Fake listings have emerged as a major problem for Airbnb, threatening to scare off consumers and prompting the short-term rental service to use AI in an effort to crack down on fraudsters.

Airbnb says it has removed 59,000 fake listings and prevented another 157,000 from joining the platform this year.

Fake listings and high cleaning fees are among several issues that Airbnb said Wednesday that its users highlighted in a company survey. Others included high cleaning fees and a desire for lower prices.

  • Moyer1666
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    1 year ago

    What’s the point of putting up fake listings? I can’t imagine you’ll get any money from that

    • Potatos_are_not_friends@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      I’m totally wearing a tinfoil hat, but I’m guessing it’s to continue bankrupting Airbnb. Airbnb really fucked with hotels for over a decade. And only recently got bad publicity.

      I can see competitors now going on the assault, creating fake listings to continue showing the world how inferior Airbnb is and continue to erode public trust.

      A few other rental-startups have crashed/merged during the pandemic. And Airbnb is still surviving. Big hotel is trying to stop that.

      Again, totally tin foil hat.

      • glimse@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        I’ll don the hat as well and say that if it’s true…I can’t believe I’m saying this but I support the hotel billionaires on this one.

        Fuck Airbnb and every service like it for helping fuck up the real estate market. Fuck them for creating a new wave of landlords leeches

      • Fredselfish@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        They don’t provide refunds Even for this. I hear so many nightmares of people trying to deal with customer service. For me I want them to fail because they are causing a housing crisis.

        Fucking landlords and scum buy up all the housing and then rent it out through this service and keep average person from finding affordable housing. So fuck Airbnb.

      • Moyer1666
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        1 year ago

        Makes sense, just drags Airbnb down. I suppose if your only goal is to do hurt Airbnb then it’s doing something at least

  • Rentlar@lemmy.ca
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    1 year ago

    Fake listings and high cleaning fees are among several issues that Airbnb said Wednesday that its users highlighted in a company survey. Others included high cleaning fees and a desire for lower prices.

    Another important issue I think Airbnb should address is high cleaning fees.

    Add high cleaning fees to the list while you’re at it.