Latest news with #BeckyFoley
CNBC
25-05-2025
- Business
- CNBC
Here's how many fake reviews Tripadvisor found on its website in 2024
Around 8% of the 31.1 million reviews submitted to Tripadvisor in 2024 were fake, according to the company's "Transparency Report 2025." That's more than twice the number detected in 2022, according to company reports. But that doesn't mean the number of fake reviews on the site doubled, said Becky Foley, vice president and head of trust and safety at Tripadvisor. While submissions to the website increased, Tripadvisor's policies on fake reviews also changed, she said, citing the company's more aggressive stance against "incentivized reviews." These occur when companies offer customers discounts or freebies in exchange for reviews, or provide incentives to employees whose names are mentioned in reviews. "The employees get their mom, best friend or cousin to submit reviews, mentioning their names," she said. "It ends up leading to businesses having reviews that aren't actually valuable to our community." According to Tripadvisor, it is "any review submitted by someone who is knowingly submitting biased or non-firsthand content, in an effort to manipulate a property's reputation." But there's a bigger reason detections are on the rise, she said. "Our system is always getting better," she said, citing Tripadvisor's three-pronged process that relies on auto-detection, human review and community feedback. Some 7% of submissions in 2024 were auto-rejected before being posted, the report said. Auto-detections also flagged another 5% of submissions for human review. However, Tripadvisor's trust and safety team ultimately moderated more than 4.2 million reviews, amounting to more than 13% of all submissions in 2024, according to the report. Another 244,000 reviews were disputed by members at the third stage of review, the report showed. Of these, some 72% remained on the site, and 28% were removed, it said. Tripadvisor has four categories of fake submissions: boosting, vandalism, member fraud and paid reviews, Foley said. There's a misconception that vandalism accounts for most fake reviews, Foley said, adding that boosting (54%) and member fraud (39%) have long made up the bulk of those reviews. Paid reviews (4.8%) are a smaller, but "more pernicious," category of fakes, she said. This includes "review farms," she said, adding that these people are often involved in other types of online fraud too. Most paid reviews originate in Asia, Foley said, even though only 17% of real submissions come from the continent. In 2024, more than one-third of all paid submissions detected by Tripadvisor came from Indonesia and Vietnam, while in 2022 most paid reviews came from India, the company said. Rooting out fake reviews is a constant "cat and mouse" game, Foley said. But Tripadvisor is getting better at detecting them every year, she said. "We are the first to admit that we're never going to reach absolute perfection," said Foley. "We might not catch [a fake] the first time, but we'll catch it eventually." Tripadvisor uses its own technology, developed over 25 years, to flush out fakes — a system that increasingly relies less on what a review says, and more on how it's posted, she said. The company uses artificial intelligence and behavioral biometrics to find patterns, which can detect abnormalities like submission spikes and IP address masking attempts. To catch paid reviewers, Tripadvisor investigators pose as fake review brokers, Foley said. When a bad actor posts their first paid review, "we have all of the data … hundreds of data points associated with it," which the company uses to build patterns to identify other reviews submitted by the author in the past. Violators aren't pulled off the site, but their rankings are penalized for a year, Foley said. Repeat offenders receive a red badge on their listing "that says this property is trying to deceive you," she said. Most reviews written by AI are not fake, Foley said, calling that "one of the myths I love to bust." "'It's somebody that's trying to use AI, because they'd like their writing to be more polished," she said. Still, the company doesn't allow them — at least not for now. In 2024, Tripadvisor removed more than 200,000 reviews that it suspected were written by AI, according to the company's 2025 transparency report. "We will continue to monitor the trends and patterns. But right now, we just don't want travelers to come to TripAdvisor for a sea of sameness."
Associated Press
21-03-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. Is Investigating Lion Electric, Flywire, Civitas, and SoundHound and Encourages Investors to Contact the Firm
NEW YORK, March 20, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C., a nationally recognized shareholder rights law firm, is investigating potential claims The Lion Electric Company (OTCPK: LEVGQ), Flywire Corporation (NASDAQ:FLYW), Civitas Resources, Inc. (NYSE: CIVI), and SoundHound AI, Inc. (NASDAQ:SOUN). Our investigations concern whether these companies have violated the federal securities laws and/or engaged in other unlawful business practices. Additional information about each case can be found at the link provided. The Lion Electric Company (OTCPK: LEVGQ) The investigation focuses on whether the Company issued false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose information pertinent to investors. Lion Electric is the subject of a report published by the Kennebec Journal on February 17, 2025, titled: 'EPA visits Winthrop schools as part of electric bus investigation.' According to the article, 'Federal agents visited Winthrop schools in late January as part of an investigation into Lion Electric Co.'s electric buses, interim Superintendent Becky Foley told the school board earlier this month.' The superintendent told the school board that, 'I met with an EPA special agent last week to see if there was any fraud committed by Lion. I think whatever resolution may occur will take some time, and I will keep the board posted.' Flywire Corporation (NASDAQ:FLYW) On February 25, 2025, Flywire released its fourth quarter 2024 financial results. Among other items, Flywire missed consensus estimates with respect to key metrics, reported a net loss of $15.9 million, lowered its 2025 guidance, and announced a restructuring plan that includes a 10% reduction in its workforce. On this news, Flywire's stock price fell $6.59 per share, or 37.4%, to close at $11.05 per share on February 26, 2025. For more information on the Flywire investigation go to: Civitas Resources, Inc. (NYSE: CIVI) On February 24, 2025, Civitas announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year 2024, including both revenue and non-GAAP EPS that missed consensus estimates. Civitas also announced a 10% reduction in its workforce across all levels, as well as the termination of its Chief Operating Officer Hodge Walker and Chief Transformation Officer Jerome Kelly, effective immediately. On this news, Civitas's stock price fell $8.95 per share, or 18.15%, to close at $40.35 per share on February 25, 2025. For more information on the Civitas investigation go to: SoundHound AI, Inc. (NASDAQ:SOUN) On March 4, 2025, SoundHound filed a Notification of Late Filing on Form 12b-25 with the SEC, stating that the Company would be unable to file its 10-K annual report for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2024, within the prescribed time period. The Notification of Late Filing said that "[d]ue to the complexity of accounting for [the Company's prior acquisitions of Synq3, Inc. and Amelia Holdings, Inc.], the Company requires additional time to prepare financial statements and accompanying notes.' The Notification of Late Filing further stated that the Company 'has identified material weaknesses in its internal control over financial reporting. These material weaknesses continue to exist as of December 31, 2024. The Company expects to file its Form 10-K within the fifteen-day period provided under Rule 12b-25, no later than by March 18, 2025.' Following this news, SoundHound stock dropped 5.8% on March 4, 2025. About Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C.: Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. is a nationally recognized law firm with offices in New York, California, and South Carolina. The firm represents individual and institutional investors in commercial, securities, derivative, and other complex litigation in state and federal courts across the country. For more information about the firm, please visit Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes. Contact Information: Bragar Eagel & Squire, P.C. Brandon Walker, Esq. Marion Passmore, Esq.
