GoKawiilStudy: ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity often surface scam shopping sites
A study by Podqi, reported by The Verge, tested ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity with shopping-related queries across 151 brands, asking things like where to buy certain products or find regional retailer sites. Perplexity returned risky or fake sites in 15% of answers, ChatGPT in 8%, and Gemini in 4%, with smaller brands and regional-site questions most likely to trigger bad recommendations.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
As AI chatbots increasingly replace search engines for shopping research, their tendency to surface scam or counterfeit retailer sites could expose users to fraud at scale, especially since 57% of flagged risky sites were actively recommended rather than flagged as suspicious. The findings suggest chatbot makers may need stronger safeguards before these tools become trusted shopping assistants, particularly for lesser-known brands that lack the visibility to crowd out impersonators.
- Perplexity showed risky shopping sites in 15% of tested answers, versus 8% for ChatGPT and 4% for Gemini
- Only 9% of answers featuring risky sites included a warning to the user
- Smaller brands and regional-website questions were more likely to surface scam or counterfeit sites
Bitdefender Total Security — Since AI chatbots are proving unreliable at steering you away from scam shopping sites, having robust endpoint protection matters more than ever. Bitdefender Total Security includes anti-phishing and anti-fraud tools that flag malicious or impersonator websites before you enter payment details. It's a smart safety net for anyone relying on AI recommendations to find where to shop online.}
See Bitdefender Total Security on Amazon → Affiliate link — we may earn a commission on purchases, at no extra cost to you. Product picked by AI based on this article; it is not a tested recommendation.Source: futurism.com — Frank Landymore, 2026-11-14
Published there as: “AI Chatbots Won’t Stop Recommending Scam Websites to People Trying to Shop”
Read the original report → The summary and analysis above are GoKawiil's own, written from reporting by the source above. Facts and quotes belong to the original publisher.