The Aryavarth Express
Agency (New Delhi): The government is considering mandatory compliance with quality norms for consumer reviews for e-commerce companies after a voluntary push failed to effectively curb fake reviews, a top official said on Monday.
Last year, the government introduced new quality norms for e-commerce platforms, prohibiting the publication of paid reviews and requiring disclosure of promotional content. However, fake reviews continue to be a problem, stated Nidhi Khare, Secretary at the Consumer Affairs Ministry.
“It’s been more than one year that the voluntary standard on ‘online reviews’ was notified. Some entities claim that they are complying with it. However, fake reviews are still getting published,” Khare told PTI.
“To safeguard the consumer interest, now we want to make these standards mandatory,” she said, adding that the ministry has scheduled a meeting with e-commerce firms and consumer organizations on May 15 to discuss the proposed move.
The ministry’s Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), which formulated and issued the new standard for “Online Consumer Reviews” in November 2022, barred the publication of reviews “purchased and/or written by individuals employed for that purpose by the supplier or third party concerned.”
With no chance to physically inspect products, consumers heavily rely on online reviews when making purchases. Misleading reviews and ratings can lead them to buy goods or services based on incorrect information.
The proposed move comes against the backdrop of India’s booming online retail sector. The sector is projected to surge to USD 325 billion by 2030 from USD 70 billion in 2022, according to a report by Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu India.