Every review on our platform goes through a multi-step verification process before it's published. Here's exactly how it works — no black boxes, no guesswork.
Every review goes through all of the following stages — in order — before it appears on a business profile.
The moment a review is submitted, automated checks run instantly. We screen for bot behaviour, disposable email addresses, VPN or proxy usage, duplicate submissions, and known spam patterns. Reviews that fail this stage are discarded before a human ever sees them.
We run automated checks for prohibited content — links, contact details, promotional language, abusive words, and content that appears copy-pasted from another source. Reviews flagged at this stage are held for human review rather than automatically discarded.
A member of our moderation team reads the review in full. We assess whether it reads as a genuine first-hand experience — looking for specificity (product names, dates, service details), consistency, and plausibility. Generic, vague reviews that could apply to any business are queried or rejected.
We cross-reference reviewer information against known business owner and employee accounts. We also look for coordinated review patterns — multiple reviews from the same network, IP range, or arriving in an unusual cluster — which can indicate a review campaign, either positive or negative.
The review is checked against our full Review Guidelines. This includes confirming the review is about the correct business, doesn't reference third parties (couriers, manufacturers), and doesn't contain ongoing legal matters or threats.
Reviews that pass all checks are published. The business's aggregate rating and review count update automatically. The reviewer receives a confirmation email, and if the business has a verified owner, they are notified so they can respond.
Published reviews can be reported by any user at any time. Every report is assessed by a human moderator within 72 hours. If a review is found to be in breach after publication — because new information comes to light — it is edited or removed. Ratings adjust automatically.
Moderators are trained to recognise the difference between a genuine review and one that's been fabricated or incentivised. These are the signals we assess.
Fake reviews damage buyers and honest businesses alike. These are the most common manipulation tactics we encounter — and how we catch them.
We believe in being upfront about what our verification process can and cannot guarantee. Here's a clear breakdown.
We believe transparency is more valuable than projecting false confidence. These are the genuine limitations of our current verification process.
Our verification process is stronger when the community actively participates. Here's what buyers and businesses can do.
Your honest review helps the next buyer — and strengthens the platform for everyone.