Criticism of Amazon#Pedophile guide

File:Amazon 1-Click option.png offers the option to add an item to a user's cart or purchase it immediately with 1-Click]]

The company has been criticized for its alleged use of patents as a competitive hindrance; its "1-Click patent"{{US patent reference|number=5960411|title=Method and system for placing a purchase order via a communications network|inventor=Hartman; Peri (Seattle, Washington), Jeffrey P. Bezos (Seattle, Washington), Kaphan; Shel (Seattle, Washington), Joel Spiegel (Seattle, Washington)|y=1997|m=09|d=12}} may be the best-known example. Amazon's use of the 1-click patent against competitor Barnes & Noble's website led the Free Software Foundation to announce a boycott of Amazon in December 1999,{{cite news|work=Linux Today|url=http://linuxtoday.com/news_story.php3?ltsn=1999-12-22-001-05-NW-LF|title=Richard Stallman – Boycott Amazon!|date=December 22, 1999|access-date=September 22, 2006|archive-date=December 5, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061205035705/http://www.linuxtoday.com/news_story.php3?ltsn=1999-12-22-001-05-NW-LF|url-status=live}} which ended in September 2002.From the Free Software Foundation site: [https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/amazon.html amazon philosophy] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160714164108/http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/amazon.html |date=July 14, 2016 }}. On February 22, 2000, the company patented an Internet-based customer referral system known as an affiliate program. Industry leaders Tim O'Reilly and Charlie Jackson spoke out against the patents[http://www.linuxjournal.com/node/5231/print Linux Journal] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110624065930/http://www.linuxjournal.com/node/5231/print |date=June 24, 2011 }} Talking Patents and O'Reilly published an open letter{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2000/03/11/business/chairman-of-amazon-urges-reduction-of-patent-terms.html|title=Chairman of Amazon Urges Reduction of Patent Terms|date=March 11, 2000|work=The New York Times|access-date=July 12, 2016|archive-date=August 12, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160812161711/http://www.nytimes.com/2000/03/11/business/chairman-of-amazon-urges-reduction-of-patent-terms.html|url-status=live}} to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, petitioning Bezos to "avoid any attempts to limit the further development of Internet commerce". O'Reilly collected 10,000 signatures,{{cite web|url=http://oreilly.com/amazon_patent/amazon_patent.comments.html |title=10,000 signatures |publisher=Oreilly.com |date=February 28, 2000 |access-date=August 29, 2010| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100721183917/http://oreilly.com/amazon_patent/amazon_patent.comments.html| archive-date= July 21, 2010 | url-status= live}} and Bezos responded with an open letter.{{cite web|url=http://oreilly.com/amazon_patent/amazon_patent.comments.html |title=An Open Letter to Jeff Bezos |publisher=Oreilly.com |date=February 28, 2000 |access-date=August 29, 2010| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100721183917/http://oreilly.com/amazon_patent/amazon_patent.comments.html| archive-date= July 21, 2010 | url-status= live}} The protest ended with O'Reilly and Bezos visiting Washington, D.C. to lobby for patent reform. The company received a patent, "Method and system for conducting a discussion relating to an item on Internet discussion boards", on February 25, 2003.{{US patent reference|number=6525747|title=Method and system for conducting a discussion relating to an item|inventor=Bezos; Jeffrey P.|y=1999|m=08|d=02}} On May 12, 2006, the USPTO ordered a re-examination of the 1-Click patent based on a request by actor Peter Calveley, who cited an earlier e-commerce patent and the Digicash electronic cash system.{{cite web|url=https://www.smh.com.au/news/technology/kiwi-actor-v-amazoncom/2006/05/23/1148150224714.html|title=Kiwi actor v Amazon.com|work=smh.com.au|access-date=August 5, 2015|archive-date=September 24, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924203722/http://www.smh.com.au/news/technology/kiwi-actor-v-amazoncom/2006/05/23/1148150224714.html|url-status=live}}

Amazon has a Canadian website in English and French. Until a March 2010 ruling, however, it was prevented from operating any headquarters, servers, fulfillment centers or call centers in Canada by that country's legal restrictions on foreign-owned booksellers.{{cite web |title=CANADA: Amazon Gets Approval For Local Facility |work=camcity.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110713134158/http://www.kamcity.com/namnews/asp/newsarticle.asp?newsid=53212 |archive-date=July 13, 2011 |access-date=May 18, 2010 |date=April 13, 2010 |url=http://www.kamcity.com/namnews/asp/newsarticle.asp?newsid=53212 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }} Amazon's Canadian site originates in the United States, and Amazon has an agreement with Canada Post to handle distribution in Canada and for the use of the crown corporation's Mississauga, Ontario, shipping facility.{{cite news|url=http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20020625/amazon_canada020625?s_name=&no_ads= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071017171614/http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20020625/amazon_canada020625?s_name=&no_ads= |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 17, 2007 |title=Amazon.ca debuts in Canada |work=CTV.ca |date=June 25, 2002 |access-date=December 19, 2006 }} The launch of Amazon.ca generated controversy in Canada. In 2002, the Canadian Booksellers Association and Indigo Books and Music sought a court ruling that Amazon's partnership with Canada Post represented an attempt to circumvent Canadian law.{{cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,54387,00.html |title=Book Biz Takes on Amazon.ca |magazine=Wired |date=August 8, 2002 |access-date=December 19, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061109140315/http://www.wired.com/news/business/0%2C1367%2C54387%2C00.html |archive-date=November 9, 2006 |url-status=live }} The litigation was dropped in 2004.{{cite news|url=http://www.gowlings.com/resources/enewsletters/ipreportonline/Htmfiles/V2N03_20040924.html#b4|title=Gowlings IP Report Online: Canadian Booksellers Association Abandons Amazon.ca Case|work=Gowlings|date=September 24, 2004|access-date=December 19, 2006|archive-date=October 30, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061030111709/http://www.gowlings.com/resources/enewsletters/ipreportonline/Htmfiles/V2N03_20040924.html#b4|url-status=live}}

