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DoCA and BIS convened Stakeholders meet, to tackle fake reviews

By Margvi Aggarwal --
Wednesday, 15 May, 2024

The Department of Consumer Affairs and the Bureau of Indian Standards are addressing the pressing issue of fake reviews on e-commerce platforms...

The Department of Consumer Affairs (DoCA) and the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) today held a consultative stakeholders meeting to address the pressing issue of fake reviews on e-commerce platforms. The gathering witnessed the participation of representatives from major e-commerce giants like Google, Meta, Flipkart, Amazon, Airbnb, SnapDeal, Zomato, JustDial, ShopClues, and Reliance, as well as various industry associations including the India SME Forum. The meeting was chaired by Ms. Nidhi Khare, Secretary, Consumer Affairs, and Mr. Pramod Kumar Tiwari, Director General, Bureau of Indian Standards.

During the meeting, the BIS highlighted the alarming rise in consumer grievances related to e-commerce platforms. The National Consumer Helpline (NCH) received a staggering 4.46 lakh complaints in 2021, a significant increase from more than 95,000 grievances received in 2018. This surge in complaints underscores the urgent need to address the issue of fake reviews, which has been hampering the growth and credibility of small businesses.

The Indian Standard (IS) 19000:2022, which outlines the guidelines for online consumer reviews, has been voluntary until now. However, the DoCA and BIS expressed their intention to make it a mandatory regulation to ensure transparency and accountability in the e-commerce ecosystem.

Mr. Vinod Kumar, President, India SME Forum, emphasized the detrimental impact of fake reviews on small enterprises. He stated, "The increasing number of unscrupulous brokers who facilitate the exchange of money for fake reviews poses a significant threat to the integrity of online marketplace. These deceitful practices undermine consumer trust and have the potential to inflict substantial damage on the reputation and sales of genuine sellers, particularly MSMEs."

He further highlighted the need for Google to take proactive measures, as many MSMEs manage their online presence through Google My Business (GMB), a free and user-friendly platform provided by Google that allows businesses to create and manage their online presence on Google Maps and Google Search. Through GMB, MSMEs can create and customize their business profiles, providing accurate and relevant information to potential customers, and any fake review can severely hamper their image.

Elaborating it further Mr. Vinod Kumar said, DoCA and BIS needs to acknowledge the financial constraints faced by MSMEs and assure that considerations would be taken into account while crafting the regulatory mechanism.

All present in the meeting expressed their support for the proposed Quality Control Order (QCO) for online consumer reviews. Whilst the final draft of the QCO is still being formulated, the e-commerce platforms are actively working on measures to address the issue of fake reviews.

DoCA and BIS convened Stakeholders meet, to tackle fake reviews. The Department of Consumer Affairs and the Bureau of Indian Standards are addressing the pressing issue of fake reviews on e-commerce platforms...

The Department of Consumer Affairs (DoCA) and the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) today held a consultative stakeholders meeting to address the pressing issue of fake reviews on e-commerce platforms. The gathering witnessed the participation of representatives from major e-commerce giants like Google, Meta, Flipkart, Amazon, Airbnb, SnapDeal, Zomato, JustDial, ShopClues, and Reliance, as well as various industry associations including the India SME Forum. The meeting was chaired by Ms. Nidhi Khare, Secretary, Consumer Affairs, and Mr. Pramod Kumar Tiwari, Director General, Bureau of Indian Standards.

During the meeting, the BIS highlighted the alarming rise in consumer grievances related to e-commerce platforms. The National Consumer Helpline (NCH) received a staggering 4.46 lakh complaints in 2021, a significant increase from more than 95,000 grievances received in 2018. This surge in complaints underscores the urgent need to address the issue of fake reviews, which has been hampering the growth and credibility of small businesses.

The Indian Standard (IS) 19000:2022, which outlines the guidelines for online consumer reviews, has been voluntary until now. However, the DoCA and BIS expressed their intention to make it a mandatory regulation to ensure transparency and accountability in the e-commerce ecosystem.

Mr. Vinod Kumar, President, India SME Forum, emphasized the detrimental impact of fake reviews on small enterprises. He stated, "The increasing number of unscrupulous brokers who facilitate the exchange of money for fake reviews poses a significant threat to the integrity of online marketplace. These deceitful practices undermine consumer trust and have the potential to inflict substantial damage on the reputation and sales of genuine sellers, particularly MSMEs."

He further highlighted the need for Google to take proactive measures, as many MSMEs manage their online presence through Google My Business (GMB), a free and user-friendly platform provided by Google that allows businesses to create and manage their online presence on Google Maps and Google Search. Through GMB, MSMEs can create and customize their business profiles, providing accurate and relevant information to potential customers, and any fake review can severely hamper their image.

Elaborating it further Mr. Vinod Kumar said, DoCA and BIS needs to acknowledge the financial constraints faced by MSMEs and assure that considerations would be taken into account while crafting the regulatory mechanism.

All present in the meeting expressed their support for the proposed Quality Control Order (QCO) for online consumer reviews. Whilst the final draft of the QCO is still being formulated, the e-commerce platforms are actively working on measures to address the issue of fake reviews.