Fake Review Laws: Are Fake Reviews Illegal?

Are fake reviews illegal? The short answer

In the United States, yes, in most commercial situations. Since October 21, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission’s Trade Regulation Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials (16 C.F.R. Part 465) expressly bans businesses from writing, creating, selling or knowingly buying fake reviews, along with several related practices such as paying for reviews of a particular sentiment and suppressing negative reviews. The rule lets the FTC seek civil penalties against knowing violators, according to the FTC’s announcement of the final rule.

Fake reviews can also break state consumer protection laws and, outside the US, laws such as the United Kingdom’s Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024. This guide explains what each one covers and what a business can do when fake reviews target it.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Media Removal is not a law firm. Laws differ by state and country and change over time, so speak to a licensed attorney where you live before making a decision about your own case.

The FTC fake review rule (16 CFR Part 465)

The FTC announced the final rule on August 14, 2024. It was published in the Federal Register on August 22, 2024 (89 FR 68077) and, according to the FTC’s questions and answers on the rule, went into effect on October 21, 2024. Each practice below is defined as an unfair or deceptive act or practice:

• Fake or false reviews and testimonials (§ 465.2). Writing, creating or selling a consumer review, consumer testimonial or celebrity testimonial that misrepresents that the reviewer exists, that they used the product or service, or what their experience was. Buying such reviews, or disseminating such testimonials, is also covered when the business knew or should have known they were fake. The FTC’s announcement notes this includes AI-generated fakes.
• Buying positive or negative reviews (§ 465.4). Offering compensation or other incentives in exchange for reviews that express a particular sentiment, positive or negative.
• Insider reviews (§ 465.5). Reviews or testimonials by officers, managers, employees or agents, or reviews solicited from their immediate relatives, without a clear disclosure of the relationship, in the circumstances the rule sets out.
• Company-controlled review websites (§ 465.6). Misrepresenting that a website or entity the business controls provides independent reviews or opinions about a category of products or services that includes its own.
• Review suppression (§ 465.7). Using unfounded or groundless legal threats, physical threats, intimidation or certain false public accusations to prevent or remove a review, and misrepresenting that the reviews displayed represent most or all of those submitted when negative ones are being hidden.
• Fake social media indicators (§ 465.8). Selling, distributing, buying or procuring fake indicators of social media influence, such as bot-generated followers or views, when the business knew or should have known they were fake and they could be used, or would be used, to materially misrepresent influence or importance for a commercial purpose.

What the FTC rule does not cover

• No private lawsuits. The FTC states that the rule does not provide a private right of action. A business harmed by a competitor’s fake reviews cannot sue under the rule itself; enforcement is up to the FTC.
• Merely hosting reviews. The rule’s provisions on buying fake reviews, procuring them from insiders and disseminating undisclosed insider testimonials do not apply to reviews that appear only because a business hosts consumer reviews on its website or platform (§ 465.2(d), § 465.5(b)(2)). A host that writes or creates fake reviews itself is still covered.
• Asking all customers for reviews. Generalized requests asking past purchasers to share their experiences are excluded from the rule’s provisions on buying or procuring fake reviews and on insider reviews and testimonials.
• Neutral moderation. The rule’s ban on misrepresenting which reviews are displayed does not stop a business from hiding reviews under criteria applied regardless of sentiment, for example reviews that contain confidential information, are harassing or abusive, reveal personal information, are clearly false or misleading, or are unrelated to its products. It may also withhold a review it reasonably believes is fake (§ 465.7).

Penalties: Section 5 of the FTC Act

Fake reviews were already within the FTC’s reach before the rule. Section 5 of the FTC Act declares unfair or deceptive acts or practices in or affecting commerce unlawful (15 U.S.C. § 45(a)(1)). What the rule adds is civil penalty authority. Under 15 U.S.C. § 45(m)(1)(A), the FTC can sue in federal court for a civil penalty for each violation of a rule like this one, if it shows the violator had actual knowledge, or knowledge fairly implied from objective circumstances, that the practice was unfair or deceptive and prohibited by the rule.

The FTC explained in its announcement that without civil penalties, case-by-case enforcement might not be enough to deter clearly deceptive review practices.

The Consumer Review Fairness Act

A separate federal law protects honest reviews. The Consumer Review Fairness Act of 2016 (15 U.S.C. § 45b) makes void any term in a standard form contract with an individual customer that prohibits or restricts customers from reviewing a business, imposes a penalty or fee for reviewing, or requires reviewers to transfer intellectual property rights in their review content, other than a non-exclusive license to use it. Employment and independent contractor contracts are not covered. It is unlawful to offer a form contract containing such a term. The FTC and state attorneys general enforce the Act.

The Act does not affect defamation claims, and it allows a business to remove or refuse to display, on its own website, content that is clearly false or misleading, harassing or abusive, contains personal information, or is unrelated to its goods or services. In other words, it protects genuine reviews, not fake ones.

State consumer protection laws

States have their own laws against deceptive business practices, and state attorneys general can use them against fake reviews. The rules and remedies differ from state to state. New York is one example:

• N.Y. General Business Law § 349 declares unlawful “unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or practices in the conduct of any business, trade or commerce.”
• The New York Attorney General can sue to stop those practices and recover money obtained through them.
• Unlike the FTC rule, § 349(h) also lets a person injured by a deceptive act or practice sue in their own name for an injunction, actual damages (or $50, whichever is greater) or both, and a court may award attorney’s fees to a successful plaintiff.

Whether a state law gives a business a claim over fake reviews posted about it depends on the statute and the facts, so this is a question for a lawyer in that state.

