Why not post the link to this listing or listings? Sorry but I’m a natural born skeptic!
I assume that it’s rare, but I know somebody who exchanged fake reviews. A college friend of my husband’s (the person who told us of Airbnb) is a complete slob. He is constantly getting dinged for cleanliness. He wanted to achieve Superhost status. He asked my husband to book a stay with him and write a glowing review specifically mentioning cleanliness. The friend offered to reimburse my husband for his costs as he believed that the additional bookings he would get as a Superhost would more than make up for the cost. I told my husband to refuse his friend’s request. Another friend of my husband’s friend booked and wrote a glowing review including the word, “spotless”. My husband’s friend reimbursed the fake guest’s expenses and wrote her a glowing review in return.
In case you wondered, my husband’s friend is now a Superhost.
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But how long will be?!
When did this incident happen, how long ago?
I pointed out to my husband the fact than unless his friend learned to identify cleanliness or find someone to tell him if his cleaners were doing a good job he would lose Superhost status. My husband told me that his friend (who lives in the Bay Area of Northern California) pays $30.00 to have his rental cottage cleaned. I said no wonder they’re doing a half assed job or less. His friend does such things as works under cars, then goes out to eat without showering or changing his shirt. In other words, filthy is his comfort zone.
The fake reviews were in June 2017.
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Ok, next assessment coming up in a month I think 
We’ll see where he stands after that, now how do I set a reminder on this post… 
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Love to see a link to these so called fake reviews!
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I think fake reviews are a naughty…listed as a no no in the TOS! I think I saw that once!
Of course, any type of deceptive activity is.
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The world is full of naughtiness: People finding ways to manipulate stock exchange markets. Music producers buying their own CD’s when they were still hip. Project developers in real estate business saying “65% already sold” when they have sold no apartment yet. Businesses buying clicks and likes for their product. Fake profiles on dating sites: Why did the first persons ever sign up?
Of course there are different levels of naughtiness depending on the consequences for other people. Every host that once in a while suggests to a guest the importance of good reviews (You?
) is also a tiny bit naughty in manipulating the natural course of things. These hosts are probably offering a great “product” and just want to have this communicated correctly to future guests. Probably few people see problem in doing so. The host that @renter101 is referring to, took it a few levels higher. But maybe his “product” is also really great and he’s just helping his business along. Of course we see it as wrong because he is stealing business from other hosts. But then again, many businesses in this world, regardless of a growing market, will try and grow their share in the market. In the end it’s always a competition, also in the “sharing” economy.
Just to be clear with everyone, I understand that a host might do this, but if it’s really a large scale manipulation, I don’t agree with it. 
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I’m trying to get worked up about this issue but failing. A few fake reviews on a dodgy listing is nothing. As everyone said, if they’re crap - they’ll fail. I think this tale is actually a great testament to the Airbnb review system. We all complain about it constantly but really it’s pretty robust in the grand scheme of things. Imagine if it was like TripAdvisor when anyone and their dog can write a review on your place/service with no comeback at all.
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TA has lately tightened up on their review standards.
What email address did you use to contact Air?
hi did airbnb ever reply? - i see more and more people doing fake reviews especially when they get started (to get superhost)…the old rent it to your friends for 5usd trick.
By what method do you determine this is happening? Is your situation the same at the OP?
As an aside, Airbnb has a minimum that a host can set and they should probably raise that. Here in the US even an empty campsite is more than 5 USD. Of course the fees are so low that I suppose it’s worth it to pay them if you are desperate for reviews.
Very true and not only that, there are many MANY inaccurate reviews. I imagine that most of us have had guests, for instance, with perfect reviews and they’ve been okay but nothing to rave about. And although I’ve only been an Airbnb guest a few times, mostly the places haven’t quite lived up to their reviews.
Exactly.
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Fake reviews are becoming a looming problem in the sense that the big-time investors use them to speed their way toward “superho” status. Meanwhile, honest hosts who aren’t gaming the AirBNB review system don’t have this advantage.
For example, let’s say an investor superhost brings on a new property. They then zip up say 3 or 4 fake reviews from their friends, presumably refund the friends’ AirBNB payments, and then go into real reviews (which look COMPLETELY different to the fake, you can spot them at a glance, all the purple prose goes out the window, and real reviews are MUCH shorter).
Here’s a look at a superhost who is getting his friends to write fake reviews:
Vacation Rental Maestro: OTA Roundup: Faking It with AirBnB Reviews
Excerpt:
This web page exposes 1) a fake AirBnB Review Network based in Baltimore Maryland AND 2) an AirBnB sort-order manipulation scheme which obfuscates fake inaugural reviews, benefiting both deceitful hosts and AirBnB.
What intrigues me is that the author speculates whether that change in AirBNB review sorting (away from chronological order) whenever, a year or two ago, may be because AirBNB is aware of fake starter reviews and is trying to “hide” them by shuffling them through the stack.
Airbnb has created this situation themselves by putting far too much weight on reviews!!! It should be deemphasized not life or death. Commercial investors can indeed book fake customers for a very cheap rate and call it the cost of business. Cheap marketing costs for them!
Exactly @konacoconutz. Commercial investors have rigged AirBNB’s own system.
I did a web search on this topic of rigged AirBNB reviews. One either comes across statements to the effect of “it’s impossible, you really have to stay in the AirBNB to review it” (ha ha ha ha ha)
OR …
in the darker corners of the web, you do find people asking how to “buy” reviews.
hi yes, basically when they create a new listing you ask 10 of yoru friends to review - USD5 for each visit. u immediatley become superhost.
I’m the same. I really don’t see how fake reviews are going to affect me. Fake reviews have been around for years, on Google business listings, Yelp, Tripadvisor … and not just for accommodation. There are few businesses these days that don’t have some reviews somewhere. It makes me wonder what percentage of online reviews are NOT fake!
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