How do you spot a fake online review?

Britain’s competition watchdog has vowed to tackle fake and misleading online reviews “head on” as it launched investigations into firms including Just Eat and Autotrader.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said reviews are used by 90% of consumers when they buy over the internet and play a large part in the UK’s over £200 billion online retail sector.

But up to 50% of online reviews are fake, according to recent research by tech firm Truth Engine.

The CMA said its latest action against firms comes as part of a clampdown on fake and misleading reviews as shoppers increasingly rely on customer feedback when shopping online.

Emma Cochrane, executive director for consumer protection at the CMA, told the Press Association: “It’s so important that consumers can have trust in those reviews because we know that nine in 10 of us rely on them when we’re shopping, and that retail shopping in the UK is billions of pounds worth a year.

“It’s so important that consumers can have trust and confidence when they’re shopping online.”

Here are the CMA’s tips for spotting and avoiding fake reviews:

– Read the reviews

Shoppers often get taken in by five-star ratings without actually reading what people have to say about a product or service.

“You’ll be surprised at how many reviews sound dubious, overly vague or even totally unrelated to the item they’re supposedly endorsing,” the CMA said.

– Be alert to AI-generated reviews

Artificial intelligence (AI) can be used to make fake reviews sound fluent, polished and highly convincing.

“If a review feels a bit too slick, reads like it’s been perfectly crafted, or uses very similar wording to others, it may not reflect a real customer’s experience,” the CMA warned.

– Take a look at the other ratings

Look beyond the five-star ratings.

Three or four-star reviews are less likely to be fake, and they can be more useful to give a genuine, overall assessment.

– Check out multiple sites

Looking across several sites can help shoppers see patterns and provide a more consistent picture.

“Check a few different review sites. If you’re seeing the same kind of reviews coming up again and again, it’s more likely to be fake,” said Ms Cochrane.