"Stop 'Shrimp Tempura Power Abuse'... 'Star Rating Terror Ban Act' Submitted to the National Assembly (Comprehensive)"

10 Ruling and Opposition Lawmakers Propose Amendment to 'Electronic Commerce Act'
Strengthening Platform Responsibility... Punishment for Paid Review Writers
Concerns Over Reduced Food Review Activity and Corporate Pressure
Woowa Brothers, Naver, and Others Working on System Improvements

[Asia Economy Reporters Kim Bo-kyung and Bu Aeri] The review system for delivery order applications is being tainted by abuse of power. The recent "Shrimp Tempura Abuse Incident" on Coupang Eats clearly illustrates this situation. Self-employed business owners are suffering because users demand services by saying they will write good reviews or write malicious reviews if the service is not provided.

To prevent such cases of star rating and review system abuse, a so-called "Anti-Star Rating Terrorism Act" has been submitted to the National Assembly. It includes provisions to strengthen the responsibility of platform companies to prevent star rating terrorism and to punish those who write paid fake reviews. On the 24th, 10 lawmakers from both ruling and opposition parties jointly proposed the amendment to the "Act on Consumer Protection in Electronic Commerce, etc." (led by Justice Party lawmaker Bae Jin-gyo).

Lawmaker Bae stated, "Fake reviews distort information not only for store owners but also for consumers, causing harm to both sides," adding, "A healthy and sustainable platform ecosystem will be established when transparency and fairness in information and transactions are guaranteed."

Star Rating Terrorism Troubles Both Self-Employed and Platform Companies
6 out of 10 Delivery App Owners Have Experienced Damage

If this bill passes, platform operators must display warning messages that fake review writers will be punished. They must also implement preventive measures against fake review writing and review brokerage or mediation activities. There is also a provision requiring disclosure of methods for collecting consumer reviews and sorting criteria. Writing paid reviews or demanding compensation for reviews is prohibited, and violators face imprisonment of up to 3 years or fines up to 100 million KRW.

According to a survey by the Justice Party's 6411 Livelihood Special Committee and the Justice Policy Research Institute, 63.3% of self-employed delivery app users reported experiencing damage from star rating terrorism or malicious reviews. Additionally, 74.3% said that star ratings and reviews affect their sales.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Recently, a cafe in Gyeonggi Province was targeted by an online community's "star rating terrorism," receiving over 20,000 reviews on Kakao Map. After a woman posted that she was discriminated against in a cafe job interview because she was a feminist, some female online communities mobilized, and the cafe's reviews were flooded with 1-star ratings and malicious comments. In response, male communities organized a campaign to give the cafe 5-star ratings, turning the issue into a gender conflict, making it difficult to distinguish genuine reviews.

Platform Star Rating and Review Systems Are a 'Double-Edged Sword'
Stricter Regulations May Cause 'Innocent Victims'

As the star rating and review system deteriorates, platform companies like Naver and Kakao are facing deep concerns. A Naver representative said, "Offline small business owners are very sensitive and worried about star ratings because they operate in local markets." Small business owners express their grievances about the star rating system through Naver's customer center. From the general user's perspective, it is difficult to discern accurate information, and they may suffer from fake reviews.

The platform star rating and review system is a double-edged sword. While abuse can poison the market environment, it is an effective low-cost promotional tool for diligent business owners. An industry insider pointed out, "Strengthening regulations due to extreme abuse cases may have the opposite effect of hindering consumers' freedom to express opinions and make choices." There is a possibility that the act of writing star ratings and reviews itself will be suppressed, causing innocent victims. Also, because it is practically difficult to legally define and punish black consumers (malicious consumers), platform operators are being pressured by strengthening their responsibilities.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Platform Companies Making Efforts to Prevent Malicious and Fake Reviews
Transparency Policies Being Established One After Another

Platform operators are implementing their own policies to prevent star rating terrorism and malicious reviews. Woowa Brothers, which operates Baedal Minjok, blinds reviews for 30 days if a store owner requests suspension due to defamation, etc. Last year, they introduced policies prohibiting review rewriting and limiting review writing to within 3 days. Through dedicated review inspection personnel and AI monitoring, they also caught a gang that earned over 100 million KRW through fake reviews.

Naver introduced the "Receipt Review" system. To leave a review, users must verify a receipt from the visited place to be able to leave star ratings and comments. Naver plans to abolish the star rating system in the third quarter of this year. Instead of star ratings, AI will extract keywords from visitor reviews and display them as tag clouds. Also, if there is dissatisfaction with a store, a feature called "Message Only for the Owner" will be introduced, allowing private communication rather than public reviews.

Kakao has established procedures to prevent review damage through the "Kakao Map Report Center." When a reporter submits a report and supporting documents, the company takes measures such as suspending the post. However, considering freedom of expression, the poster is also given an opportunity to explain. Kakao also provides a "Store Management Service" where owners can directly communicate with users via comments. A Kakao representative said, "We are reviewing various policies to prevent damage in the future."

Coupang Eats, which suffered from the Shrimp Tempura Abuse Incident, will establish a dedicated team to protect store owners from abusive users. They will assign dedicated counselors to listen to the difficulties of self-employed business owners and improve the counseling process by enhancing education and training for counselors. A function allowing store owners to directly respond to malicious reviews with comments will also be introduced. Furthermore, to ensure fair reviews, they plan to strengthen the feature that separates food satisfaction and delivery satisfaction evaluations.