In January 2017, doormats with the Indian flag were offered on the Amazon Canada website. Use of the Indian flag in this way is considered offensive to the Indian community and a violation of the Flag Code of India.{{cite news|url=https://money.cnn.com/2017/01/11/technology/amazon-india-doormat-visa/|title=India Threatens Amazon Over Flag Doormat|work=CNNMoney (London)|date=January 11, 2017|access-date=January 11, 2017|archive-date=January 12, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170112183026/http://money.cnn.com/2017/01/11/technology/amazon-india-doormat-visa/|url-status=live}} Indian Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj threatened a visa embargo for Amazon officials if Amazon did not issue an unconditional apology and withdraw all such products.{{cite news|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/sushma-swaraj-threatens-visa-embargo-for-amazon-officials-after-learning-about-products-disrespecting-indian-flag/articleshow/56480822.cms|title=Sushma Swaraj threatens visa embargo for Amazon officials after learning about products disrespecting Indian flag|work=Times of India|date=January 11, 2017|access-date=January 11, 2017|archive-date=January 11, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170111224406/http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/sushma-swaraj-threatens-visa-embargo-for-amazon-officials-after-learning-about-products-disrespecting-indian-flag/articleshow/56480822.cms|url-status=live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2017/01/11/india-threatens-to-blacklist-amazon-officials-for-selling-doormats-showing-its-flag/|title=India threatens to blacklist Amazon officials for selling doormats showing its flag|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=January 11, 2017|access-date=January 11, 2017|archive-date=January 11, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170111232656/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2017/01/11/india-threatens-to-blacklist-amazon-officials-for-selling-doormats-showing-its-flag/|url-status=live}} According to deputy commissioner for deceptive marketing practices Josephine Palumbo, Amazon.ca was required by the Canadian Competition Bureau to pay a $1 million penalty and $100,000 in costs for failing to provide "truth in advertising".{{Cite news |last=Shaw |first=Hollie |date=11 January 2017 |title=Amazon Canada fined $1 million plus $100,000 costs for misleading price claims on website |work=Financial Post |url=https://financialpost.com/news/retail-marketing/amazon-canada-fined-1-million-plus-costs-for-misleading-price-claims-on-website}} The fine was levied because some products on Amazon.ca had an artificially-high list price, making a lower selling price appear attractive and giving the company an unfair competitive edge over other retailers. This is a frequent practice among some retailers, and the fine was intended to "send a clear message [to the industry] that unsubstantiated savings claims will not be tolerated".{{cite news |last=Kopun |first=Francine |date=January 11, 2017 |title=Amazon to pay $1M penalty over pricing practices in Canada |url=https://www.thestar.com/business/2017/01/11/amazon-agrees-to-pay-11m-in-penalties-and-costs-over-list-price-concerns.html |newspaper=Toronto Star |location=Toronto |access-date=January 12, 2017 |archive-date=January 12, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170112072921/https://www.thestar.com/business/2017/01/11/amazon-agrees-to-pay-11m-in-penalties-and-costs-over-list-price-concerns.html |url-status=live }} The bureau indicated that Amazon has made changes to ensure that its regular prices are more accurate.{{cite web |url=http://globalnews.ca/news/3176068/amazon-fined-1-1-million-by-canadas-competition-watchdog/ |title=Amazon fined $1.1 million by Canada's competition watchdog |agency=Reuters |date=January 11, 2017 |website=Global News |publisher=Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc. |access-date=January 12, 2017 |quote=Amazon officials were not immediately available for comment. |archive-date=January 12, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170112052850/http://globalnews.ca/news/3176068/amazon-fined-1-1-million-by-canadas-competition-watchdog/ |url-status=live }}

Sales representatives of Amazon's BookSurge division began contacting publishers of print on demand (POD) titles in March 2008 to inform them that for Amazon to continue selling their POD books, they must sign agreements with Amazon's BookSurge POD company. Publishers were told that eventually, the only POD titles Amazon would sell would be those printed by BookSurge. Some publishers felt that this ultimatum was monopolistic, and questioned the ethics of the move and its legality under anti-trust law.{{cite web | url=http://www.writersweekly.com/the_latest_from_angelahoycom/004597_03272008.html | title=amazon.com Telling POD Publishers – Let BookSurge Print Your Books, or Else... | work=Writers Weekly | access-date =March 31, 2008| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080331092925/http://www.writersweekly.com/the_latest_from_angelahoycom/004597_03272008.html| archive-date= March 31, 2008 | url-status= live}}

In 2008, Amazon UK was criticized for attempting to prevent publishers from direct selling at a discount from their own websites. Amazon argued that it should be able to pay publishers based on the lower prices on their websites, rather than on the recommended retail price (RRP).{{cite web | url=http://www.publishingnews.co.uk/pn/pno-news-display.asp?K=e2008040310393759&TAG=&CID=&PGE=&sg9t=cbd2a5be26893c7c10ff5b7ccc309f6f | title=Amazon threat on Direct Selling | work=Publishing News | access-date=May 27, 2008 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080607093312/http://www.publishingnews.co.uk/pn/pno-news-display.asp?K=e2008040310393759&TAG=&CID=&PGE=&sg9t=cbd2a5be26893c7c10ff5b7ccc309f6f | archive-date=June 7, 2008 | url-status=dead | df=mdy-all }}{{cite news | url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article3671290.ece | title=Amazon furious after publishers undercut its book prices online|work=The Times | access-date =May 27, 2008 | location=London | first=Dalya | last=Alberge | date=April 5, 2008| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080516222143/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article3671290.ece| archive-date= May 16, 2008 | url-status= dead}} Amazon UK was also criticized that year by the British publishing community after withdrawing from sale key titles published by Hachette Livre UK, possibly to pressure Hachette to provide discounts described as unreasonable. Curtis Brown managing director Jonathan Lloyd said that "publishers, authors, and agents are 100% behind [Hachette]. Someone has to draw a line in the sand. Publishers have given 1% a year away to retailers, so where does it stop? Using authors as a financial football is disgraceful."{{cite web | url=http://www.thebookseller.com/news/61034-agents-pick-sides-on-hachette-v-amazon.html |title=Agents pick sides on Hachette v Amazon |publisher=The Bookseller |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080614142849/http://www.thebookseller.com/news/61034-agents-pick-sides-on-hachette-v-amazon.html |archive-date= June 14, 2008 |url-status=dead |access-date=May 29, 2013}}{{cite web|url=http://www.publishersmarketplace.com/lunch/free/archives/002176.html |title=Publisher's Lunch |access-date=June 15, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080716031628/http://www.publishersmarketplace.com/lunch/free/archives/002176.html |archive-date=July 16, 2008 }} In August 2013, Amazon agreed to end its price-parity policy for marketplace sellers in the European Union in response to investigations by the UK Office of Fair Trade and Germany's Federal Cartel Office.{{cite web|url=http://www.out-law.com/en/articles/2013/august/oft-minded-to-close-amazon-probe-after-company-drops-price-parity-policy-in-the-eu/|title=OFT 'minded to close' Amazon probe after company drops price parity policy in the EU|work=out-law.com|access-date=August 5, 2015|archive-date=September 24, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924062657/http://www.out-law.com/en/articles/2013/august/oft-minded-to-close-amazon-probe-after-company-drops-price-parity-policy-in-the-eu/|url-status=live}}

