Fake reviews are the scourge of the industry, and like any other comparison site, we receive fake reviews, scam comments and fraudulent forum posts every day. Making sure this bogus content does not get published is extremely important. So, in this article, I’ll explain what we do at Good Money Guide to combat fake reviews.
Firstly, at Good Money Guide, trust is everything. As a comparison site that blends expert analysis with real customer feedback, we take fake reviews seriously and have multiple safeguards in place to protect the integrity of our ratings.
Any review that is left on a provider’s review page is moderated and checked by a human. Often, it is clear when a review is fake, as it relates to recovery room scams, in which case we do not publish it.
Users can also provide verifiable details about the product they are reviewing, such as whether they use an ISA, SIPP, trading account or savings account, which helps us identify patterns and inconsistencies. Reviews that are vague, promotional, duplicated, or clearly written to damage a competitor are flagged automatically and manually reviewed before publication.
Providers may also contest a review, and in those cases, we will get in touch with the person who left the review to verify that it is true.
We monitor for suspicious activity. Multiple reviews from the same IP address, identical phrasing across accounts, sudden spikes in positive or negative submissions, and accounts created solely to leave one review are all investigated. Where necessary, reviews are removed and accounts restricted.
We also give firms the right to respond publicly to customer feedback, creating transparency and accountability on both sides.
As we combine customer reviews with expert reviews. Every provider on Good Money Guide receives a detailed editorial assessment based on our published methodology. This means no company can artificially inflate its overall score purely through user submissions. Our expert ratings consider pricing, platform functionality, customer service, market access, and research tools, creating a balanced view that cannot be gamed by a handful of suspicious reviews.
When we spot a company acting suspsciouly we will disable customer reviews on their page and mark them as AVOID or UNREGULATED.
If you have spotted a review that you think is fake, please contact us to let us know.
Richard is the founder of the Good Money Guide (formerly Good Broker Guide), one of the original investment comparison sites established in 2015. With a career spanning two decades as a broker, he brings extensive expertise and knowledge to the financial landscape.
Having worked as a broker at Investors Intelligence and a multi-asset derivatives broker at MF Global (Man Financial), Richard has acquired substantial experience in the industry. His career began as a private client stockbroker at Walker Crips and Phillip Securities (now King and Shaxson), following internships on the NYMEX oil trading floor in New York and London IPE in 2001 and 2000.
Richard’s contributions and expertise have been recognized by respected publications such as The Sunday Times, BusinessInsider, Yahoo Finance, BusinessNews.org.uk, Master Investor, Wealth Briefing, iNews, and The FT, among many others.
Under Richard’s leadership, the Good Money Guide has evolved into a valuable destination for comprehensive information and expert guidance, specialising in trading, investment, and currency exchange. His commitment to delivering high-quality insights has solidified the Good Money Guide’s standing as a well-respected resource for both customers and industry colleagues.
