What Marketers Need to Know to Comply with FTC Consumer Review Rule Prohibition on Insider Consumer Reviews

As previously covered here, the Federal Trade Commission has recently warned businesses to comply with the FTC Consumer Review Rule.

On December 22, 2025, the FTC announced that it sent warning letters to alert a number of companies of potential violations of the Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials (the “Consumer Review Rule”). The letters warn of potential violations of the agency’s Rule, which prohibits certain deceptive or unfair conduct related to the use of product reviews in advertising and marketing.

These letters confirm, for example, that companies violating the Consumer Reviews Rule may be subject to FTC enforcement actions, civil penalties of up to $53,088 per violation, consumer redress and other remedial measures.

The Consumer Reviews Rule prohibits reviews and testimonials that misrepresent whether a reviewer’s experience was positive or negative, or whether the reviewer used the product or service at all. It also prohibits businesses from conditioning compensation or other incentives on reviewers expressing a particular sentiment, either positive or negative, or from failing to disclose when reviews are written by company insiders or their immediate relatives. The Rule contains additional provisions relating to company-controlled review websites, suppressing certain reviews, and misusing indicators of social media influence like the number of followers or views.

To focus of this article by a leading FTC Consumer Review Rule attorney is on the FTC Consumer Review Rule prohibition on “insider consumer reviews and consumer testimonials” (16 CFR 465.5).

• It is an unfair or deceptive act or practice and a violation of 16 CFR 465.5 prohibition on “insider consumer reviews and consumer testimonials” for an officer or manager of a business to write or create a consumer review or consumer testimonial about the business or one of the products or services it sells that fails to have a clear and conspicuous disclosure of the officer’s or manager’s material relationship to the business, unless, in the case of a consumer testimonial, the relationship is otherwise clear to the audience.
• Also, it is an unfair or deceptive act or practice and a violation of 16 CFR 465.5 prohibition on “insider consumer reviews and consumer testimonials” for a business to disseminate or cause the dissemination of a consumer testimonial about the business or one of the products or services it sells by one of its officers, managers, employees, or agents, which fails to have a clear and conspicuous disclosure of the testimonialist’s material relationship to the business, when the relationship is not otherwise clear to the audience and the business knew or should have known the testimonialist’s relationship to the business. Note, however that the foregoing does not apply to generalized solicitations to purchasers for them to post testimonials about their experiences with the product, service, or business, or merely engaging in consumer review hosting.
• Marketers should also be aware that it is an unfair or deceptive act or practice and a violation of 16 CFR 465.5 prohibition on “insider consumer reviews and consumer testimonials” for an officer or manager of a business to solicit or demand a consumer review about the business or one of the products or services it sells from any of their immediate relatives or from any employee or agent of the business, or to solicit or demand that such employees or agents seek such reviews from their relatives, when: (i) the solicitation or demand results in an officer’s or manager’s immediate relatives, an employee or agent, or the immediate relatives of an employee or agent writing or creating such a review without a disclosure of the reviewer’s material relationship to the business; and (ii) the officer or manager: (a) encouraged the prospective reviewer not to make such a disclosure; (b) did not instruct that prospective reviewers disclose clearly and conspicuously their relationship to the business; or (c) knew or should have known that such a review appeared without such a disclosure and failed to take remedial steps. Note that the foregoing does not apply to generalized solicitations to purchasers for them to post reviews about their experiences with the product, service, or business.

So, what are the practical implications for marketers? For starters and without limitation, do not ask your staff to write reviews of your business without ensuring that they “clearly and conspicuously” disclose in their review that you employ them and asked them to write it. And, do not ask family and friends for reviews, at least not without ensuring that they “clearly and conspicuously” disclose their personal connection in the reviews.

Marketers should also note that the FTC Consumer Review Rule is not intended to replace the FTC Endorsement Guides which address a broader range of conduct than the Consumer Review Rule. The Endorsement Guides set forth general principles relating to the use of endorsements and testimonials in advertising and reflect the FTC’s administrative interpretation of how Section 5 of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. § 45 – which prohibits “unfair or deceptive acts or practices in or affecting commerce” – applies thereto.

An experienced FTC Consumer Review Rule attorney can assist with ensuring compliance with applicable FTC Consumer Review Rule provisions, including, but not limited to, the implementation of adequate disclosures. Companies that utilize consumer reviews and testimonials in advertising should take a close look at current marketing practices and contracts to identify and address areas of risk in order to ensure compliance with the Consumer Review Rule.