While online research is a useful way to reach people who may not take part in in-person studies, researchers are increasingly concerned that fake, automated, and duplicate survey responses can reduce data quality and compromise findings.
A study led by researchers at UC Riverside, the University of Connecticut, Brown University, UCLA, and Fordham University highlights the importance of rigorous participant verification procedures in online health research, particularly when studies recruit hardly reached populations and offer compensation for participation.
Published in the journal AIDS and Behavior, the study enrolled young gay and bisexual men in the United States who used stimulants in an online randomized controlled trial. The trial evaluated a video-based informed consent intervention designed to improve the quality and ethical validity of participants’ consent.
Participants…
Insurance fraud involves making false or exaggerated claims to an insurance provider.
- Hard Fraud: Someone deliberately causes a loss (e.g., setting fire to a warehouse or staging a car accident) specifically to collect a payout.
- Soft Fraud: More common and often viewed as “victimless” by the perpetrator. It involves exaggerating a legitimate claim, such as overstating the value of stolen items in a home burglary to cover the deductible.