After the announcement of the Apple iPad on January 27, 2010, Macmillan Publishers began a pricing dispute with Amazon about electronic publications. Macmillan asked Amazon to accept a new pricing scheme it had worked out with Apple, raising the price of e-books from $9.99 to $15.{{cite news|last=Stone |first=Brad |url=http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/29/amazon-pulls-macmillan-books-over-e-book-price-disagreement/ |title=Amazon Pulls Macmillan Books Over E-Book Price Disagreement |publisher= Bits.blogs.nytimes.com |date=January 29, 2010 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100829120518/http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/29/amazon-pulls-macmillan-books-over-e-book-price-disagreement/| archive-date= August 29, 2010 | url-access = limited}} Amazon responded by pulling all Macmillan books (electronic and physical) from its website, although affiliates selling the books were still listed. On January 31, 2010, Amazon "capitulated" to Macmillan's pricing request.{{cite web |url=https://www.amazon.com/tag/kindle/forum/ref=cm_cd_tfp_ef_tft_tp?_encoding=UTF8&cdForum=Fx1D7SY3BVSESG&cdThread=Tx2MEGQWTNGIMHV&displayType=tagsDetail |title=Amazon, Jan. 31, 2010 |website=Amazon |access-date=August 29, 2010 |archive-date=October 19, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101019120809/http://www.amazon.com/tag/kindle/forum/ref=cm_cd_tfp_ef_tft_tp?_encoding=UTF8&cdForum=Fx1D7SY3BVSESG&cdThread=Tx2MEGQWTNGIMHV&displayType=tagsDetail |url-status=live }}

In 2014, Amazon and Hachette became involved in a dispute about agency pricing,{{cite web|author=Streitfeld|first=David|date=July 8, 2014|title=Amazon Angles to Attract Hachette's Authors to Its Side|url=http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/07/08/amazon-tries-to-woo-authors-in-hachette-dispute/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=1&|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140715025148/http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/07/08/amazon-tries-to-woo-authors-in-hachette-dispute/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=1|archive-date=July 15, 2014|access-date=July 9, 2014|work=The New York Times}} when an agent (such as Hachette) determines the price of a book; normally, Amazon dictates the discount level of a book. High-profile authors became involved; hundreds of writers, including Stephen King and John Grisham, signed a petition: "We encourage Amazon in the strongest possible terms to stop harming the livelihood of the authors on whom it has built its business. None of us, neither readers nor authors, benefit when books are taken hostage." Author Ursula K. Le Guin said about Amazon's practice of making Hachette books more difficult to buy on its site, "We're talking about censorship: deliberately making a book hard or impossible to get, 'disappearing' an author." Falling sales of Hachette books on Amazon indicated that its policies probably deterred customers.{{cite web|title=Amazon and Its Missing Books|url=http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/10/12/amazon-and-its-missing-books/?_php=true&_type=blogs&ref=technology&_r=0|date=October 12, 2014|first=David|last=Streitfeld|access-date=October 13, 2014|archive-date=September 13, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170913135852/https://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/10/12/amazon-and-its-missing-books/?_php=true&_type=blogs&ref=technology&_r=0|url-status=live}} On August 11, 2014, Amazon removed the option to pre-order Captain America: The Winter Soldier to control the online pricing of Disney films; the company had used similar tactics with Warner Bros. The conflict was resolved in late 2014, with neither side making concessions. Amazon again began to block pre-orders of Disney films in February 2017, just before Moana and Rogue One were due to be released for the home market.{{cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-amazon-disney-20140811-story.html|title=Amazon takes on Disney in DVD pricing fight|date=August 11, 2014|access-date=September 23, 2017|via=Los Angeles Times|archive-date=October 26, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171026181347/http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-amazon-disney-20140811-story.html|url-status=live}}

The law firm Hagens Berman filed a lawsuit in the New York district court in January 2021, saying that Amazon colluded with leading publishers to keep e-book prices artificially high. Connecticut announced that it was investigating Amazon for potential anti-competitive behavior in its marketing of e-books.{{Cite web|date=2021-01-15|title=Amazon.com and 'Big Five' publishers accused of e-book price-fixing|url=http://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/jan/15/amazoncom-and-big-five-publishers-accused-of-ebook-price-fixing|access-date=2021-01-16|website=The Guardian|language=en|archive-date=January 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210117034114/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/jan/15/amazoncom-and-big-five-publishers-accused-of-ebook-price-fixing|url-status=live}}

On October 1, 2015, Amazon announced that Apple TV and Google Chromecast products were banned from sale by all merchants effective October 29 of that year. The company said that this was to prevent "customer confusion", since those devices did not support Amazon Prime Video. The move was criticized as an attempt to suppress products competing with Amazon Fire TV products.{{cite news|title=Amazon to Stop Selling Apple TV and Chromecast|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/02/business/amazon-to-stop-selling-apple-tv-and-chromecast.html?_r=0|access-date=2 October 2015|work=The New York Times| date=October 2, 2015 |archive-date=July 6, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170706022455/https://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/02/business/amazon-to-stop-selling-apple-tv-and-chromecast.html?_r=0|url-status=live| last1=Streitfeld | first1=David | last2=Benner | first2=Katie }}{{cite news|title=Amazon to Ban Sale of Apple, Google Video-Streaming Devices|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-10-01/amazon-will-ban-sale-of-apple-google-video-streaming-devices|access-date=1 October 2015|work=Bloomberg News|date=October 1, 2015|archive-date=February 5, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170205223333/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-10-01/amazon-will-ban-sale-of-apple-google-video-streaming-devices|url-status=live}}{{cite magazine|title=Amazon Is Banning Apple TV and Chromecast. And That's Gross|url=https://www.wired.com/2015/10/amazon-apple-tv-chromecast/|access-date=2 October 2015|magazine=Wired|archive-date=February 3, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203032950/https://www.wired.com/2015/10/amazon-apple-tv-chromecast/|url-status=live}}

In May 2017, it was reported that Apple and Amazon were nearing an agreement to offer Prime Video on Apple TV and allow the product to return to the retailer.{{cite web|title=Amazon Video for Apple TV will reportedly be announced next month|url=https://www.theverge.com/2017/5/11/15626724/amazon-video-apple-tv-app-wwdc-announce-rumor|website=The Verge|date=May 11, 2017 |publisher=Vox Media|access-date=18 May 2017|archive-date=October 11, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171011221923/https://www.theverge.com/2017/5/11/15626724/amazon-video-apple-tv-app-wwdc-announce-rumor|url-status=live}} Prime Video launched on Apple TV on December 6 of that year,{{Cite news|url=https://www.theverge.com/2017/12/6/16741136/download-amazon-prime-video-apple-tv|title=Amazon Prime Video comes to Apple TV, finally|work=The Verge|access-date=2017-12-06|archive-date=December 6, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171206203656/https://www.theverge.com/2017/12/6/16741136/download-amazon-prime-video-apple-tv|url-status=live}} with Amazon beginning to sell Apple TVs again shortly thereafter.

