AI chatbots are recommending fake retail websites, study finds

A study by IP protection firm Podqi, shared with The Verge, tested ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity with shopping-related prompts about 151 brands and found all three cited risky sites, including fake retailer impersonators, re-registered old domains, and dead sites. Across 6,795 answers, Perplexity showed risky sites in 15 percent of answers, ChatGPT in 8 percent, and Gemini in 4 percent, with smaller brands appearing especially at risk.