Weight Loss Diet Solutions

Fake reviews for items on sites like Amazon are a nuisance at best and downright dangerous at worst.

Despite efforts to tackle the issue, it’s still a big problem for online shopping sites, so it comes as a surprise to learn that this week the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) achieved only its first settlement in proceedings that challenged a merchant’s use of fake, paid-for reviews.

The FTC targeted Cure Encapsulations, Inc. in a case that accused it of paying a third-party website to write and post fake Amazon reviews for its garcinia cambogia weight-loss supplement, and of making unsubstantiated claims for the product.

According to the FTC, the company advertised and sold “Quality Encapsulations Garcinia Cambogia Extract with HCA” capsules on Amazon.com as an appetite-suppressing, fat-blocking, weight-loss pill.

Supplements using garcinia cambogia have been at the center of much debate over the years, with many experts questioning the safety and effectiveness of the fruit extract for the purposes of weight loss.

The FTC said the company paid a website called amazonverifiedreviews.com to write and post reviews of the weight-loss product for its Amazon listing, and also claimed that it asked the reviewers to ensure it maintained a rating of at least 4.3 stars out of a maximum 5.

The reviews, as well as information displayed on the supplement’s product page on Amazon, were described as making “false and unsubstantiated claims,” for example, that the product “literally BLOCKS FAT From Forming.”

Settling the case this week, the FTC imposed a fine of $12.8 million, with $50,000 due immediately and the rest suspended upon specific conditions.

In addition, Cure Encapsulations has been ordered to contact customers who bought the supplement, and to inform Amazon that it used fake, paid-for reviews.

The company has also been banned from making the same or similar products unless it has “competent and reliable scientific evidence” of their effectiveness in the form of human clinical testing.

“People rely on reviews when they’re shopping online,” Andrew Smith, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, said in a release. “When a company buys fake reviews to inflate its Amazon ratings, it hurts both shoppers and companies that play by the rules.”

Whether the FTC’s recent action marks the start of a more concerted effort to tackle the issue of fake, paid-for reviews remains to be seen.

Amazon is known to go after merchants that buy fake reviews as well as the companies that supply them, but insists the “vast majority” of reviews on its site are authentic.

The company told Digital Trends it welcomes the FTC’s work in this area, adding, “Amazon invests significant resources to protect the integrity of reviews in our store because we know customers value the insights and experiences shared by fellow shoppers.”

It said it has “clear participation guidelines for both reviewers and selling partners,” and, when necessary, acts against those who violate its policies.

Not sure if that super-positive Amazon review for an item you’re interested in is fake? Then follow Digital Trends’ top tips to find out.

Updated on February 28, 2019: Added statement from Amazon.

In the first case of its kind, the Federal Trade Commission took action against a diet pill seller for both making false claims and paying to juice their standing on Amazon with fake positive reviews.

The fruit of garcinia cambogia has been hailed by some as a powerful weight loss supplement. Of course, there’s no conclusive scientific evidence to support this—although there is some indication that in rare cases it may lead to liver failure, which led the FDA to issue a notice about a product containing the active ingredient—which is why most purveyors of junk diet pills tend to make their efficacy claims vague. Cure Encapsulations, which the FTC ruled against yesterday, had no such modesty, instead stating that the extract in question “Literally BLOCKS FAT From Forming.”

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What differentiates this from every other fake weight loss panacea fiasco is that Naftula Jacobowitz, the owner/operator of Cure Encapsulations, “paid a website, amazonverifiedreviews.com, to create and post Amazon reviews of their product,” according to the FTC—demanding his products retain an average rating of 4.3 stars. As the world’s largest ecommerce marketplace, Amazon has become ground zero for cutthroat tactics in achieving greater product visibility—among which fake reviews are a well-worn method. According to one Pew Research study, the majority of Americans sometimes check online reviews, though only around half believe they’re trustworthy.

Unsurprisingly, Jacobowitz was previously sued by another Amazon seller in 2016 for, among other things submitting “false negative feedback and/or other false complaints to Amazon.com,” which the plaintiff claimed caused her to lose the coveted Amazon ‘Buy Box,’ a piece of screen real estate associated with higher sales. (The case was settled via permanent injunction in September of 2016.)

Amazon itself has taken legal action over the years on multiple occasions against entities abusing its review system, but this case marks the first time the FTC has involved itself in these matters. “We welcome the FTC’s work in this area. Amazon invests significant resources to protect the integrity of reviews in our store because we know customers value the insights and experiences shared by fellow shoppers,” an Amazon spokesperson told Gizmodo. “Even one inauthentic review is one too many.”

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Recommended in the ruling, and pending judgment in New York’s Eastern District Court, are a variety of stipulations against Jacobowitz’s Cure Encapsulations. His company would be required to notify prior customers of the claims against it and identify the paid reviews for Amazon. The company would also no longer be able to make “weight-loss, appetite-suppression, fat-blocking, or disease-treatment claims” about products without “reliable scientific evidence in the form of human clinical testing,” and face a largely suspended fine of $12.8 million.

Updated with comment from Amazon

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is cracking down on fake Amazon reviews.

The FTC has successfully brought the first-ever case against a supplement company that allegedly boosted its Amazon ratings through a third-party firm that crafts fake “verified” reviews.

READ MORE:
Fake or real? Consumers and marketing expert caution about believing online reviews

According to the settlement, Cure Encapsulations sold a supplement on Amazon touted as an “appetite-suppressing, fat-blocking, weight-loss pill.”

One of the ingredients in the supplement is an Indonesian plant called garcinia cambogia that has been linked to acute liver failure.

“People rely on reviews when they’re shopping online. When a company buys fake reviews to inflate its Amazon ratings, it hurts both shoppers and companies that play by the rules,” said Andrew Smith, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, in a statement.

The FTC claims the company’s founder turned to amazonverifiedreviews.com — one of the hundreds of websites that writes fake five-star reviews for a fee.

Cure Encapsulations must now inform Amazon that it paid for reviews and must notify all customers who purchased the so-called weight-loss supplement.

The FTC is imposing a $12.8-million fine, with only $50,000 due and the remainder used as a way to enforce the judgement.

WATCH: Tips from a marketing expert about how to spot fake reviews

Research shows that 91 per cent of consumers rely on online reviews for their purchases, and it takes about 10 reviews before a consumer can start trusting a business or product.

But a lot of those reviews are unreliable, and experts say it can put consumers at risk.

Fakespot, a website that identifies fake reviews, estimates 30 per cent of product reviews on Amazon are inauthentic.

Recognizing this is a widespread problem, Amazon has taken the matter into its own hands. As an Amazon spokesperson told TechCrunch, the company has filed suits against more than 1,000 defendants for “review abuse” since 2015. They’ve also sued the third-party sites that write them.