Amazon is known to remove products for trivial policy violations by third-party sellers which compete with Amazon's home-grown brands. To compete for product placement where Amazon's own brands are featured prominently, third-party sellers often list themselves with Amazon's Prime program; this increases costs, shrinking profit margins.{{Cite news |title=Prime Power: How Amazon squeezes the businesses behind its store |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/19/technology/amazon-sellers.html |archive-date=December 19, 2019 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20191219195205/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/19/technology/amazon-sellers.html |access-date=9 March 2020 |last=Weise |first=Karen |work=The New York Times |date=December 19, 2019 |url-status=live }}

Amazon has suppressed other Google products, including Google Home (which competes with Amazon Echo), Pixel phones, and products from Google subsidiary Nest Labs (despite the Nest Learning Thermostat's integration support for Amazon Alexa). Google announced on December 6, 2017, that it would block YouTube from the Amazon Echo Show and Amazon Fire TV products.{{Cite news|url=https://www.theverge.com/2017/12/5/16738748/google-amazon-feud-youtube-pulled-off-fire-tv-echo-show-nest-devices|title=Google is pulling YouTube off the Fire TV and Echo Show as feud with Amazon grows|work=The Verge|access-date=2017-12-05|archive-date=December 5, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171205214826/https://www.theverge.com/2017/12/5/16738748/google-amazon-feud-youtube-pulled-off-fire-tv-echo-show-nest-devices|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.theverge.com/2017/9/26/16371292/google-youtube-amazon-echo-show|title=Google pulls YouTube off the Amazon Echo Show|work=The Verge|access-date=2017-10-11|archive-date=December 6, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171206032859/https://www.theverge.com/2017/9/26/16371292/google-youtube-amazon-echo-show|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2017/10/new-apk-teardown-hints-at-future-google-rival-to-amazons-echo-show/|title=New teardown brings more smoke to reports of a touchscreen Google Home|work=Ars Technica|access-date=2017-10-23|language=en-us|archive-date=December 3, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171203081506/https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2017/10/new-apk-teardown-hints-at-future-google-rival-to-amazons-echo-show/|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://techcrunch.com/2017/12/05/google-is-pulling-youtube-from-echo-show-and-fire-tv-as-feud-with-amazon-continues/?ncid=mobilenavtrend|title=Google is pulling YouTube from Echo Show and Fire TV, as feud with Amazon continues|last=Perez|first=Sarah|work=TechCrunch|access-date=2017-12-05|language=en|archive-date=December 6, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171206004528/https://techcrunch.com/2017/12/05/google-is-pulling-youtube-from-echo-show-and-fire-tv-as-feud-with-amazon-continues/?ncid=mobilenavtrend|url-status=live}} In December 2017, Amazon said that it intended to begin offering Chromecast again.{{Cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2018/12/13/18138972/google-chromecast-amazon-store-available-prime-video|title=Google's Chromecast returns to Amazon, but it still lacks Prime Video|last=Porter|first=Jon|date=2018-12-13|website=The Verge|access-date=2019-08-06|archive-date=May 29, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190529233657/https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2018/12/13/18138972/google-chromecast-amazon-store-available-prime-video|url-status=live}} Nest said that it would no longer offer stock to Amazon until the company committed to offering its entire product line.{{Cite news|url=https://www.theverge.com/2018/3/3/17074844/amazon-stopping-nest-sales|title=Amazon will soon stop selling all Nest products|work=The Verge|access-date=2018-03-03|archive-date=March 3, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180303202700/https://www.theverge.com/2018/3/3/17074844/amazon-stopping-nest-sales|url-status=live}}

In April 2019, Amazon announced that it would add Chromecast support to its Prime Video mobile app and release its Android TV app more widely; Google announced that it would, in return, restore access to YouTube on Fire TV (but not the Echo Show).{{Cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2019/4/18/18412525/youtube-amazon-fire-tv-prime-video-chromecast-return-announcement|title=YouTube is finally coming back to Amazon's Fire TV devices|last=Welch|first=Chris|date=2019-04-18|website=The Verge|access-date=2019-04-18|archive-date=April 18, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190418172012/https://www.theverge.com/2019/4/18/18412525/youtube-amazon-fire-tv-prime-video-chromecast-return-announcement|url-status=live}} Prime Video for Chromecast and YouTube for Fire TV were both released July 9, 2019.{{Cite web|url=https://variety.com/2019/digital/news/youtube-amazon-fire-tv-prime-video-chromecast-android-tv-1203262063/|title=YouTube Is Back on Amazon Fire TV, Prime Video Finally Comes to Chromecast|last=Spangler|first=Todd|date=2019-07-09|website=Variety|language=en|access-date=2019-08-06|archive-date=July 19, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190719172233/https://variety.com/2019/digital/news/youtube-amazon-fire-tv-prime-video-chromecast-android-tv-1203262063/|url-status=live}} In December 2019, after the acquisition of Honey (a browser extension which applies online coupons to online stores) by PayPal, Amazon began to warn users that Honey was a security risk.{{Cite web|url=https://fortune.com/2020/01/10/amazon-honey-paypal/|title=Experts question Amazon's warning about Honey, PayPal's e-commerce shopping tool|website=Fortune|language=en|access-date=2020-01-29|archive-date=January 16, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200116163214/https://fortune.com/2020/01/10/amazon-honey-paypal/|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2020/1/9/21059083/amazon-honey-browser-extension-security-risk-paypal-acquisition-competition|title=Amazon suspiciously says browser extension Honey is a security risk, now that PayPal owns it|last=Lee|first=Dami|date=2020-01-09|website=The Verge|language=en|access-date=2020-01-29|archive-date=January 29, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200129205624/https://www.theverge.com/2020/1/9/21059083/amazon-honey-browser-extension-security-risk-paypal-acquisition-competition|url-status=live}}

