The big picture of review fraud - who does it and why:   We explore the full range of review fraud from fake positive reviews, black hat negative reviews and review extortion with Curtis Boyd of the Transparency Company. How widespread is it, is it growing, which categories are most likely to participate in it and why.  How to deal with fake review attacks and competitors who use fake reviews:   If you are an honest business can you compete in a world rife with review fraud. We discuss how to deal with fake review attacks and how to get fake reviews that your competitors have gotten taken down.  The FTC and fake review guidelines and rules:   The FTC has been upping their enforcement game with new Guidelines which set a standard and upcoming Rules which will facilitate their ability to impose fines on buyers and sellers of reviews. The major platforms are largely exempt from any enforcement but their is language in the upcoming FTC rules that makes a business fully responsible for compliance.  The Future of Reviews: What will see over the next 24 months in review spam & possible enforcement:  New rules from the FTC and better filters from Google might turn the corner on fake reviews but the lack of FTC resources and the lack of Google’s focus may prevent that from happening The Near Memo is a weekly conversation about Search, Social, and Commerce: What happened, why it matters, and the implications for local businesses and national brands. near memo ep 128 Subscribe to our 3x per week newsletter at https://www.nearmedia.co/subscribe/