Car detailing firm admits to posting fake AI-generated 5-star reviews on Sgcarmart in first such case

SINGAPORE: A car detailing company has been found to have posted fake AI-generated five-star customer reviews on its Sgcarmart business page for the past two years, said the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS) on Thursday (Jul 3).

Quantum Globe, the owner and operator of Lambency Detailing, admitted to submitting the ChatGPT-written reviews using their customers' information without their knowledge and consent.

“This is the second fake review case that CCCS has uncovered, and the first case involving both a third-party platform and the use of AI to create these fake reviews," said CCCS chief executive Alvin Koh.

When asked if it was looking into other cases involving fake AI-generated reviews, CCCS told CNA it was unable to share information pertaining to ongoing investigations.

The consumer watchdog began investigating the case in January under Singapore's fair trading laws.

This came after a complaint from a Lambency Detailing customer who discovered unauthorised reviews posted under her name on Sgcarmart, an online platform for buying and selling cars. According to its website, Lambency Detailing provides a range of car detailing services from hand washing to restoration. 

During the investigation, CCCS confirmed with seven other customers that fake reviews with their names, vehicle registration numbers and vehicle photographs had been posted without their consent.

Quantum Globe then admitted it was behind the reviews. 

In response to CNA's query on how CCCS detected that the fake reviews were AI-generated, the consumer watchdog said a Quantum Globe staff member admitted to generating the reviews using ChatGPT, presumably to make the reviews look authentic. CCCS had also identified an "unusually high number of 5-star reviews published on certain days".

The reviews were submitted via a QR code provided by Sgcarmart that allowed users to give feedback on businesses without needing to have an account with the platform, Facebook or Google.

"The posting of fake customer reviews by a business in relation to a consumer transaction is an unfair trade practice, as consumers might be misled into thinking that the product is more well-received than it actually is, and thus make misinformed purchase decisions," said CCCS.

ACTION TAKEN

According to CCCS, Quantum Globe has admitted to engaging in an unfair trade practice and has given an undertaking that it will stop posting fake reviews.

The company also agreed to set up a feedback channel for six months to allow the reporting of any fake reviews on Sgcarmart by customers.

It will notify customers whose details were used in the fake reviews that were posted between October 2024 and January, and invite them to report fake reviews via the feedback channel.

In addition, Quantum Globe agreed to publish notices that will last for six months on Sgcarmart and any other online platforms it uses to promote Lambency Detailing. The notices are to inform customers that it had posted fake reviews and to let them know of the feedback channel.

Any reviews on Sgcarmart that are verified to be fake are to be removed within eight working days, including the reviews flagged by CCCS during its investigation.

Quantum Globe director Matthew Lim Jun Ho also gave an undertaking to CCCS that he will not engage in any unfair trade practice or facilitate any business under his control to do so.

In response to the investigation, Sgcarmart owner and operator SGCM is considering additional verification methods, such as SMS or email confirmation, to enhance the integrity and authenticity of reviews on its platform, said CCCS.

In a media statement on Thursday, Lambency Detailing, whose automotive detailing centre is in Ubi, said it "accepts full responsibility" for the fake reviews.

"These reviews were written by employees without proper disclosure, and this should not have happened. We apologise unreservedly to our customers, Sgcarmart, and the public.

"Upholding trust and transparency is core to our business, and we acknowledge that this incident compromised those values.

"We have taken immediate steps to remove the reviews and have put in place stricter guidelines to ensure all future communications meet the standards expected of us. We remain committed to earning our customers’ trust the right way, through honest work and genuine feedback."

In June last year, furniture retailer Loft Home Furnishing was issued a warning by the consumer watchdog for posting fake five-star reviews. Investigations into that case were prompted following complaints by some customers over reviews which contained their initials and posted on the retailer's website without their knowledge.

"When businesses post fake reviews to boost their ratings and popularity, they poison the well of consumer trust. Such deceptive practices, also known as 'dark patterns', not only mislead consumers but also disadvantage  honest competing businesses," said Mr Koh.

"We remain committed to take firm action against businesses engaging in such unfair practices." 

Consumers who rely on online reviews before making purchases are advised to spend more time looking in-depth, rather than just scanning them.

"Instead of just focusing on the number of reviews and the average score, look deeper into the spread of review scores and common opinions that emerge. Read a selection of reviews with different scores and form your own view," said CCCS.

Other measures they can take to differentiate authentic reviews from fake ones include checking multiple websites to gauge the consistency and reliability of the reviews, as well as whether there are safeguards in place, such as verification of purchases and absence of incentivised reviews.

Overly positive reviews can be a red flag, as are generic reviews that lack details or use generic buzzwords such as "amazing" or "perfect".

Consumers should also be wary if there are many reviews posted under similar names, using similar language, or have repeated or similar spelling or grammatical errors, said CCCS.

Members of the public may contact the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE) to report cases of unfair trade practices by errant businesses, it added.