TRUSTPILOT FAKE REVIEWS
Investigating Trustpilot and Online Review Platforms
Over the past four or five years, we have collaborated with various media outlets to investigate a range of concerning issues related to online review platforms, with approximately 90% of our inquiries focusing on Trustpilot.
As investigative journalists, we are often hired by organizations such as TV channels and media outlets to gather evidence and expose potential abuses that negatively impact businesses. This is especially relevant when companies are subjected to obviously fake negative reviews. The goal of these media outlets and TV programs is to prevent such abuses and mitigate the harm caused by inaccurate online reviews.
The issues with Trustpilot become apparent when you look at reviews of Trustpilot itself on other review sites. Below are some links that offer interesting insights:
- Reviews.io - Trustpilot Reviews
- Sitejabber - Trustpilot Reviews
- Investors Chronicle Article
- BBC Report on Trustpilot
Additionally, you can read about a class action lawsuit against Trustpilot filed by a U.S. law firm here:
Of course, if you visit Trustpilot’s own platform, you’ll find glowing reviews, but that’s to be expected:
The Fundamental Issue with Trustpilot
Trustpilot fails to adequately address clearly questionable reviews. You can easily observe discrepancies by comparing positive and negative reviews on various businesses. It doesn’t take an expert to see that something isn’t right. Below is just one example, but we have many more on file:
Trustpilot claims to aggressively tackle fake reviews, both negative and positive. However, we are frequently contacted by individuals who receive emails similar to the one below after posting genuine positive reviews:
"Hi Angela,
Thank you for writing a review about [company name] on Trustpilot. As part of our efforts to ensure that our community can trust the reviews they read, we’re constantly on the lookout for unusual activity. We do this using customized software, dedicated Content Integrity Agents, or a combination of both.
In this case, your review has been flagged because we couldn’t verify its authenticity, and as a result, we’ve removed it from our platform. While we’re confident in our decision, we understand that mistakes happen. If you think we’ve made an error, please reply to this email and our Content Integrity Team will review the decision.
Thanks for your cooperation.
Trustpilot Content Integrity Team"**
Even we have experienced situations where genuine positive reviews were flagged and removed, despite providing proof of our relationship with the company (e.g., invoices). This highlights a fundamental flaw in Trustpilot’s system, making it unreliable. The particularly frustrating part is their overconfidence in their decision-making process, even when they are demonstrably wrong in many cases. We have accumulated numerous reports over an extended period, indicating that a significant percentage of these takedowns are questionable.
Issues with Fake Negative Reviews
On the flip side, we were contacted by a company that received the following defamatory review:
"These are not genuine products. [Company] are liars. Just do a quick internet search and you will see."
This review was clearly false, as the company is the actual manufacturer of the products, not a reseller. Despite pointing out the defamatory nature of the review, Trustpilot refused to remove it. Some countries, including the UK, are working on legislation to address this kind of abuse, as seen in this report:
We are collaborating with numerous media outlets to ensure that review platforms are held accountable and that online abuse is prevented. We are also working with clients and legal partners to help them seek financial compensation.
If you need legal assistance with Trustpilot issues, we recommend the following law firms:
Our Expertise in Investigating Review Platforms
We have four agents in Europe and the U.S. who specialize in inquiries related to organizations like Trustpilot. If you work with a media outlet or television company, we’d be happy to collaborate, especially as we have several ongoing inquiries with significant overlap. These investigations are often paperwork-intensive and require thorough examination of documents and other relevant information, but building a case for legal action or media exposure follows a similar process.
We are confident that after reviewing the evidence, you’ll reach the same conclusion we have: "You can’t trust Trustpilot!"