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The Â鶹´«Ã½ Trade Commission today charged that Sitejabber, a company offering an AI-enabled consumer review platform, deceived consumers by misrepresenting that ratings and reviews it published came from customers who experienced the reviewed product or service, artificially inflating average ratings and review counts.
Under a proposed order settling the agency’s complaint, Sitejabber will be prohibited from making such misrepresentations in the future and from making other misrepresentations about consumer ratings or reviews.
“Platforms don’t have free rein to mislead people about the consumer reviews shown for companies and their products,†said Samuel Levine, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “Along with our rule on fake reviews and testimonials, cases like this one show that we’ll act to stop all forms of deception in the review ecosystem.â€
According to the FTC’s complaint, GGL Projects, Inc., which does business as Sitejabber, collected ratings and reviews for its online business clients from consumers at the time of purchase, before they received or had the chance to experience the products or services they bought. For example, after online customers checked out, they were asked to “rate your overall shopping experience so far†on a 5-star scale and then to “type a quick message about your shopping experience so far.â€
Sitejabber allegedly used these point-of-sale ratings and reviews to deceptively inflate the average ratings and review counts of its clients on the company’s review platform, claiming that the ratings “indicat[e] that most customers are generally satisfied with their purchases.†Sitejabber’s inflated ratings and review counts were also displayed in Google and other search results.
Further, the complaint alleges that Sitejabber provided its clients with pre-fulfilment product ratings and reviews by asking customers, “Why did you choose the [product] today?†and requesting a rating on a 5-star scale. The FTC alleges that, by providing clients with product review tools that allowed them to publish this feedback on their own websites as product reviews and ratings, Sitejabber provided its clients with the means to misrepresent that the reviews and ratings were from customers who had received their purchases.
The proposed order prohibits the company from misrepresenting, or assisting anyone else in misrepresenting, that the average customer rating, number of ratings or reviews, or any rating or review of a product, service, or business reflects the views of customers who actually received the product or service purchased or had an opportunity to experience the product or service. It also bars Sitejabber from making or assisting anyone else in making any misrepresentation about any ratings, average ratings, or reviews it collects, moderates, or displays.
Finally, the proposed order prohibits Sitejabber from providing others with the means to misrepresent that ratings or reviews collected at the time of purchase were from consumers who had received or had the opportunity to experience the product or service purchased.
The Commission vote to issue the administrative complaint and to accept the consent agreement was 5-0, with Commissioners Andrew Ferguson and Melissa Holyoak issuing separate statements.
The FTC will publish a description of the consent agreement package in the Â鶹´«Ã½ Register soon. The agreement will be subject to public comment, after which the Commission will decide whether to make the proposed consent order final. Instructions for filing comments will appear in the published notice. Comments must be received 30 days after publication in the Â鶹´«Ã½ Register. Once processed, comments will be posted on Regulations.gov.
NOTE: The Commission issues an administrative complaint when it has “reason to believe†that the law has been or is being violated, and it appears to the Commission that a proceeding is in the public interest. When the Commission issues a consent order on a final basis, it carries the force of law with respect to future actions. Each violation of such an order may result in a civil penalty of up to $51,744.
The staff attorneys on this matter are Michael Ostheimer and Michel Atleson in the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.
The Â鶹´«Ã½ Trade Commission works to promote competition and protect and educate consumers. The FTC will never demand money, make threats, tell you to transfer money, or promise you a prize. Learn more about consumer topics at , or report fraud, scams, and bad business practices at . Follow the FTC on social media, read and the business blog, and sign up to get the latest FTC news and alerts.