In November 2018, Amazon reached an agreement with Apple Inc. to sell selected products through the company, selected Apple authorized resellers, and vendors who meet specific criteria. As a result of this partnership, only Apple authorized resellers and vendors who purchase $2.5 million in refurbished stock from Apple every 90 days (via the Amazon Renewed program) may sell Apple products on Amazon.{{Cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2019/5/21/18624846/amazon-marketplace-apple-deal-iphones-mac-third-party-sellers-john-bumstead|title=How Apple's deal with Amazon screwed over small recycling businesses|last=Statt|first=Nick|date=2019-05-21|website=The Verge|access-date=2019-08-05|archive-date=August 4, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190804010349/https://www.theverge.com/2019/5/21/18624846/amazon-marketplace-apple-deal-iphones-mac-third-party-sellers-john-bumstead|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.theverge.com/2018/11/9/18079340/amazon-apple-iphone-ipad-watch-beats-deal-selling-products-online|title=Amazon strikes deal with Apple to sell new iPhones and iPads|work=The Verge|access-date=November 11, 2018|archive-date=November 10, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181110154421/https://www.theverge.com/2018/11/9/18079340/amazon-apple-iphone-ipad-watch-beats-deal-selling-products-online|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.cnet.com/news/apple-pumps-up-its-amazon-listings-with-iphones-ipads-and-more/|title=Apple pumps up its Amazon listings with iPhones, iPads and more|date=November 10, 2018|work=CNET|access-date=November 11, 2018|language=en|archive-date=November 10, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181110064612/https://www.cnet.com/news/apple-pumps-up-its-amazon-listings-with-iphones-ipads-and-more/|url-status=live}} The partnership was criticized by independent resellers, who believe that it restricts their ability to sell refurbished Apple products on Amazon at low cost. In August 2019, The Verge reported that Amazon was being investigated by the FTC because of the deal.{{Cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2019/8/2/20751482/ftc-amazon-apple-iphone-reseller-agreement-antitrust|title=The FTC is looking into the Amazon and Apple deal that crushed small resellers|last=Statt|first=Nick|date=2019-08-02|website=The Verge|access-date=2019-08-05|archive-date=August 5, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190805024142/https://www.theverge.com/2019/8/2/20751482/ftc-amazon-apple-iphone-reseller-agreement-antitrust|url-status=live}}

Amazon owns a dominant marketplace and is a retail seller in that marketplace. The company uses data from the marketplace which is unavailable to other retailers in that marketplace to determine which products to produce in-house and at what price point.{{Cite web|url=https://www.fool.com/investing/2018/10/14/amazon-could-have-a-very-real-antitrust-problem.aspx|title=Amazon Could Have a Very Real Antitrust Problem|first=Adam|last=Levine-Weinberg|date=October 14, 2018|website=The Motley Fool|access-date=January 10, 2021|archive-date=February 27, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210227084514/https://www.fool.com/investing/2018/10/14/amazon-could-have-a-very-real-antitrust-problem.aspx|url-status=live}} Amazon markets products under AmazonBasics, Lark & Ro,{{Cite web|url=https://www.fool.com/investing/general/2016/04/27/amazon-is-quietly-building-its-own-private-label-e.aspx|title=Amazon Is Quietly Building Its Own Private Label Empire|first=Andrew|last=Tonner|date=April 27, 2016|website=The Motley Fool|access-date=January 10, 2021|archive-date=November 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108185129/https://www.fool.com/investing/general/2016/04/27/amazon-is-quietly-building-its-own-private-label-e.aspx|url-status=live}} and other private-label brands. U.S. presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren proposed forcing Amazon to sell AmazonBasics and Whole Foods Market, where Amazon competes against other sellers as a brick-and-mortar retailer.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/08/us/politics/elizabeth-warren-amazon.html|title=Elizabeth Warren Proposes Breaking Up Tech Giants Like Amazon and Facebook (Published 2019)|first=Astead W.|last=Herndon|newspaper=The New York Times |date=March 8, 2019|access-date=January 10, 2021|archive-date=January 21, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210121055345/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/08/us/politics/elizabeth-warren-amazon.html|url-status=live}}

Tim O'Reilly, comparing Ingram's business with Amazon's, noted that Amazon's focus on the customer debilitates the retail ecosystem (which includes sellers, manufacturers, and its own employees); Ingram sought to innovate and build on behalf of all the stakeholders in its marketplace it operates in. According to O'Reilly, Amazon's behavior is driven by its need for growth.{{Cite web |title=A Tale of Two Platforms |archive-url=https://archive.today/20210426084743/https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/tale-two-platforms-tim-o-reilly/ |archive-date=April 26, 2021 |url=https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/tale-two-platforms-tim-o-reilly/ |date=13 April 2021 |last1=O'Reilly |first1=Tim |website=linkedin.com |language=en |access-date=April 30, 2021 |url-status=live }} Third-party sellers have criticized Amazon's rent-seeking behavior, which includes increasing the cost of doing business on its platform, abusing its dominant market position to manipulate pricing, copying popular products from third-party retailers, and unjustifiably promoting its own brands.{{r|weise1}}

In October 2021, citing leaked internal documents, Reuters reported that Amazon harvested and studied data about its sellers' sales and used the data to identify lucrative markets and launch Amazon replacement products in India. The data included information about returns, clothing sizes, and the number of product views on its website. Rival sales figures are not available to Amazon's sellers. The company also tweaked search results to favor Amazon's private-label products. The strategy's impact reached well beyond India; hundreds of Solimo-branded household items are available in the US. One casualty is the clothing brand John Miller, owned by India's Kishore Biyani.{{cite web |last1=Kalra |first1=Aditya |last2=Stecklow |first2=Steve |date=October 13, 2021 |title=Amazon copied products and rigged search results to promote its own brands, documents show |url=https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/amazon-india-rigging/ |access-date=October 21, 2021 |work=Reuters}} In October 2022, a £900 million class-action lawsuit was filed in the United Kingdom against Amazon over a buy box on its website which "favours products sold by Amazon itself, or by retailers who pay Amazon for handling their logistics".{{Cite web |date=2022-10-20 |title=Amazon facing £900m lawsuit for 'pushing customers to pay more' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/oct/20/amazon-facing-900m-lawsuit-claiming-users-manipulated-into-paying-higher-prices |access-date=2022-10-20 |website=The Guardian |language=en}}{{Cite news |date=2022-10-20 |title=Amazon faces $1 bln lawsuit in UK for 'favouring its own products' |language=en |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/amazon-faces-1-bln-lawsuit-uk-favouring-its-own-products-2022-10-20/ |access-date=2022-10-20}}

