A review that looks odd isn't automatically fake. If you suspect one, save the review and its URL first, then report the specific policy problem through the platform that hosts it. When the evidence points to a paid or coordinated commercial scheme, file a separate complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

These channels do different jobs. A platform decides whether a post violates its review rules and may remove it. The FTC collects reports for possible enforcement; it generally doesn't remove an individual review, investigate every complaint, or guarantee a refund.

The steps below are for U.S. readers. Review menus and support routes can change by platform, account, product category, and location.

Start with a checkable problem

The strongest report usually points to something a moderator can verify. Tone alone is weak evidence. Look for a pattern or a factual mismatch instead of relying on one clue.

More persuasive warning signs include:

• The review mentions a product, feature, menu item, service, or business location that didn't exist at the stated time.
• Several accounts repeat an unusual sentence, spelling mistake, or sequence of claims.
• A cluster of similar reviews appears within a short period and has no obvious connection to real customers.
• The reviewer seems to be describing a competitor, a different product, or an event that could not have happened.
• A seller, business, or intermediary offered money, free products, discounts, or another benefit for a positive or negative rating.
• Messages show that people were asked to post reviews without using the product or service.
• A review is part of an extortion attempt, such as a demand for money to stop additional negative reviews.

Other clues need corroboration:

• The account has only one review.
• The wording is generic, unusually enthusiastic, or unusually harsh.
• The language may have been produced by artificial intelligence.
• The reviewer has posted about similar businesses.
• You can't match the reviewer to a customer or order record.

Those clues don't prove fraud. A genuine customer may have a new account, platforms may hide transaction details, and a business may not be able to match every customer to a public profile. An AI detector score is also not proof that a review is fake.

Save the evidence before you flag it

Reviews can be edited, deleted, or hidden after you report them. Capture the original material while it's still available.

Save:

1. A screenshot showing the full review, rating, reviewer name, date, and listing.
2. The direct review or listing URL. Add the product identifier, business profile, app listing, or Amazon ASIN when relevant.
3. The exact wording, especially phrases that appear in other reviews.
4. A timeline showing when the reviews appeared and whether several accounts posted similar material.
5. Links or screenshots of related reviews, reviewer profiles, messages, advertisements, or incentive offers.
6. For a business, records showing a factual mismatch, such as a menu, service schedule, product catalog, or location opening date.
7. For a consumer, the receipt, order confirmation, listing, messages, and photographs connected with the purchase or service.

Put the date and time on each screenshot or note. Keep the original files rather than relying only on a cropped image.

Don't put a customer's order number, phone number, address, or other private information in a public reply. Don't create a fake counter-review, encourage review bombing, impersonate a customer, or accuse a named person of fraud without a sound and safe basis.

Report the review where it appears

Use the reporting path for the type of content involved. Product reviews, seller feedback, business-profile reviews, and app-store reviews may have separate forms.

Amazon

On the product page, open the menu for the review and use the visible Report abuse, Report, or similar option. Choose the reason that best matches the conduct. A concise report might point out that:

• the review describes an item or feature the listing doesn't offer;
• several accounts copied the same unusual language;
• the reviewer appears to be coordinating with a seller;
• a message offered compensation for a particular rating; or
• the review is connected to a threat or extortion demand.

If no review-level option appears, sign in to Amazon Help and use the support or reporting route for the relevant product or account. Include the product identifier, review link, date, exact concern, and any supporting material the form accepts.

A missing verified-purchase label doesn't establish that a review is fraudulent. Amazon also may not tell you what action it took. Report the specific review or pattern; don't repeatedly flag the same post or ask other users to mass-report it.

Google

In Google Search or Maps, open the review menu, choose the reporting option, and select the policy reason that fits. A Business Profile manager can use Google's review-management process to check the report status and appeal a decision.

Google's status information can show that a review is pending, that it was removed, or that the report was reviewed and no policy violation was found. If the first report is rejected, use the available appeal route and add a clearer explanation or new evidence rather than resubmitting the same accusation. Google's official review-reporting guidance also covers reporting inappropriate reviews and profiles.

A review isn't automatically removable because it is unfair, inaccurate, or damaging to a business. Explain the policy issue instead: for example, spam, fake content, a conflict of interest, or an extortion attempt.

Yelp

Use the flag or report control attached to the review. In the explanation, stick to facts that a moderator can evaluate. For example:

This review says the reviewer ordered [specific item], but the business has not offered that item since [date]. Three other reviews posted on [dates] contain the same unusual phrase. I have saved screenshots and links.

You can respond publicly while the report is pending, but don't disclose private customer information or call the reviewer a liar. A safer response would be:

We can't identify this visit from the details provided, but we'd like to investigate privately.

Yelp's moderation decision is separate from a refund, a dispute with the reviewer, or an FTC complaint. Keep the report about the review and the evidence of possible manipulation.

