Amazon cracks down on fake reviews with another lawsuit

Amazon is continuing its efforts to crack down on fake, paid-for reviews of the products it sells on its website, by filing yet another lawsuit against those who offer glowing reviews in exchange for cash. In this latest suit, filed on Friday, the company is targeting the operators of five websites engaged in this business practice. The sites offer verified reviews for books and other products, and have even promised reviewers free products in addition to compensation at times.

The suit names three defendants, Chris Embry, operator of Amazon verified reviews.com; Jane John-Nwankwo, operator of Paid book reviews.org; and John Does 1-5 who run Amazon review star.com, Buy amazon reviews.info, and review connections.com. (Amazon couldn’t identify the site owners in this latter case, which is why they’re only identified in the filing as John Does.)

The sites offer verified reviews and top star ratings in some cases, while in Embry’s case, they promise “honest” reviews that “might not always be positive” but are still paid for and therefore falsified.

While Amazon insists that only a small portion of the reviews on its site at any time are fakes, the company also understands that the very existence of fake review sites and their unethical aims can undermine consumer trust in the entire review system.

That system is a massive and key part to Amazon’s selling machine. Since its launch in 1995, consumers have left over a hundred million reviews and ratings on the site, and it employs a team that handles the take down of fake reviews daily. It even rolled out new algorithms last summer to help identify the more relevant, recent and trusted reviews, and place these in front of online shoppers.

This new suit is the latest in a series of actions Amazon has taken against these fraudulent sites and other “bad actors.” In October, the company sued a number of individuals who had posted offers of fake product reviews on the gig site Fiverr.com, for instance. Prior to that, Amazon filed suit against the operators of other, similar websites that offered fake reviews.

The overall goal with these suits is not just to take down the sites in question or collect damages, but to create a climate where those who enter into this type of business know that they may eventually face a day in court.

In this latest battle, Amazon claims the sites are in violation of various laws and acts, including the Lanham Act, Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act, Washington Consumer Protection Act, and Washington Common Law.

The company says it’s seeking damages as a result of its claims. It’s also asking for the defendants to detail their illegal profits, transfer their domains to Amazon, and pay the legal and attorney’s fees associated with the case.

Reached for comment, an Amazon rep offered the following statement:

“While I cannot comment on active litigation, I can share that since the beginning of 2015, we have brought lawsuits against over 1,000 defendants for reviews abuse. Through these efforts we have obtained data allowing us to take enforcement action against parties not directly involved in the lawsuits, including banning sellers and reviewers. To help eliminate the incentives to engage in reviews abuse, we will continue to pursue legal action against the root cause of reviews abuse – the sellers and manufacturers who create the demand for fraudulent reviews – as well as the ecosystem of individuals and organizations who supply fraudulent reviews in exchange for compensation.”

Fake Apple Watch band has the look of luxury, but how does it feel?

We would never, ever tell you to buy a fake Apple Watch band. But if you must, we think we've found the absolute winner.

Apple's popular steel Milanese Loop sells for $149, but a seller on Amazon is offering an amazingly well done replica for a mere $16.

But for $16, surely the replica is a poor knockoff, right? After getting the initial tip regarding the band from Apple enthusiast Jim Dalrymple's site (via WatchAware), I decided to give it a try.

The real Apple Watch Milanese Loop.

IMAGE: APPLE

Among my Apple Watch owning colleagues, I was well suited for the task, as I dove into the third-party Apple Watch band market early. My first experience, a brown leather band (an original, not a replica) offered for around $50 by a company in China was a bust. When I got the band it looked and felt amazing — until the lugs on the connector broke after wearing it just a couple of times. It was then that I decided that third-party Apple Watch bands weren't for me.

I'm now rethinking that position.

The fake Milanese Loop even effectively mimics the magnetic clasp of the real thing.

When the $16 replica Milanese Loop arrived it came encased in an extremely Apple-like rectangular white box that could easily be mistaken for the real thing by people not very familiar with Apple packaging. But that's not the only thing that looked real. For most, the band itself is almost indistinguishable from the real thing. I spent the last couple of days testing friends familiar with the real Milanese Loop and no one realized that mine was fake until they were given a hint. Even the magnetic clasp looks and works as it should.

However, if you are familiar with the real Milanese Loop a couple of things do stand out. The fake one definitely feels thinner and a little lighter. Also (and this could be Apple branding hype influencing me), the band doesn't seem to have quite the same metallic sheen as the real thing. But in this case, that doesn't matter, as most onlookers won't be examining the band up close.

Living the Apple Watch high life in New York City on a mere $16.

Of course, it's still early days. I haven't exposed the fake band to rain, and it could end up turning my wrist an amazing shade of Hulk green. But none of that has happened — yet. So, for now, I'm frankly amazed by this cheapo hunk of metal.

Currently, the silver version of the fake Milanese Loop, offered by an entity called "Marge Plus," has 206 reviews that add up to an overall rating of 4.5 stars (although, I've seen less glowing reviews for their black and gold versions of the fake Milanese Loop bands).

Again, we aren't saying you should buy anything copying Apple's fine, fine products. We're just letting you know it's out there.