Online defamation, reviews and social media
It is the first result when anyone searches your name, the account is anonymous, and it has been shared. Three things can usually be done, and one of them surprises people.
Before anything else
Online material disappears, gets edited, or is quietly amended the moment a solicitor’s letter arrives. Evidence of what was actually published, and when, is the foundation of everything after it.
Anonymous accounts can often be identified
This is the part people do not expect, and it is why many of these matters resolve.
Where material is published anonymously, the court can order a platform, a host or an internet service provider to disclose what it holds about the account holder — registration details, email address, IP logs. These applications succeed more often than people assume.
It is not always possible — some platforms hold very little, some are outside the jurisdiction, and some users take real steps to stay hidden. We will give you an honest view of the prospects before you spend anything.
Fake reviews are now separately unlawful
A development worth knowing about, because it opens a second route.
Fake reviews are banned under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, with enforcement live since January 2025. The Competition and Markets Authority can act against those who write, commission or publish them, and against businesses that fail to take reasonable steps to detect and remove them.
So a fake review may be both a defamation matter and a consumer protection matter. That widens the options: as well as a claim, there may be grounds for a complaint to the platform on a basis it is obliged to take seriously, and in some cases for a regulatory complaint.
Platform removal, and its limits
Most platforms have complaint processes, and they are worth using — particularly where material breaches the platform’s own terms, which is frequently an easier argument than defamation.
But platform processes are inconsistent, slow, and frequently conclude that nothing breaches the guidelines. A properly framed legal complaint, from a solicitor, referring to the platform’s obligations and the specific terms breached, is treated differently from a report submitted through a form.
Search results
Where material is removed at source, search engines generally follow, though not instantly. Where it cannot be removed, there are sometimes routes to de-indexing, including on data protection grounds where the material is inaccurate or excessive.
This is separate from defamation and is worth considering alongside it.
What we do
Assess whether the serious harm threshold is met. Preserve evidence properly. Apply to identify anonymous publishers. Deal with platforms in terms they act on. Send letters of claim, which resolve a good proportion of matters. Advise on the consumer law route where reviews are involved. And issue proceedings where necessary.
What it costs
A fixed fee for the first stage: review of the material, assessment of serious harm, and a view on the realistic options including identification prospects.
Applications and proceedings are hourly at £400 plus VAT with a stage estimate. Costs generally follow the event.
Questions
Questions people ask us
Can you find out who is behind an anonymous account?
Often, yes. The court can order platforms and internet service providers to disclose what they hold. These applications succeed more frequently than people expect, and the prospect of one frequently resolves the matter by itself.
Can I do anything about fake reviews?
Yes, and on two fronts. They may be defamatory, and they are separately unlawful under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, which the CMA has been enforcing since January 2025.
They have deleted it. Is that the end?
Not necessarily. A claim can still be brought if it is in time and the harm was done, and deletion does not undo damage already caused. It does make preserving evidence critical — which is why screenshots matter from the first moment.
It has been up for two years but they keep reposting. Am I out of time?
Probably, as against that publisher. The single publication rule means substantially the same material republished by the same person does not restart the year. Publication by someone else is different.
The platform says it does not breach their guidelines. What now?
Platform processes are inconsistent. A legal complaint framed by reference to the specific terms breached and the platform’s obligations is dealt with differently from a report through a form.
Can you get it off Google?
If it is removed at source, search results generally follow. Where it cannot be removed, de-indexing is sometimes possible, including on data protection grounds. What nobody can do is erase it entirely, and you should be wary of anyone promising that.
Related
The hub
Also in this area
Also in this area
Start with a conversation
A free 20-minute call. Tell us what has happened and we will tell you whether we can help, what it would involve and roughly what it would cost.
No charge
A free 20-minute call
Tell us what has happened and we will tell you whether we can help, what it would involve and roughly what it would cost. No advice is given on this call and there is no charge for it.
£350 plus VAT
A paid strategy session
One hour with a partner, followed by a written summary of your position and options. For people who want proper advice without instructing a firm yet. Credited in full against your fees if you go on to instruct us.
Or reach us directly
We answer enquiries the same working day.