Ratings, reviews and riddles: What's the deal with online reviews?

The Star

23-06-2025

One of the first things that online shoppers usually search for when looking to buy something is user reviews.
Rows upon rows of stars, scores, and ratings that are meant to guide and inform each and every purchase can in reality turn out to be far less useful than hoped for these days.
From Malaysia Cyber Consumer Association (MCCA) deputy ­president Azrul Zafri Azmi's ­perspective, reviews remain very relevant to Malaysian consumers, especially when it comes to things like ordering from e-commerce ­platforms or deciding on where to eat.
According to him, studies have shown that 71% of Malaysians take reviews into account before making an online purchase. However, he says that there are still some clear underlying issues when it comes to online reviews in Malaysia.
'The challenge now is not access to reviews, but how authentic and reliable they are.
'Honestly, trust has dropped a bit in recent years. Some ­consumers have started to ­question reviews that sound too generic or too perfect.
'We're seeing more fake reviews, incentivised ones, and even copy-pasted feedback across listings. These trends make it harder for genuine reviews to stand out,' Azrul Zafri says.
Tainted trust
This rings true for KL-based auditor Lee Xien Wen, an avid online shopper who says he has encountered everything from irrelevant and unhelpful reviews to ones he suspects are outright fake.
'Some of the reviews would say things like, 'Looks pretty, ­haven't tried it yet', often repeated in ­different languages.
'It makes me think they're just trying to earn points or rewards, or could even be fake reviews generated by bots.
'If I see too many like that, I usually avoid the seller or brand altogether and look for a different option,' he says, adding that this has led him to prefer official seller pages for products rather than third parties' pages, and to look for user-posted product review videos that appear to be more genuine.
From Azrul Zafri's point of view, reviews being left on e-­commerce platforms solely to obtain rewards, without any helpful information for other potential buyers, undermine the purpose of reviews entirely.
From Azrul Zafri's point of view, reviews being left on e-­commerce platforms solely to obtain rewards, without any helpful information for other potential buyers, undermine the purpose of reviews entirely. — AZRUL ZAFRI AZMI
'This is a big issue. It's ­unethical, and more importantly, it misleads others. Some ­platforms give coins or points for every review, which unintentionally encourages this behaviour.
'When users rate a product they haven't even tried, it defeats the whole purpose of helping other consumers make better choices,' he says.
According to Azrul Zafri, those ­leaving such reviews may not fully understand the impact of what they are doing, which in the long run 'damages the ­system that all of us rely on – and genuine buyers end up getting misled', he adds.
An April 2025 statement from the Mufti of Federal Territory's Office (FT Mufti) similarly states that leaving false reviews or ratings for products purchased on e-commerce platforms without using them or examining their quality is an act of deception, which is prohibited or 'haram'.
The FT Mufti further states that any rewards obtained through disingenuous reviews are also considered 'haram' and should be left unused until their expiry.
Azrul Zafri further notes that there are also restaurants that offer discounts or free items in exchange for five-star ratings on platforms like Google, which he believes is problematic.
'I think encouraging reviews is fine – but when businesses tie rewards specifically to five-star ratings, it becomes manipulative.
'It's no longer about feedback; it's about boosting ratings ­unfairly. It also puts pressure on customers to give high scores, whether they mean it or not,' he says.
Confusing mix
Concerns have also been raised about e-commerce platform ­features that aggregate reviews on similar items within the same ­product category from other listings across the site.
Azrul Zafri says that the aggregated reviews might not even refer to the exact same product, potentially ­misleading buyers.
'When reviews from different sellers or product variants are lumped together, consumers may think they're looking at feedback for the exact item they're buying – when they're not.
'That creates confusion, especially if one seller has poor service or quality,' he says.
Shoppers like Lee point out that reviews from other sellers are not indicative of how responsive or ­reliable a specific seller may be, while sellers like Fithry Akbar Ali feel that the feature is unfair, as it took them years to build a strong reputation, with newer sellers benefiting from the pool of existing reviews that they did not earn.
Fithry Akbar operates an online shop primarily centred around video games.
'I've encountered new competitors who just started selling similar products as myself and others, but noticed their product has over 500 reviews, despite it being a new ­listing.
'It completely kills off years and years of reviews built by original sellers. Buyers would then simply buy from these new sellers, thinking their product is trustworthy and reliable due to the high ratings,' he says.
He also highlights the possibility of counterfeit product listings being associated with real ones due to being furnished with aggregated reviews, which could further ­mislead consumers into buying fake products.
Fake reviews have become a ­significant concern across e-commerce platforms, especially overseas, according to various reports. — Image by freepik
In a statement to LifestyleTech, a Shopee spokesperson addressed these concerns, stating that the intended purpose of such ­aggregated reviews is to provide assistance to new sellers and ­product listings.
'This feature only lasts for seven calendar days from the time of a new listing creation, after which sellers will have to rely on ­themselves to get good reviews.