Other platforms

For Etsy, TripAdvisor, Apple App Store, and similar services, start with the report link attached to the review or the platform's signed-in support area. Include the listing or app identifier, review URL, dates, copied wording, and the specific factual reason for concern.

Be wary of services that promise guaranteed removal or ask for your platform password. The host platform controls its own moderation decision.

When an FTC complaint makes sense

The FTC's final rule on reviews and testimonials took effect in 2024. It covers fake or false consumer reviews and testimonials, including reviews that misrepresent a person's experience and AI-generated fake reviews. It also addresses buying or selling fake reviews, some undisclosed insider reviews, and incentives conditioned on a particular positive or negative sentiment.

That doesn't make every rude, anonymous, low-quality, or inaccurate review an FTC violation. Nor does an FTC complaint give you a direct way to make Amazon, Google, Yelp, or another platform delete a post. The FTC announcement on the final rule explains the rule's scope.

Consider filing when the evidence suggests that a business, review broker, advertiser, or other party organized deceptive commercial activity. Examples include a paid network of fabricated reviews, rewards offered only for five-star feedback, or an employee campaign presenting insiders as ordinary customers.

What to include in the FTC report

1. Identify the parties. List the business, website, seller account, review broker, platform, and any other organizations or people involved.
2. Link the content. Provide review URLs, product or business links, dates, account names, and screenshots.
3. Separate facts from conclusions. Say what the review claims, what you checked, and why the claim or pattern appears impossible or coordinated.
4. Describe the conduct. Include payment offers, instructions to reviewers, undisclosed relationships, copied text, or threats if you have evidence of them.
5. Explain the effect. State whether the activity affected a purchase, caused financial loss, harmed a business listing, or exposed consumers to misleading information.
6. Submit it through ReportFraud. Choose the category closest to deceptive reviews or advertising and save the confirmation details.
7. Keep the originals. Retain messages, screenshots, receipts, and spreadsheets in case the platform or the FTC asks for more information.

Use wording such as "suspected" when the evidence is circumstantial. "I couldn't match this reviewer to a public order record" is more accurate than "the reviewer never used the product" unless you have direct proof.

A short report you can adapt

A moderator needs a clear lead, not a long argument. You can adapt this:

Subject: Suspected fake or misleading reviews involving [company]

Platform and listing: [platform, business profile, product, app, or ASIN]
Review links and dates: [links and dates]

What I observed:
[Describe the factual mismatch, copied wording, timing pattern, incentive, undisclosed relationship, or extortion demand.]

Evidence:
[I saved screenshots, messages, listing information, and related review links. The evidence shows: ...]

Requested action:
Please review this content under your policies on fake, misleading, spam, conflict-of-interest, or manipulated reviews.

I am reporting a suspected pattern based on the facts above and am not claiming more than the evidence establishes.

For a platform report, omit anything the form doesn't request and focus on that platform's policy. For an FTC complaint, add the business's contact details and say whether you bought the product or observed the conduct directly.

After you submit the report

• Save the report number, confirmation email, and submission date.
• Check the platform's status or appeal tool when a decision becomes available.
• Appeal a "no violation" result only if you can provide a clearer factual explanation or new evidence.
• If someone demands money to stop negative reviews, don't pay or promise a benefit in exchange for removal. Preserve the demand and use the platform's designated process. Contact law enforcement if there are threats or an immediate safety concern.
• If a fake review influenced you to buy something that wasn't delivered, was materially misrepresented, or was defective, handle that transaction problem separately with the seller and, when appropriate, your card issuer or other payment provider. Reporting a review doesn't create an automatic refund or billing-dispute right.
• A state attorney general's consumer-protection office may be useful for a broader deceptive business pattern. Procedures vary by state. The Better Business Bureau can create a separate complaint record, but it can't decide a platform's content policy or compel removal.

Common questions

Does a new account prove a review is fake?

No. A new customer may have created an account to leave a first review. Account age matters more when it appears alongside copied language, impossible details, coordinated timing, or evidence of payment.

Can you report an AI-generated review?

Yes, when you have a reasonable factual basis to suspect the review is fabricated or misrepresents an experience. Generic wording or an automated detector result alone doesn't establish that conclusion.

Can the FTC remove a fake review?

Usually not. ReportFraud is an enforcement and information-gathering channel, not a review-moderation tool. Report the post to the platform separately.

Is every incentivized review illegal?

No. The FTC rule prohibits incentives conditioned on expressing a particular positive or negative sentiment. Other disclosure and consumer-protection requirements may apply, so receiving a product or other benefit doesn't automatically make a review acceptable or unacceptable.

What's the best first step?

Save the review, its URL, and the surrounding evidence before doing anything else. Then report the specific policy issue to the platform. Add an FTC complaint when the facts point to organized or deceptive commercial conduct.