Fighting the fraudsters! The truth about online panel respondents and how you can fight back

September 2025, By Debbie Fitzpatrick

Can you trust your research data?

If it’s been collected via online panels, the significant increase in fraudster infiltration means the answer is most probably… NO.

But surely, if you see a list of the following, it should give you confidence that the panel provider can assure you of quality?

Digital Fingerprinting
Encryption to Tamper-Proof Links
Cash-out ID Verification
Geo-IP Flagging
Invisible reCAPTCHA
Logical Inconsistencies, including scrutiny of profiles
Device / Account Duplication
Location & Browser Spoofing
3 Intelligent Data Quality Layers
AI Analysis of Open-End Text Questions
Auto-Translation Detection
Pattern Recognition Technology
Red Herrings in place
In-Depth Forensic Analysis
Regulated by ISO, GDPR, and local data privacy laws

Unfortunately, the answer is still NO. Based on our experience, it’s just not enough to stop fraudsters from completing your surveys.

So, what can you do?

You must work with a research provider who is fully abreast of the issues of data quality and undertakes stringent quality control checks – both manually and via automated processes.

At MM-Eye Ltd, we believe that on average 40% of the completes we achieve via panels are not genuine. In some markets and with some panel providers, it’s as high as 90%. You might doubt that, but we have the removals to prove the claim.

Our team spends a significant amount of time checking and verifying that we have genuine respondents with valid responses. We never want to deliver data to our clients that we can’t be confident in.

The situation is getting worse, and our industry knows it. But what can you do to ensure robust, high-quality data?

There are only two things you can do:

Work with research agencies who can outline in detail what their automated and manual checking processes are when it comes to data collected via online panels – and expect to see a cost associated with that.

They need to:

Validate responses against hard facts such as buyer profiles and sales figures
Validate responses against logic such as mean responses, historic data, and the quality of written verbatims (i.e., both vocabulary expectations for the audience and language of origin)
Be prepared to remove completes they don’t trust – and deal with the backlash that sometimes ensues from providers
Be prepared to extend fieldwork to obtain genuine responses
Carry out thorough data integrity checks and share their findings with you before sending a final report
Share their expertise with others within the industry for the benefit of all

Work with panel companies who acknowledge that, even though they have cutting-edge technology, it’s not enough to stop fraudulent participants.

Ensure they:

Don’t pretend the issue isn’t as widespread as it is
Don’t challenge you when you remove completes that fail your quality checks
Don’t stop fieldwork because the IR is lower than they calculated due to removal rates
Collaborate with you to improve understanding and tackle the issues
Support you in designing surveys that fraudsters cannot easily complete (without upsetting genuine respondents)
Invest time, effort, and money in trying to stay ahead – while acknowledging that fraudsters may still be ahead of the game
Share their knowledge and findings with the industry for the benefit of all

At MM-Eye Ltd, we are committed to sharing our knowledge and experience on this topic.

If you’re interested in learning more about how we approach data quality and how it can benefit your business, contact us today at info@mm-eye.com or use the form below to book a consultation.