California Civil Code §1670.8 makes it unlawful for a consumer contract to waive a customer's right to make statements about a business, or to threaten or penalize someone for a protected statement. Civil penalties reach $2,500 for a first violation, $5,000 for later ones and $10,000 for willful, intentional or reckless violations.
The same section says it does not stop a site that hosts reviews from removing a statement that is otherwise lawful to remove.
The FTC's consumer review rule, in effect since October 21, 2024, bars using groundless legal threats, intimidation or public false accusations to prevent a review or to get one removed.
Our view: the lawful path runs through each platform's own reporting process. We file reviews that break published policy and leave the rest alone.