A fake review is a review that doesn’t match a real customer’s experience. It can be positive (to inflate a rating) or negative (to harm a competitor).
The most common forms
- reviews written by the owner, staff, family or friends;
- reviews bought from an agency or individuals;
- reviews posted by one person from several accounts;
- negative reviews left by a competitor or former employee;
- a real customer’s review that has been altered or taken out of context.
What the law says
In the EU, the Omnibus directive made fake reviews a banned unfair commercial practice; in France, for example, it can lead to prison and heavy fines. In the US, the FTC rule on consumer reviews and testimonials, in force since October 2024, bans fake reviews and buying them. In the UK, fake reviews are banned under consumer protection law and the CMA has published guidance. Google’s policy forbids them too and may remove reviews or restrict a profile.
An example and the right reflexes
A restaurant gets five 1-star reviews overnight, with no text, from accounts with no history. The right reflex: don’t reply with accusations, flag each review to Google from the profile, keep screenshots, and reply soberly if needed (“We can’t find any record of your visit; please contact us to talk about it”). For defamation, other remedies exist.
Detailed rules and remedies are in the guide to online review laws.
Go further
Related terms
Google review
A Google review is the rating a customer leaves on a business’s profile: 1 to 5 stars, often a comment and sometimes photos, visible to everyone in Google Search and Google Maps.
Review response
A review response is the public message a business owner posts under a customer’s review, on their Google profile or another platform, to thank, explain or offer a solution.
Legal notice (website imprint)
A legal notice (or imprint) is the page of a business website that says who publishes it, how to contact them and their registration details, as required by EU e-commerce rules and national laws.