"Boss, Why Is the Handwriting Like This? Taking Off One Star Because It Feels Uncomfortable"… Shocked by 'Malicious Delivery Reviews'

Cases of 'malicious reviews' by customers that baffle self-employed business owners are occurring one after another. Photo by Online Community Capture

Photo by Online Community Capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Nahana] Cases of customers leaving 'malicious reviews' that baffle self-employed business owners on delivery apps are causing public outrage.

Recently, a business owner shared an experience of a malicious review on an online community. The customer gave a star rating attack over a handwritten note sent by the owner along with the food.

The note read, "Vegetable gopchang is cooked 'moderately' and packed tightly." It also expressed gratitude, saying, "Thank you for your order."

However, the customer who received the note misread the word 'cooked' (조리) as 'loli' (로리) and left a review saying, "Is this 'loli' referring to cooking or the *** (a term meaning pedophilia)? It's unsettling, so I deducted one star. It's unpleasant."

In response, the owner commented, "Sorry for my poor handwriting," adding, "I wrote the note to convey a warm heart even in a busy time...".

Other netizens who saw this reacted critically, saying things like, "How can someone think like that?", "It's absurd not to be touched by a handwritten note in a busy time," and "It's stranger that it looks like 'loli'."

This is not the only absurd malicious review case that makes self-employed business owners upset. Some customers post explicit photos of food they discarded in the drain because it did not suit their taste, or make unreasonable demands and then leave review attacks claiming their requests were not met.

In response, Woowa Brothers, the operator of Baedal Minjok (Baemin), and the National Franchise Store Owners Association (Jeongahyeop) recently announced measures to eradicate malicious reviews. If a business owner reports an unjust malicious review, Baemin can review it and make the review private for 30 days.

On the other hand, some voices express concerns that such measures could intentionally label dissatisfied reviews as malicious, potentially blocking consumers' legitimate consumption.