The European Commission began an investigation in June 2015 of clauses in Amazon's e-book distribution agreements, which may have breached EU antitrust law by making it harder for other e-book platforms to compete. The investigation ended in May 2017, when the commission rendered binding Amazon's commitments not to use or enforce the clauses.European Commission, [https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/api/files/document/print/en/ip_17_1223/IP_17_1223_EN.pdf Antitrust: Commission accepts commitments from Amazon on e-books] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210117011948/https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/api/files/document/print/en/ip_17_1223/IP_17_1223_EN.pdf |date=January 17, 2021 }}, published 4 May 2017, accessed 14 January 2021

In July 2019 and November 2020, the European Commission began in-depth investigations of Amazon's use of marketplace seller data and possible preferential treatment of Amazon's retail offers and those of marketplace sellers which use Amazon's logistics and delivery services. It was charged that Amazon relied on nonpublic data from third-party sellers to benefit its retail business, violating competition law in the European Economic Area.{{cite web | title=Antitrust: Commission sends Statement of Objections to Amazon for the use of non-public independent seller data and opens second investigation into its e-commerce business practices | website=European Commission – European Commission | url=https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/home/en | access-date=2020-11-12 | archive-date=August 25, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200825095835/https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/home/en | url-status=live }}{{cite web | last=Lomas | first=Natasha | title=Europe lays out antitrust case against Amazon's use of big data | website=TechCrunch | date=2020-11-10 | url=https://techcrunch.com/2020/11/10/europe-lays-out-antitrust-case-against-amazons-use-of-big-data/ | access-date=2020-11-12 | archive-date=March 14, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220314221517/https://techcrunch.com/2020/11/10/europe-lays-out-antitrust-case-against-amazons-use-of-big-data/ | url-status=live }} On June 11, 2020, the European Union announced that it would prosecute Amazon for its treatment of third-party e-commerce sellers;{{cite news |last1=Pop |first1=Valentina |last2=Schechner |first2=Sam |date=June 11, 2020 |title=Amazon to Face Antitrust Charges From EU Over Treatment of Third-Party Selles |work=The Wall Street Journal |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/amazon-to-face-antitrust-charges-from-eu-over-treatment-of-third-party-sellers-11591871818?mod=business_lead_pos1 |access-date=June 11, 2020}} California began an investigation around the same time.{{Cite news |last=McKinnon |first=Ryan Tracy, Dana Mattioli and John D. |date=2020-06-12 |title=WSJ News Exclusive {{!}} California Is Examining Amazon's Business Practices |language=en-US |work=The Wall Street Journal |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/california-is-examining-amazons-business-practices-11591987233 |access-date=2022-09-16 |issn=0099-9660}} In December 2019, the Competition Commission of India suspended an approval for the takeover of Future Retail and levied a {{INR}}200 crore. The commission learned from internal Amazon emails that it intended to acquire the company solely to take advantage of foreign-investment relaxation. Amazon appealed the suspension; the CCI defended it in March 2022, citing misrepresentation on Amazon's part.{{Cite web |last=Chaturvedi |first=Arpan |title=Future-Amazon Deal: There Was Misrepresentation And Concealment, CCI Argues |url=https://www.bloombergquint.com/business/future-amazon-deal-there-was-misrepresentation-and-concealment-cci-argues |access-date=2022-03-22 |website=BloombergQuint |date=March 21, 2022 |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=2021-12-23 |title=Explained: Why CCI withdrew approval for Amazon's investment in Future Group |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-why-cci-withdrew-approval-for-amazons-investment-in-future-group-7678959/ |access-date=2022-03-22 |website=The Indian Express |language=en}}

In July 2020, Amazon, Apple, Google and Meta were accused of using excessive power and anti-competitive strategies to quash potential competitors.{{Cite news |date=July 30, 2020 |title=Tech bosses grilled over claims of 'harmful' power |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-53583941 |access-date=July 30, 2020}} Their CEOs appeared in a July 29 teleconference before the U.S. House Antitrust Subcommittee.{{cite news |author=Brian Fung |title=Congress grilled the CEOs of Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google. Here are the big takeaways |website=CNN |url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/29/tech/tech-antitrust-hearing-ceos/index.html |access-date=July 30, 2020}} In October 2020, the subcommittee released a report accusing Amazon of holding a monopoly e-commerce position to unfairly compete with sellers on its platform.{{cite web |last1=Bond |first1=Shannon |last2=Selyukh |first2=Alina |last3=Allyn |first3=Bobby |date=6 October 2020 |title=How Are Apple, Amazon, Facebook, Google Monopolies? House Report Counts The Ways |url=https://www.npr.org/2020/10/06/920882893/how-are-apple-amazon-facebook-google-monopolies-house-report-counts-the-ways |website=NPR}} In a March 2022 letter to bipartisan leaders of the Senate Judiciary Committee, the Justice Department endorsed legislation forbidding large digital platforms from disadvantaging competitors' products and services: "The [Justice] Department views the rise of dominant platforms as presenting a threat to open markets and competition, with risks for consumers, businesses, innovation, resiliency, global competitiveness, and our democracy".{{Cite news |last=Tracy |first=Ryan |date=2022-03-29 |title=The Wall Street Journal News Exclusive {{!}} Antitrust Bill Targeting Amazon, Google, Apple Gets Support From DOJ |language=en-US |work=The Wall Street Journal |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/doj-backs-antitrust-bill-targeting-amazon-google-apple-11648519385 |access-date=2022-09-16 |issn=0099-9660}} The Attorney General of California sued Amazon in September 2022 after the state's investigation which began in 2020, alleging that its contracts with third-party sellers and wholesalers inflated prices and stifled competition; merchants are coerced into contracts which prevent them from offering their products elsewhere, on other websites, for lower prices.{{Cite news |last=Mattioli |first=Christine Mai-Duc and Dana |date=2022-09-14 |title=California Sues Amazon, Alleging Antitrust Violations Inflated Prices and Stifled Competition |language=en-US |work=The Wall Street Journal |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/california-sues-amazon-for-alleged-antitrust-violations-that-inflated-prices-stifled-competition-11663178985 |access-date=2022-09-16 |issn=0099-9660}}

