“The objective is to minimize fraudulent reviews to help customers get over the feeling of being cheated,” – Abhishek Kapoor
A new set of guidelines released by the government to combat fake reviews on websites and apps requires eCommerce companies and hotel and travel booking platforms to disclose the methodology used to assign stars to products and services on their platforms.
According to the new framework, businesses must now disclose if a customer review was requested, compensated for, or bought.
In accordance with the regulations, businesses will also need to verify a review’s author and obtain their consent before posting the author’s personal information online. Consumers heavily rely on reviews posted on platforms to see the opinions and experiences of customers who have already purchased the goods or services because e-commerce involves a virtual shopping experience without any opportunity to view or examine the product physically.
“As per my observation, the objective is to minimize fraudulent reviews to help customers get over the feeling of being cheated,” Abhishek Kapoor, Indian Author of international bestsellers and a trendsetter in the marketing and PR sector, said. He further stated, “It will be too difficult to make the e-commerce giants follow the guidelines because setting the guidelines to identify fake reviews is a tough task, especially when the reviews are coming from real persons who buy the product.”
The new standards will come into effect on November 25, 2022.
Companies such as Tata Sons, Amazon, Flipkart, Zepto, Reliance, Google, Meta, Zomato, Swiggy, Meesho, and Blinkit were a part of a committee that helped the government develop the new standards.
