BENTONVILLE, AR - Today’s customer expects more. They’re shopping across categories, across price points, and increasingly across channels. They want value and greater assortment – much more than we can fit inside a Walmart U.S. Supercenter. And they also want a consistent, enjoyable shopping experience and to shop with a company they trust.
This is why we’ve made significant investments in assortment expansion across Walmart.com, including more than half a billion items from an ever-expanding group of diverse and growing sellers fueling the Walmart Marketplace. And, we're not just adding more—we’re adding better. From our core assortment of everyday essentials to premium brands, together we bring customers the breadth, depth, and quality they expect from a modern retailer.
An Industry-Wide Challenge
At the same time, bad actors seek to mislead and defraud customers in a rapidly changing environment. While counterfeits are estimated to represent a tiny minority of the products sold on marketplaces, it is an issue that plagues all retail marketplaces. These fraudulent sellers—who grow savvier, faking credentials and dodging enforcement—erode trust, not just in the companies that run these marketplaces, but in the thousands of large and small sellers who act with integrity and seek only to bring value and assortment to those who shop with us.
How We’re Shaping a Better Marketplace
To keep Walmart.com secure, we operate a multi-layered enforcement system with zero tolerance for bad actors, including:
- Seller vetting prior to onboarding, including identity and business verification, with ongoing compliance reviews.
- Pre-listing protections, such as restricting who can sell certain categories.
- AI-driven and real-time monitoring of product listings for policy compliance and intellectual property infringement, overseen by machine learning, automation, and human management.
- Clear policies with swift enforcement measures, including proactive removal of violating listings and, when necessary, removal of sellers.
- Rapid response capabilities enable our Trust & Safety team to investigate and address violations quickly.
- Brand protection tools that allow owners to flag and it is resolved quickly.
- Customer-centric policies, including convenient store-based returns for Marketplace items.
- Educating sellers to meet and maintain high standards.
These systems are continually enhanced and strengthened to protect consumers from the latest threats facing every open marketplace. When issues arise, our dedicated Trust & Safety team acts swiftly to investigate and resolve issues, alongside the many sellers who act with integrity on our site every day.
Working Together to Create a Safer Experience
Counterfeits have always been a challenge in retail, and online marketplaces are no exception. But today’s bad actors are more sophisticated, using technology to scale their operations faster than ever. This is why strong, coordinated action between the public and private sectors is essential for tackling the evolving threat. Our efforts include:
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