'All such reviews are clearly marked within the app as 'Similar Product'. These Similar Product Reviews provide helpful product context for newer listings, but they do not replace the seller's effort in earning buyer trust,' it says.
The e-commerce platform adds that it is not a replacement for other metrics such as store ratings, ­fulfilment speed, and chat responsiveness, which individual shops must still earn independently.
'Through this feature, we aim to promote fairer competition on the platform, prioritising quality, value, and service instead of legacy seller reputation alone.
'New or smaller sellers with strong offerings benefit from a level playing field, while buyers enjoy a broader range of trusted options.
'Building consumer trust and providing fair opportunities for ­sellers remain top priorities for Shopee,' it says.
Filtering fakes
The platforms themselves say that they have mechanisms in place to ensure that reviews left by ­customers are authentic.
For instance, Lazada says in a statement to LifestyleTech that it uses 'AI (artificial intelligence) to guide users in writing more informative reviews, prompting them to comment on key aspects such as durability, design, and functionality.
'To encourage authentic user-­generated content, Lazada offers LazCoins as incentives – with the highest coin rewards granted only to reviews that meet minimum word counts and include supporting visuals like photos or videos.
'We continuously moderate our review platform and take proactive steps to reduce unhelpful or ­suspicious reviews,' it says.
The e-commerce platform adds that it also uses AI and performs manual checks of reviews to detect 'inauthentic patterns' and flags ­certain high-quality ones as 'Quality Reviews'.
Meanwhile, the Shopee spokesperson says only customers who have actually purchased a product are able to leave reviews.
'Shopee takes a serious view of fake ratings or reviews. Under Shopee's Terms of Service, sellers must not take any action that undermines Shopee's feedback or rating system.
'Users found to be engaging in manipulative activities will face a range of penalties, including having their accounts frozen or being ­permanently banned on our ­platform.
'Consumers who are concerned they may have bought products based on fake ratings and reviews can report such products to Shopee for our investigations. They may also raise a Return/Refund request to get a refund for their purchase,' the spokesperson says.
Both platforms allow users to ­further indicate if specific reviews are 'helpful' to boost their visibility to others as well.
While Azrul Zafri acknowledges the efforts being made by the ­platforms, he says that more can still be done. 'Platforms need better filters for fake or copy-paste reviews, and they should educate users more clearly on review ­ethics,' he adds.
Fake reviews have become a ­significant concern across e-commerce platforms, especially overseas, according to various reports.
Most recently, the United Kingdom's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) obtained a formal commitment from Amazon earlier this month to address fake reviews and 'catalogue abuse', which is a practice where sellers repurpose existing product listings to sell ­unrelated or lower-quality items by misleading consumers, following a four-year probe.
This commitment comes in the form of faster detection systems, prompt removal of fraudulent reviews, and imposing bans on offending sellers and reviewers.
Travel planning and booking platform, TripAdvisor, similarly reported a slew of fake reviews on its website in 2024.
Based on figures from the ­website's 'Transparency Report 2025', 8% of the 31.1 million reviews it received that year were fake. This includes manipulative reviews meant to 'boost' a location or business's reputation, vandalism from a competitor, promotions of unrelated services or agendas, and paid reviews.
Quest for quality
Azrul Zafri advises that Malaysians treat reviews as a starting point and to be savvier consumers by looking beyond surface-level star ratings. He also recommends that shoppers be wary of overly generic comments and to try to find more detailed ­feedback instead.
'Reviews help, but they're not the full story. These days, I always tell people: don't just stop at star ­ratings. Take a bit of time to really get to know what you're buying.
'First, it's good to check the same product across different platforms – Shopee, Lazada, TikTok Shop – because sometimes the listings look the same but the sellers or the ­prices are very different. If it looks too cheap to be true, chances are... it probably is.
'Also, I personally like to watch quick (video) reviews. Even a short video can show how the item looks, how it's used, or what people honestly think about it – that's often more helpful than a wall of copy-paste reviews.
'Another good tip is to read ­comments in Facebook groups or forums. Malaysians are quite active online, and you'll often find people sharing real experiences – both good and bad – especially when a product disappoints or doesn't match expectations.
'Spend a few extra minutes doing a quick check, and it can save you from a lot of regret later,' he says.
Azrul Zafri also believes that some form of light regulation by the Malaysian government would be helpful in facilitating a better e-commerce environment for local consumers. This would serve not to police opinions, but instead to ensure transparency.
He suggests introducing a code of conduct for platforms to clearly define what is permitted, what isn't, and how to handle cases of abuse.
He adds that ideally, this should be developed with input from the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission, relevant ministries, and civil society.
'Just like we've done with cybersecurity and online scams, we need to promote digital literacy and ­ethics – especially among students and young adults.
'I think it should be a joint effort between government, NGOs like MCCA, schools, and even the ­platforms themselves,' he says.