"Fraudulent Content Has a Direct Impact on Consumer Loyalty"

Researchers conducted a new survey of 1,200 U.S consumers where they examined how weaponized content is moving the fraud economy forward and consumer perception of content fraud . The researchers found that scams accounted for 59% of blocked user-generated malicious content during the first quarter of the year.  The other most common blocked content fraud types include irrelevant content (22%, not related to the topic at hand), toxic (18%, includes foul language, harassment, hate speech, or bullying), and commercial (1%, solicitations against terms of service).  The researchers also found that approximately 27% of consumers surveyed reported running across fraudulent content on a daily or weekly basis. According to respondents, the most common types of fraudulent content encountered are spam (51%) and scams (50%), with misinformation and ‘fake news’ rounding out the top three (43%).  More than half of consumers surveyed said they would stop shopping at a business if malicious content was discovered on the brand’s website. Specifically, 56% said they would stop using the site or service if fake or misleading content were found, while 54% said they would stop use if they were scammed into sharing personal information.  The consumers surveyed also identified the places online where they encounter the most content fraud. These include social networking sites (61%​), classifieds (28%​), dating sites (24%), marketplaces (21%), and crowdfunding sites (15%).

Help Net Security reports: "Fraudulent Content Has a Direct Impact on Consumer Loyalty"