UK government proposal to enhance consumer protection against fake reviews
According to a news report, the UK government has proposed changes to the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (CPR) to enhance consumer protection against fake reviews. The report notes that a yearly estimate of ‘£23 billion of online purchases of goods and services are potentially influenced by online reviews. The report notes further that fake reviews not only affect consumers by misleading them, but also businesses who do not engage in such practices. To address the issue of fake reviews, the government is proposing additions to the CPR to clearly label as unfair trading practices in the following circumstances
- Commissioning or incentivising a person to write and/or submit fake consumer review of goods, services, or digital content; and
- Hosting consumer reviews of a good or service without taking reasonable and proportionate steps to ensure that they originate from consumers who have actually used or purchased that good or service.
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