76 - Fake Reviews Are Everywhere - Consumerpedia Podcast

December 12, 2024

76 – Fake Reviews Are Everywhere

Host: Herb Weisbaum /

Guest(s): Jason Brown – founder of ReviewFraud.org; Michael Ostheimer – Federal Trade Commission; Teresa Muray, Consumer Watchdog at U.S. PIRG Education Fund

Great reviews are good for business, so some dishonest companies post fake reviews to boost their ratings. It’s a growing problem. This flood of deceptive reviews makes it challenging to get objective information about the products or services you plan to buy.

In this episode: The ways companies can game the system, a new FTC rule designed to clean-up the marketplace, and ways you can spot potentially bogus reviews and testimonials.

More Info from U.S. PIRG:

⁠How to recognize fake online reviews of products and services⁠

Additional Resources from Checkbook:

⁠Shop Safely Online This Holiday Season (and All Year Long)⁠

⁠Shop Like a Pro This Holiday Season: Score the Best Prices with Less Stress⁠

⁠Don’t Overspend This Holiday Shopping Season⁠

Not a Checkbook member? ⁠⁠Sign up for a free 30-day trial to access all of our unbiased ratings⁠⁠.

Support our podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/consumerpedia/support

technology

Related Episodes

November 14, 2024

74 – Passkeys Provide Better Security Than Passwords

Host: Herb Weisbaum /

Guest(s): Alex Weinert - Vice President for Identity Security at Microsoft

No one really likes passwords. Even the best ones are no match for today’s international crime rings. So, the push is on, led by Microsoft, Apple, and Google, to get you to switch from passwords to passkeys.

In this episode: What passkeys are and how they work, why they are better than passwords, and how you can switch to them on your online accounts.

Additional Resources & Consumerpedia Episodes:

⁠Why It’s Time to Ditch Passwords and Switch to Passkeys⁠

#5: CyberCrime: a Former Cyber Crook Explains How to protect Yourself

#11: Stop, Thief! How to Protect Yourself from Identity Theft

#48: How Will Scammers Use AI?

Not a Checkbook member? ⁠Sign up for a free 30-day trial to access all of our unbiased ratings⁠.

Support our podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/consumerpedia/support

technology

April 4, 2024

60 – Avoid a Big Cell Phone Bill When Traveling Abroad

Host: Herb Weisbaum /

Guest(s): Kevin Brasler - Checkbook's Executive Editor; Dani Dredger - Checkbook Senior Manager of Digital Marketing

Travel outside the U.S. and you’ll need to make sure your cell phone works wherever you’re headed. With a little advance planning, you can also lower the cost of using your phone on that trip—in some cases, by $100 a line a week or more.

In this episode, what the major phone companies charge to use their roaming services when you’re in a foreign country, and how to pay less by switching to a local wireless carrier at your destination. Plus, the pros and cons of turning off your cell service and relying on Wi-Fi.

Read Checkbook’s full report on how to save money while using a phone internationally.

Support our podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/consumerpedia/support

leisure, technology, travel

February 22, 2024

57 – What Ever Happened to Customer Service?

Host: Herb Weisbaum /

Guest(s): Jon Picoult - Founder of Watermark Consulting and author of "From Impressed to Obsessed"; Forrest Morgeson - Associate Professor of Marketing at Michigan State University, Director of Research Emeritus at the American Customer Satisfaction Index

Are you frustrated with the way companies treat you? If so, you’re not alone: Surveys find that many consumers are fed up with long waits on the phone, customer service agents who can’t solve their problems, unintelligible billing statements, poorly designed websites, and inexperienced or indifferent sales staff.

In this episode: Why do so many companies see customer service as a costly problem, rather than a way to retain their customers? Why is it so difficult, if not impossible, to resolve issues via phone? Is there anything you can do to get your problems solved after the sale?

Support our podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/consumerpedia/support

finance, money, technology

January 25, 2024

55 – Your Right to Repair Products You Buy

Host: Herb Weisbaum /

Guest(s): Nathan Proctor - Senior Director of the Right to Repair campaign at U.S. PIRG; Elizabeth Chamberlain - Director of Sustainability at iFixit

Manufacturers often make it difficult or impossible to fix their products when they break, or even take them to an independent repair shop of your choosing. Consumer advocates say these repair restrictions limit competition, drive up the cost of repairs, and add to the growing problem of e-waste.

In this episode, a look at the broken repair system and what’s being done to fix it. Plus, make your voice heard as part of the petition to the Federal Trade Commission by clicking here to sign.

Support our podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/consumerpedia/support

technology

December 14, 2023

53 – Smart Toys: The Privacy & Security Risks

Host: Herb Weisbaum /

Guest(s): Teresa Murray - Consumer Watchdog, U.S. PIRG; R.J. Cross - Director of PIRG’s Don’t Sell My Data Campaign

Smart toys are cool. With their onboard cameras, microphones, and sensors… plus the ability to pair with other devices or connect to the internet, they can do some amazing things. They can also collect data on your child—including pictures and what they say—and send that information back to the toy company. So, parents need to think carefully about whether to buy these toys. And if so, how to make sure they’re used safely by their children.

In this episode, we’ll look at the privacy and security risks created by this data collection and sharing, and how parents can mitigate that risk. We’ll also give you a checklist of things to look for before buying smart toys, and what to do once you get them home.

leisure, technology

November 30, 2023

52 – Shop Safely Online This Holiday Season

Host: Herb Weisbaum /

Guest(s): John Breyault - A Vice President at the National Consumers League; Melissa Lanning Trumpower - Executive Director of the BBB Institute for Marketplace Trust

While convenient, online shopping can be risky. E-commerce creates all sorts of new opportunities for cyber criminals to do their dirty work, so you need to be careful. U.S. consumers reported losing $358 million to online scams last year, according to the Federal Trade Commission.

In this episode, we talk to John Breyault, a vice president at the National Consumers League, and Melissa Lanning Trumpower, executive director of the BBB Institute for Marketplace Trust, about how to spot the tricks con artists use to fool you and how you can protect yourself. Also, the smart way to pay when shopping online, and how to fight back against porch pirates.

Additional Resources:

⁠Tips for reducing your risk of fraud this holiday shopping season⁠

⁠BBB Scam Tracker⁠ is a free tool anyone can use to report suspected scams. Your reports warn others so they can avoid similar cons.

Fraud victims can report scams to the ⁠National Consumers League’s Fraud.org website⁠. This information is shared with a network of 100 law enforcement partners across the U.S. and Canada.

Support our podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/consumerpedia/support

finance, money, technology