on Google maps, and they will not extend to product reviews. While Google already blocks millions of fraudulent reviews every year through its investment to combat fraudulent content, the pledge will set up robust processes that consumers can rely upon to make informed choices.
Consumer group Which? praised the changes as “a step in the right direction”, but said robust enforcement action, which might include heavy fines, would be required. Commenting on the development, the CMA’s Chief Executive, Sarah Cardell, said the changes “ensure robust processes are in place so people can have confidence in reviews and make the best possible choices”.
From its investigations, the CMA has estimated that online reviews potentially influence about £23bn of consumer spending each year, and Google will have to report to the authority over the next three years to ensure that action is being taken to combat fraudulent reviews. Additionally, the company may change how it responds to fake reviews to adapt to any technological advancements over the next three years.
Although there has been a rise in AI-generated fake reviews on companies, this is not the first time a pledge has been made to combat them. Both Google and Amazon, which are both under investigation for the same issue, have attempted to tackle fake reviews of businesses and products and the investigation is ongoing.
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