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A Major ReviewMeta Update: Why I’m Stepping Away and Seeking a Successor

January 11th, 2021

Hey RM community – in the spirit of full transparency, I’ve decided to make a public announcement…   It’s been a wild adventure since launching the site 2016, and I deeply appreciate all the support our community has shown over the years.  However, I’ve decided it’s time for me to move on.  Why? This decision really […]



Amazon seller awarded $9.5m over fake reviews, unfair competition

December 12th, 2020

Disclaimer: I testified in this case as an expert witness on behalf of the plaintiff – so I’m obligated to strictly limit my post to publicly available information.  It’s boring and straight to the point, but contains many links to sources with much more detailed information. First – what is ReviewMeta?   ReviewMeta.com is a […]



More blatant review fraud: “Global Reviews” and why we can’t analyze them

September 25th, 2020

Amazon has been testing a new feature where they display “Global” product reviews.  This means if you’re looking at a product on Amazon.com (US), you might see reviews from Amazon.fr (France), Amazon.co.uk (United Kingdom), Amazon.ca (Canada) and so on. Previously, all these international sites have been independent of one another.  Amazon.com would only display reviews […]



Need help with Review Fraud? Hire the Fake Review Expert!

September 16th, 2020

Hi- I’m Tommy Noonan, founder of ReviewMeta.com.  My entire career has been dedicated to detecting and flagging fake reviews.  It all started when I launched my own review platform 14 years ago.  It was a constant battle against brands that tried to submit fake reviews and cheat the system.  In 2016, I launched ReviewMeta, a […]



Why does Amazon show more “Ratings” than ReviewMeta shows “Reviews”?

February 24th, 2020

UPDATE JULY 2020: Amazon has taken even more steps to hide the true number of “Reviews”.  You’re now required to click through to the reviews page to see how many actual written reviews there are.  We’re making some changes and will be updating this guide soon. Ever since Amazon’s addition of the “One-Tap Rating” feature […]



TripAdvisor’s Transparency Report Claims 0.6% Fake Reviews. Fakespot Claims 33%. Who is Right?

October 30th, 2019

Before we begin, we want to congratulate TripAdvisor on taking the initiative to be more transparent about their review moderation and fraud detection process and numbers.  We think this is something EVERY major review platform should be required to do, and have some thoughts on how platforms could take this several steps further.  Be on […]



Amazon’s One-Tap Review System: Another Step Backwards

October 3rd, 2019

A few weeks ago, Amazon announced they are testing a new “one-tap review” feature.  This enables verified purchasers to rate a product without having to write a title or review. “We are testing a feature that allows customers to leave feedback easily while also helping shoppers get authentic customer ratings on products from a broader set of […]



Amazon’s Choice badge given to product with 1000’s of Incentivized, Hijacked and Deleted reviews

September 12th, 2019

Amazon has recently come under fire for their use of the Amazon’s Choice badge, and with good reason.  Today, I was notified of a listing that touts the Amazon’s Choice badge, yet checks all the boxes for the biggest red flags we see in terms of unnatural reviews.  Not only do we have evidence of […]



0% Unnatural Reviews? August, 2019 Algo Updates Explained

August 27th, 2019

A few weeks ago we pushed an algorithm update that had been in the works for some time.  Essentially we tweaked the way that the algorithm calculates the adjusted rating, adjusted review count and the overall PASS/FAIL/WARN result.  Everything else before that is almost exactly the same as before. Just as always, we’re first using the […]



ReviewMeta Supports Amazon Warehouse Workers’ Prime Day Strike

July 14th, 2019

Amazon’s poor warehouse working conditions have been making the news recently, even being featured on HBO’s Last Week Tonight: As the world’s largest online retailer, Amazon has significant responsibility in setting the stage for how companies treat their employees. With amazing logistical innovations like two/one/same day shipping, it is essential that these innovations don’t come […]