Private medical clinics across Britain are boosting their profiles online with scores of fake Google reviews, a BBC investigation has found.
Many of their so-called ‘customers’ were found to be leaving five-star reviews for the exact same businesses across the world.
In one case, a woman thanking a Manchester dentist for her ‘new smile’ had, in the same month, visited a spa in the US, a restaurant in Sweden, and used a removal company in Australia.
Consumer groups have warned the practice of leaving fake reviews continues to be a ‘significant and persistent problem’ and called on tech giants to do more to tackle it.
With Britons spending an estimated £23bn every year on items based off online reviews, the fake review can give shady businesses a real advantage over their rivals.
Warning: Private medical clinics across Britain are boosting their profiles online with scores of fake Google reviews, a BBC investigation has found (stock image)
They can be bought online in bulk for as little as £1.42 per review and reportedly remain rife across the biggest social media and retail giants, despite attempts to crack down on the practice.
A new digital markets bill that will look to toughen up the law against the scourge of fake reviews on the internet is currently making its way through parliament.
But the explosion of AI has only fuelled fears that fake reviews will be harder to spot and distinguish from those written by the average traveller or restaurant goer.
Dr Amit Patel, whose practice had a 4.9 star Google rating, admitted to BBC journalists that he had outsourced the marketing for Ipswich Spine clinic to a company in India.
The investigation found the chiropractor had received five-star reviews from a number of people who were all reviewing the exact same businesses elsewhere.
Alongside his own practice in Suffolk, each had given glowing reviews to 16 other businesses across three continents for services ranging from house conveyancing to car repairs.
A further five ‘customers’ who rated the clinic highly had also posted negative comments on one of its local competitors.
One of the fake reviewers wrote: ‘Dr Amit was brilliant…he assessed my injury quickly and came up with a treatment plan, I felt that I was in safe hands and highly recommend this place.’
Dr Amit said he had not been aware of the reviews posted and had asked for those not genuine to be taken down.
Another company, a private dentist called Smiles Better, featured a review from Rose Bellamy that said: ‘I’m so happy with my new smile. Super-fast service and everyone was so helpful and kind.’
In the same month, the ‘customer’ had also reviewed a removal company in Australia, a restaurant in Sweden, an immigration company in Canada, and a spa in the US.
The company’s 4.3 Google rating overall was boosted by several other people giving the Manchester company five stars who followed a similar review pattern around the world.
The dental firm – which did not respond to the BBC’s repeated attempts to contact – had replied to some of the reviews with thank you messages.
Many of their so-called ‘customers’ were found to be leaving five-star reviews for the exact same businesses across the world
Google has previously revealed it blocks or removes nearly 10 million reviews that violate its policies – with the majority caught before they are seen.
New AI models the tech giant introduced in 2022 to detect them had helped it take down over 20 per cent more fake reviews than the previous year.
The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill aim to tackle fake reviews by banning anyone writing or commissioning them.
The legislation will also target those advertising customer reviews without taking reasonable steps to check they are genuine.
A Department of Business and Trade spokesperson said: ‘We’re strengthening the law against fake reviews to protect consumers who spend an estimated £23 billion a year on items based off online reviews.’
Harry Kind from consumer watchdog Which? said: ‘I think it’s bad enough if you buy a pair of dodgy Bluetooth headphones off a fake review, but if you try and get a medical treatment done and it turns out that the review you chose the establishment on was fake, that could have really serious repercussions.
‘Selling them, buying them, and hosting them on your platforms should be illegal, they should be facing a fine there needs to be some deterrent from just buying a load of fake reviews because for now it’s easy to do.’
A Google spokeswoman said: ‘Our policies clearly state reviews must be based on real experiences, and when we find policy violations, we take swift action ranging from content removal to account suspension and even litigation.’
Think twice before trusting reviews online: Apple’s App Store and the Google Play store are both flooded with FAKE endorsements, report reveals
Google‘s Play Store and Apple’s App Store are being flooded with fake reviews that are distorting the popularity of apps, a separate investigation revealed earlier this year.
Up to a quarter of reviews in the health and fitness section of Google’s Play Store were suspicious, while for Apple’s equivalent 17 per cent appear fake.
Google ‘s Play Store and Apple’s App Store are being flooded with fake reviews that are distorting the popularity of apps, a separate investigation revealed earlier this year
The analysis by consumer group Which? suggests that millions of consumers could be unwittingly handing over their personal data or money to apps that have cheated their way to the top of the world’s two most prominent mobile app stores.
Such is the scale of the problem that Which? also found that fake reviews are being openly sold by brokers, who pay Google to appear at the top of its search results.
These services offer bulk downloads, reviews or upvotes to help push apps up the rankings, making them seem more reputable if they have been downloaded a huge number of times.
This post first appeared on Dailymail.co.uk
