Astroturfing

The name comes from fake grass. A brand or a creator pays for, or discreetly organises, comments and posts that read as spontaneous excitement from unconnected people. In creator marketing it shows up as bought comment campaigns under a launch video, coordinated praise in a subreddit thread, and review sections seeded before anybody has used the thing.

It sits alongside engagement pods and brigading under the heading of coordinated inauthentic behaviour, and platforms treat it as a policy violation. In the UK and the US it can be an advertising and consumer protection problem too, since undisclosed paid endorsement and fake reviews are regulated. The practical risk is that audiences spot it, and getting caught costs more trust than the campaign ever bought.