NEW DELHI/BENGALURU, Nov 21 (Reuters) - India launched a crack down on Monday against fake reviews and unverified ratings in a bid to make online interaction and e-commerce more authentic and less misleading for users. Some companies have been criticised by consumers and various industry experts for downplaying negative reviews, or accepting fake ratings, making the vetting process difficult for buyers. The Department of Consumer Affairs set up a committee in June to develop a framework on checking fake and deceptive reviews in e-commerce, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution said. Online companies say they have internal checks in place to combat fake reviews, but currently failure to do so is not a compliance breach. If the guidelines become mandatory, companies could face action for unfair trade practice, for suppressing negative reviews or for enabling planting of fake reviews, Taparia said.

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