Fake reviews in the United Kingdom

The United Kingdom bans fake reviews outright. Section 225 of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 prohibits unfair commercial practices, including those listed in Schedule 20 as unfair in all circumstances, and came into force on April 6, 2025. Paragraph 13 of Schedule 20 covers:

• submitting, or commissioning someone to submit or write, a fake consumer review or a review that conceals that it was incentivized;
• publishing consumer reviews or review information in a misleading way, for example by leaving out negative reviews while publishing positive ones;
• publishing consumer reviews without taking reasonable and proportionate steps to prevent, and to remove, fake reviews, concealed incentivized reviews and false or misleading review information; and
• offering traders services that help them submit, commission or misleadingly publish reviews.

Competitors and false advertising claims

Because the FTC rule has no private right of action, a business harmed by a competitor’s fake reviews usually looks at other laws. The federal Lanham Act allows a civil action by any person who believes they are or are likely to be damaged when someone, in commercial advertising or promotion, misrepresents the nature, characteristics or qualities of their own or another person’s goods, services or commercial activities (15 U.S.C. § 1125(a)(1)(B)). Whether fake reviews count as commercial advertising or promotion, and whether a particular business is allowed to sue, depend on the facts and the court.

If fake reviews make false statements of fact about your business, a defamation claim against the author may also be possible. Our guide on whether a bad review is defamation explains where the line sits.

What to do if your business is targeted by fake reviews

1. Document everything. Take screenshots that show each review, the reviewer’s profile, the date and the URL. Note patterns: reviews posted in a burst, from new accounts, or describing services you do not offer.
2. Check your records. Compare names, dates and details with your customer records. A review from someone who was never a customer is the strongest basis for a removal request.
3. Report the review under the platform’s policy. Most review sites prohibit fake reviews and conflicts of interest. Our review removal policies reference lists what each platform removes and where to report, and our guide on how to remove Google reviews covers Google step by step.
4. Reply publicly and calmly. A short, factual reply tells other customers what happened without attacking the reviewer.
5. Report to regulators. You can report fake review schemes and deceptive practices to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov or to your state attorney general.
6. Consider legal options with an attorney. A defamation claim against the author, or a false advertising claim against a competitor, may be possible. See our guide on how to sue for defamation.

Avoid responding with threats you cannot back up. Under the FTC rule, groundless legal threats used to remove reviews are themselves an unfair or deceptive practice.

How Media Removal can help

Media Removal is not a law firm and does not give legal advice or file lawsuits. We work on the content itself, alongside you and, when needed, your attorney.

• Review assessment. We look at each review against the platform’s own rules to see which ones have a realistic removal route. Our review removal policies reference shows what each major platform removes.
• Reporting through the right channel. We prepare and submit reports under the platform’s policy, and, where your attorney has obtained one, a court order. The platform or the court makes the final decision, so we do not promise any particular outcome.
• Search results. When a review or a page about it cannot be removed, reputation management work can build accurate information that ranks above it.

For content removal, you are billed only when the URL is verified offline. Every client signs an NDA, and so do we. To discuss your situation, request a quote or learn more about our content removal services.

Frequently asked questions

Are fake reviews illegal in the US?

Yes, in most commercial settings. Since October 21, 2024, the FTC’s rule at 16 CFR Part 465 bans businesses from writing, selling or knowingly buying fake reviews, paying for reviews of a set sentiment and suppressing honest reviews. The FTC can seek civil penalties for knowing violations. State consumer protection laws can also apply.

What is the FTC fake review rule?

It is the Trade Regulation Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials, 16 CFR Part 465. It bans fake and AI-generated reviews, buying reviews of a particular sentiment, undisclosed insider reviews, fake “independent” review sites controlled by the business, review suppression through threats and buying fake social media followers. It took effect on October 21, 2024.

Can I sue a competitor for fake reviews?

Not under the FTC rule, which has no private right of action. Depending on the facts, a business may have a false advertising claim under the federal Lanham Act, a state consumer protection claim, or a defamation claim if the reviews state false facts. An attorney can assess which applies, while you report the reviews to the platform.

Is it illegal to pay for reviews?

Paying for reviews that express a particular sentiment, positive or negative, is banned by the FTC rule (16 CFR § 465.4). Buying reviews that misrepresent who wrote them or their experience is also banned. Generalized requests asking all past customers for honest reviews are allowed, and most review platforms set additional limits of their own.

Are fake reviews illegal in the UK?

Yes. Since April 6, 2025, the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 treats submitting or commissioning fake reviews, hiding that a review was incentivized and publishing reviews in a misleading way as commercial practices that are unfair in all circumstances. Traders that publish consumer reviews must also take reasonable and proportionate steps to prevent and remove fake reviews.

Sources

• 16 C.F.R. Part 465, Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials (Cornell LII)
• Federal Trade Commission Announces Final Rule Banning Fake Reviews and Testimonials (FTC, Aug. 14, 2024)
• Consumer Reviews and Testimonials Rule: Questions and Answers (FTC)
• 15 U.S.C. § 45, Federal Trade Commission Act, Section 5 (Cornell LII)
• 15 U.S.C. § 45b, Consumer Review Fairness Act (Cornell LII)
• N.Y. General Business Law § 349 (New York State Senate)
• Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, section 225 (legislation.gov.uk)
• Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, Schedule 20 (legislation.gov.uk)
• 15 U.S.C. § 1125, Lanham Act false advertising (Cornell LII)
• ReportFraud.ftc.gov (FTC)