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Freeman [soylentnews.org] writes:

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2023/09/yelp-names-and-shames-businesses-paying-for-5-star-reviews/ [arstechnica.com]

Yelp has started publicly naming and shaming businesses that pay for reviews. The review site's new index [yelp.com] [replaced bad link in original article] documents businesses offering everything from a crisp $100 bill for leaving the best review to a $400 Home Depot gift card for a 5-star review. It also lists every business whose reviews have ever been suspected of suspicious activity, like spamming the site with multiple reviews from a single IP address.

Engadget dubbed [engadget.com] Yelp's new index a "wall of shame," suggesting that the information may be used by federal agencies who have spent the past few years cracking down on paid fake reviews [ftc.gov]. This year, the Federal Trade Commission proposed a ban [ftc.gov] on "the use of deceptive reviews and testimonials," with penalties up to $50,000 for businesses "caught buying, selling or manipulating online reviews," Engadget reported.

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