You can now report fake reviews to the FTC [Video]

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is swinging its big, regulatory stick at fake online reviews. Rules announced earlier this year are now in effect, banning reviews by fake people, AI-generated text, and those who don’t disclose their status as company insiders or affiliates.

If you spot violations of the new policy, you can report them directly to the FTC, for a maximum fine of $51,744.

The FTC’s updated guidelines for online reviews outlaw six specific types of fakery: reviews from people who aren’t real or use AI-generated text or images, no paid reviews (or other forms of compensation, like those sneaky $10 coupons thrown in with an Amazon shipment), no reviews from employees of the company offering the product or others with a financial relationship, no fake review sites designed to gum up search results, no suppression of negative reviews, and no buying or selling fake “followers” or other social influence.

FTC chairwoman Lina Khan announced the rule going into effectyesterday on …