Amazon has revealed tens of thousands of paid reviews: how their authors make money

Imagine you buy a product on Amazon, write a five-star review, and get the product and your money back in return. It sounds too good to be true, but nevertheless, there are people all over the world who do this through established networks in Facebook and Telegram. Writes about it Business Insider.

Photo: Shutterstock

In September, Amazon removed 20 reviews from its website after an investigation by the Financial Times found UK reviewers could be paid for their comments.

Fake reviews can mislead users and cause a surge in product demand.

97% of US customers look at reviews when buying a product, so a lot of fake reviews can lead to a change in their spending habits. Amazon cannot contain the problem right now due to the sheer amount of fake reviews.

An easily accessible but well-hidden network

Fake review networks are easily accessible by simply typing “Amazon product reviews” on Facebook or Telegram. Administrators are well aware of how not to fall into the trap of writing five-star reviews for brands that need them (primarily small Asian ones).

It is difficult to know who is in charge of the network. All indications are that there is a chain of accomplices that include companies that hire fake reviewers and intermediaries between reviewers and manufacturers.

Valeria, who asked to change her name, said she started writing fake reviews during her isolation.

“I bought a blackhead remover and it came with a card that said, 'Would you like a gift? Scan this code,” she said. — I did this and was redirected to a website that said if I gave it a five-star rating on Amazon, I would get my money back. I did that too and was amazed when they transferred the money to my PayPal account.”

At the time, Valeria had no idea that the network of fake reviewers was so extensive. However, when she bought an electric toothbrush and wrote a negative review on Amazon, it opened up new earning opportunities.

“The sellers sent me an email saying that if I deleted the review, they would give me my money back to make up for the bad experience,” she said. “I did this, and within three days the money was in my account.”

On the subject: Seven Free Apps to Save Money on Amazon Shopping

The art of a fake view

Fake review networks regularly release a catalog of products that can be requested from Amazon, and users receive money after their reviews are published. Sometimes the compensation they receive is even higher than the original cost of the product. In other cases, especially if the product is expensive, users will keep it and get some of their money back.

Valeria has identified several such products, one of which is the Roomba robot vacuum cleaner. It costs around $240, users will get around $120 and may also lose a few dollars due to the PayPal currency exchange rate.

“They say online that Amazon is wary of these reviews and they are easy to get caught, so there are a lot of rules to follow,” said another user, Carla. However, she believes it was worth the effort because of the money she saved over the Christmas period and the last few months.

The rules are designed to make a fake review look like a real one and not be detected by Amazon algorithms. You need to wait 7-10 days after the purchase, link your account to the wishlist on the site, write a review with a certain number of words: almost everything is thought out.

“They ask you to make only positive comments, except for a small complaint like the cable being a little smaller than you expected—mostly that's something no one cares about,” Carla said.

If found, the account can be deleted by site administrators by applying sanctions to the brand. This is why users need to take precautions to make their account look authentic, including buying multiple products at the same time or selecting an item and then waiting five minutes before purchasing it.

You may be interested in: top New York news, stories of our immigrants and helpful tips about life in the Big Apple - read it all on ForumDaily New York

Amazon's position on fake reviews

“Any attempts to manipulate community content or features, including by providing false, misleading, or inaccurate content, are strictly prohibited,” Amazon’s policies state.

While they do not explicitly refer to paid reviews, the company has emphasized that this is prohibited behavior that could lead to the suspension or deletion of user accounts. The giant is trying to detect false positives, as well as negative ones, that they publish in order to undermine the competition and reduce the rating of their products.

“We want Amazon customers to shop with confidence, knowing that the reviews they read are credible and relevant,” an Amazon spokesperson said. — We take action against those who violate our policies. This may include suspension or deletion of their accounts or legal action."

He also noted that the reviews are being analyzed by the research team using a machine learning system, although he did not specify how many people are involved.

The problem of fake reviews is not exclusive to Amazon—Google Maps has also experienced this. Some agencies paid up to $2,40 for false reviews, including through PayPal.

Read also on ForumDaily:

Jeff Bezos leaves the post of CEO of Amazon: what he will do

Who is the richest resident of your state: list of US billionaires

XNUMX costly mistakes we make when shopping online

Twenty states with minimum wages to rise in 2021

Do you want more important and interesting news about life in the USA and immigration to America? — support us donate! Also subscribe to our page Facebook. Select the “Priority in display” option and read us first. Also, don't forget to subscribe to our РєР ° РЅР ° Р »РІ Telegram  and Instagram- there is a lot of interesting things there. And join thousands of readers ForumDaily New York — there you will find a lot of interesting and positive information about life in the metropolis.