September 24th 2026
Online shoppers are being warned not to take five-star review scores displayed on retailers’ own websites at face value, as scam shopping sites use fake Trustpilot-style ratings and reviews to convince consumers that they are legitimate.
Analysis by Ask Silver, the AI-powered scam-checking platform, and Get Safe Online, the online safety advice platform, found that a growing number of e-commerce websites flagged as scams between 1 July and 27 August were also misrepresenting their review scores.
One in 10 of these purchase scam websites falsely claimed to have hundreds, or even thousands, of glowing reviews that could not be found on Trustpilot itself.
For consumers, these fabricated ratings can provide a powerful but entirely false sense of reassurance at a crucial point in the buying journey. The deception tactic can be particularly effective because fake reviews are often positioned at the point where consumers are most likely to hesitate, close to the checkout or ‘buy now’ button. A shopper who is unsure about an unfamiliar retailer may see a 4.8 or 4.9-star rating alongside a stream of positive customer comments and take that as reassurance that the business is genuine.
In some cases, however, the positive picture presented on the retailer’s website is the opposite and Ask Silver has found that these companies often have predominantly negative reviews, some have even been flagged by Trustpilot for breaching its guidelines regarding fake reviews.
Some questionable retailers are going further still, displaying detailed customer testimonials, photographs and even supposed video reviews to create a convincing picture of a well-established business. Consumers should not assume these are genuine simply because they look polished or appear to feature real people.
Alex Somervell, Co-founder of Ask Silver, said: “We tell consumers to check reviews before buying something online, it’s a shortcut we all use when deciding whether we trust a website, but scammers understand that. If somebody is already at the checkout and beginning to wonder whether they should go ahead with a purchase, seeing hundreds of five-star reviews can provide exactly the reassurance they need.
“The problem is that a review score displayed on a retailer’s own website is ultimately just a claim. Before buying from a company you haven’t used before, take a few seconds to search for the retailer directly on Trustpilot or Google Reviews rather than relying on a badge or review preview displayed on its own website.
“If a retailer claims to have more than 1,000 reviews and an exceptionally high score, such as 4.7 or above, but you cannot find evidence of those reviews independently, that is a big red flag.”
Tony Neate, CEO of Get Safe Online, said: “Scammers know that professional-looking websites, polished reviews and reassuring badges can make an unfamiliar retailer feel legitimate.
“Consumers should look beyond what is presented on the site itself and check the web address, independent reviews, contact details and how the business is asking them to pay.
“If those checks don’t stack up, however convincing the website looks, don’t proceed with the purchase.”
Ask Silver and Get Safe Online’s warning signs to look for
- Check review websites independently. Search for the company directly rather than relying on a review badge or link displayed on the retailer’s website.
- Compare the numbers. Check whether the star rating and number of reviews shown by the retailer match those displayed independently on Trustpilot.
- Be wary of extraordinarily positive scores. A previously unknown retailer claiming thousands of reviews and an almost perfect rating deserves additional checking.
- Look for inconsistencies. Scam sites may display different ratings or review totals on different pages because fake review widgets have been added separately.
- Read the negative reviews. Toggle the view to see all 1-star, these can reveal reports of goods never arriving, counterfeit products, unexpected subscriptions or difficulties obtaining refunds.
- Do not let reviews rush the purchase. If you have doubts about an unfamiliar retailer, stop before entering your payment details and take time to make further checks.
- Use scam checkers. These are free tools where you can put copy/paste a website and get free analysis. But use them alongside your best judgement and other tools.
