A spreadsheet by user ‘wrongcolornote’ compared the reviews in question
There have been reports of more possible fake reviews on Sephora.
A Reddit user claimed that there were suspicious reviews on popular subreddit “SkincareAddiction” which has just under a million subscribers. In the post, the user analyzed all the reviews for products under the brand Four Sigmatic. The user found that almost all posted reviews were from users from the same pool of accounts, with the oldest account being created in July. Most accounts also only exclusively reviewed Four Sigmatic products.
Though possibly coincidental, the accounts were also cross-referenced and some of the Sephora accounts’ usernames matched Instagram handles of employees at Four Sigmatic. The brand in question sells products including “functional mushrooms and adaptogens by incorporating them into mainstream products like coffee, tea, and cacao.”
Sephora hasn’t released a public statement about these allegations and responded to a twitter user saying that the incident have been forwarded to appropriate contacts.
@Sephora
what is being done to stop fake reviews? pic.twitter.com/ltyquPGzQg— CHELO (@chelllssseeea) October 24, 2018
This is the second time in the past month that suspected fake reviews were spotted on Sephora’s website, with popular skincare brand Sunday Riley originally caught for asking their own employees to fabricate reviews on the popular beauty chain’s website.
In a statement made to Allure regarding Sunday Riley, Sephora said it takes all measures to ensure that all ratings and reviews are authentic.
“At Sephora, we believe in the power of the beauty community and that knowledge should be shared to benefit all. Sephora has very strict brand rules regarding our Ratings and Reviews, which we know are an important decision tool for our clients. Additionally, we have teams dedicated to protecting the integrity of our Ratings and Reviews, ensuring through detailed moderation that it’s a constant trusted, unbiased, authentic source for all. We do not believe this incident is representative of the Sephora Ratings and Reviews culture, or the countless hours our clients have spent sharing their product experiences with us and others.”
Four Sigmatic has not responded to comment on these allegations.
