The Federal Trade Commission has unanimously voted to ban marketers from using fake reviews, such as those generated by AI technology, and other misleading practices to promote their products and services. The final rule will go into effect 60 days after it is published in the Federal Register, with violations potentially resulting in fines for each offense. The rule prohibits reviews written by non-humans, paying for positive or negative reviews, and exaggerating influence by paying for bots to inflate follower counts.
With the prevalence of e-commerce, influencer marketing, and generative AI, advertisers have turned to automated chatbots to generate user reviews. This has led to consumers making purchases based on false praise and misleading promises. Companies that may have policed themselves in the past will now be subject to stricter government oversight under the new rule, streamlining and strengthening the FTC’s ability to enforce the ban in house.
Some e-commerce companies have already taken steps to address fake reviews, such as Amazon suing over 10,000 Facebook group administrators for brokering fake reviews in July 2022. The announcement of the FTC’s new rule coincided with the White House’s first “Creator Economy Conference,” where concerns about the industry were discussed with online influencers and digital content professionals. Overall, the ban on fake reviews aims to protect consumers from deceptive marketing practices and ensure fair competition in the marketplace.
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