Amazon's buying up of subsidiaries has reportedly led to stagnation and a lack of development or innovation in them, particularly Goodreads; an Input Magazine article called the platform "ancient and terrible", saying that it resembles an early-2000s digital library with no developments to accommodate the evolution of book-metadata acquisition or online reader activity.{{cite web |last1=Wille |first1=Matt |title=Amazon's Goodreads is ancient and terrible. Now there's an alternative - The StoryGraph is a breath of fresh, Bezos-free air. |url=https://www.inputmag.com/reviews/amazon-goodreads-books-alternative-the-storygraph |website=www.inputmag.com |date=February 4, 2021 |publisher=Input Magazine |access-date=29 August 2022}} New Statesman also criticized Goodreads, calling it "stagnated" and a "monopoly on the discussion of new books": "[W]hat should be a cozy, pleasant corner of the internet has become a monster."{{cite web |last1=Manavis |first1=Sarah |title=Why Goodreads is bad for books |url=https://www.newstatesman.com/science-tech/2020/09/better-goodreads-possible-bad-for-books-storygraph-amazon |website=www.newstatesman.com |date=September 10, 2020 |publisher=New Statesman |access-date=29 August 2022}}

Due to its size and economies of scale, Amazon can undercut small local shopkeepers.{{cite web|first1=Stacy|last1=Mitchell|title=The big box swindle|url=https://www.strongtowns.org/journal/2016/7/19/stacy-mitchell|website=strongtowns.org/|date=July 19, 2016 |publisher=Strong towns journal|access-date=20 April 2018|archive-date=July 21, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210721154922/https://www.strongtowns.org/journal/2016/7/19/stacy-mitchell|url-status=live}} Stacy Mitchell and Olivia Lavecchia, researchers with the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, say that this has caused many local, small-scale shopkeepers to close in a number of cities and towns in the United States.{{cite book|last1=Mitchell|first1=Stacy|last2=Lavecchia|first2=Olivia|title=Report: How Amazon's Tightening Grip on the Economy Is Stifling Competition, Eroding Jobs, and Threatening Communities|date=29 November 2016|publisher=Institute for local self reliance}}

Jane Friedman{{cite web |title=Books by Jane Friedman |url=https://janefriedman.com/books/ |website=Jane Friedman .com |access-date=9 August 2023}} discovered six listings of books fraudulently using her name on Amazon and Goodreads; the companies resisted removing the fraudulent titles until the author's complaints went viral on social media in a blog post, "I Would Rather See My Books Get Pirated Than This (Or: Why Goodreads and Amazon Are Becoming Dumpster Fires)."{{cite web |last1=Friedman |first1=Jane |title=I Would Rather See My Books Get Pirated Than This (Or: Why Goodreads and Amazon Are Becoming Dumpster Fires) |url=https://janefriedman.com/i-would-rather-see-my-books-pirated/ |website=Jane Friedman |access-date=9 August 2023 |date=7 August 2023}}{{cite news |last1=Edwards |first1=Benj |title=Author discovers AI-generated counterfeit books written in her name on Amazon |url=https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2023/08/author-discovers-ai-generated-counterfeit-books-written-in-her-name-on-amazon/ |access-date=9 August 2023 |work=Ars Technica |date=8 August 2023 |language=en-us}}{{cite web |last1=Roscoe |first1=Jules |title=AI-Generated Books of Nonsense Are All Over Amazon's Bestseller Lists |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/ai-generated-books-of-nonsense-are-all-over-amazons-bestseller-lists/ |website=Vice |access-date=9 August 2023 |language=en |date=28 June 2023}}{{cite news |last1=O'Donovan |first1=Caroline |title=Goodreads was the future of book reviews. Then Amazon bought it. |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2023/07/01/amazon-goodreads-elizabeth-gilbert/ |access-date=9 August 2023 |newspaper=Washington Post |date=2 July 2023}}

Amazon had carried two cockfighting magazines and two dog-fighting videos. The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), saying that their sale violated federal law, sued the company.{{cite web |url=http://www.hsus.org/in_the_courts/docket/amazon.html |title=The HSUS v. amazon.com, Inc., et al. (Animal fighting materials) | The Humane Society of the United States |publisher=Hsus.org |access-date=August 29, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100925194514/http://www.hsus.org/in_the_courts/docket/amazon.html |archive-date=September 25, 2010 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }} An August 2007 campaign to boycott Amazon received attention in the wake of a dog-fighting case involving NFL quarterback Michael Vick.{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/27/business/media/27amazon.html | title=Humane Society has its sights on amazon.com | work=The New York Times | access-date =January 5, 2008 | date=August 27, 2007| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081210125828/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/27/business/media/27amazon.html| archive-date=December 10, 2008| url-status= live}} Marburger Publishing agreed to settle with the Humane Society in May 2008 by asking Amazon to stop selling its magazine, The Game Cock; The Feathered Warrior, the second magazine named in the lawsuit, remained available.{{cite news |title=Alleged Cockfight Mag To Stay Off Amazon |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/alleged-cockfight-mag-to-stay-off-amazon/ |agency=Associated Press |work=CBS News |date=May 21, 2008 |access-date=June 16, 2008 |archive-date=October 5, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081005203902/http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/05/21/business/main4113055.shtml |url-status=live }}

Mercy for Animals has said that Amazon permits sales of foie gras, which has been banned in California and several countries, on its website. As a result, animal-welfare groups began a movement known as "Amazon Cruelty".{{cite web|url=http://www.ibtimes.com/amazon-urged-ban-foie-gras-animal-rights-group-calls-retailer-lame-duck-over-controversial-food|title=Amazon Urged To Ban Foie Gras: Animal-Rights Group Calls Retailer A Lame Duck Over Controversial Food|website=International Business Times |date=June 12, 2013|access-date=March 6, 2018|archive-date=March 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180306202524/http://www.ibtimes.com/amazon-urged-ban-foie-gras-animal-rights-group-calls-retailer-lame-duck-over-controversial-food|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.amazoncruelty.com/|title=Video: Shocking Animal Cruelty Exposed at Amazon Foie Gras Supplier|website=www.amazoncruelty.com|access-date=January 10, 2021|archive-date=November 30, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201130105649/https://amazoncruelty.com/|url-status=live}}

In December 2015, The Guardian published an exposé of Amazon sales which violated British law.{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/dec/16/amazoncouk-banned-dangerous-weapons-found-sale#comment-65204402|title=Banned and dangerous weapons found for sale on Amazon.co.uk|website=TheGuardian.com |date=December 16, 2015 |access-date=December 16, 2015|archive-date=December 16, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151216120943/http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/dec/16/amazoncouk-banned-dangerous-weapons-found-sale#comment-65204402|url-status=live}} Items included a pepper-spray gun (sold by amazon.co.uk), acid, stun guns and a concealed cutting weapon (sold by Amazon Marketplace vendors); all are considered prohibited weapons in the UK. The Guardian also released a video describing some of the weapons.{{cite web|url= https://www.theguardian.com/technology/video/2015/dec/16/amazon-cache-guns-firearms-weapons-video|title= Amazon's cache of guns and weapons|date= December 16, 2015|work= The Guardian|first1= Simon|last1= Bowers|first2= Richard|last2= Sprenger|first3= Mustafa|last3= Khalili|access-date= December 11, 2016|archive-date= December 7, 2016|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20161207021806/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/video/2015/dec/16/amazon-cache-guns-firearms-weapons-video|url-status= live}} Likewise, brass catchers, illegal in New South Wales, are sold by Amazon.com.au.{{Citation needed |date=May 2024}}

A January 2008 article in the Czech weekly Tyden called attention to shirts sold by Amazon which were emblazoned with "I Love Heinrich Himmler" and "I Love Reinhard Heydrich". Amazon spokesperson Patricia Smith told Tyden, "Our catalog contains millions of items. With such a large number, unexpected merchandise may get onto the Web." Smith also told Tyden that the company did not intend to stop working with Direct Collection, producer of the T-shirts. After pressure from the World Jewish Congress (WJC), Amazon announced that it had removed from its website the Himmler and Heydrich T-shirts and "I Love Hitler" T-shirts sold for women and children.{{Cite web|last=Congress|first=World Jewish|title=World Jewish Congress|url=https://www.worldjewishcongress.org/en/news/amazon-removes-ldquo-i-love-hitler-rdquo-t-shirts-following-protests|access-date=2020-11-04|website=www.worldjewishcongress.org|language=EN|archive-date=August 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210808141832/https://www.worldjewishcongress.org/en/news/amazon-removes-ldquo-i-love-hitler-rdquo-t-shirts-following-protests|url-status=live}} After the WJC intervention, other items (including a Hitler Youth Knife emblazoned with the Nazi slogan "Blood and Honor" and a 1933 German SS Officer Dagger distributed by Knife-Kingdom) were also removed from Amazon.com.{{cite news|url=http://www.jewishtribune.ca/wp-content/uploads/PDF/jt080508.pdf |title=Christians, Jews rally for Israel |access-date=May 29, 2013 }}{{dead link|date=November 2020}}

An October 2013 report in the British online magazine The Kernel said that Amazon.com was selling books defending Holocaust denial, shipping them to customers in countries where Holocaust denial is prohibited by law.{{cite web |url=http://www.kernelmag.com/features/report/exclusive/6086/new-amazon-shame-holocaust-denial/ |title=New Amazon shame: Holocaust denial – The Kernel, 13 October 2013 |publisher=Kernelmag.com |date=2013-10-14 |access-date=2013-12-16 |archive-date=December 2, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131202224253/http://www.kernelmag.com/features/report/exclusive/6086/new-amazon-shame-holocaust-denial/ |url-status=dead }} That month, the WJC called on Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos to remove books denying the Holocaust and promoting antisemitism, white supremacy, racism or sexism. "No one should profit from the sale of such vile and offensive hate literature. Many Holocaust survivors are deeply offended by the fact that the world's largest online retailer is making money from selling such material," WJC executive vice-president Robert Singer wrote in a letter to Bezos.{{cite web|url=http://www.ejpress.org/article/68447 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20131118135527/http://www.ejpress.org/article/68447 |url-status=dead |archive-date=2013-11-18 |title=World Jewish Congress urges Amazon boss to remove from its website Holocaust denying books |publisher=European Jewish Press |date=2013-10-18 |access-date=2013-12-16 }}{{cite web |url=http://www.algemeiner.com/2013/11/11/amazons-holocaust-shame/ |title=Amazon's Holocaust Shame |publisher=The Algemeiner |date=2013-11-11 |access-date=2013-12-16 |archive-date=January 18, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140118044324/http://www.algemeiner.com/2013/11/11/amazons-holocaust-shame/ |url-status=live }}

Although Nazi paraphernalia was still listed on Amazon in the US and Canada in 2016,{{Cite news|title='Profiting from hate': Amazon under fire for allowing sale of Nazi paraphernalia|language=en-US|work=CBC News|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/amazon-accused-of-profiting-from-hate-1.3358259|access-date=2020-11-04|archive-date=November 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108103927/https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/amazon-accused-of-profiting-from-hate-1.3358259|url-status=live}} the WJC announced on March 9, 2017, that Amazon had complied with it and other Jewish organizations by removing from sale the cited Holocaust-denial works. The WJC offered assistance in identifying Holocaust-denial works among Amazon's offerings in the future.{{cite web |date=March 9, 2017 |url=http://www.worldjewishcongress.org/en/news/world-jewish-congress-welcomes-amazon-move-to-remove-holocaust-denial-books-offers-assistance-in-identifying-further-material-3-4-2017 |title=WJC Welcomes Amazon Move to Remove Holocaust Denial Books Offers Assistance in Identifying Further Material |publisher=worldjewishcongress.org |access-date=2017-06-22 |archive-date=July 6, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170706113432/http://www.worldjewishcongress.org/en/news/world-jewish-congress-welcomes-amazon-move-to-remove-holocaust-denial-books-offers-assistance-in-identifying-further-material-3-4-2017 |url-status=live }}

The Central Council of Jews in Germany denounced Amazon in July 2019 for continuing to sell items glorifying the Nazis. The company was caught in December of that year selling Auschwitz-themed Christmas-tree ornaments on its platform, printed on demand with stock images of the concentration camp from a third-party seller; Amazon eventually removed the ornaments from all its platforms. Auschwitz Memorial, which maintains the concentration camp for historical and educational purposes, said that it had found a "disturbing online product from another seller – a computer mousepad bearing the image of a freight train used for deporting people to the concentration camps."{{cite news |title=Amazon pulls Auschwitz-themed Christmas ornaments |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-50625558 |website=www.bbc.com |date=December 2, 2019 |publisher=BBC News |access-date=8 August 2022}} Wired journalist Louise Matsakis called the Holocaust-themed products "the byproduct of an increasingly automated e-commerce landscape", noting that the items were print-on-demand and Amazon became aware of them after offended customers reported their sale.{{cite magazine |last1=Matsakis |first1=Louise |title=How Auschwitz Christmas Ornaments Ended Up for Sale on Amazon |url=https://www.wired.com/story/amazon-auschwitz-christmas-ornaments/ |magazine=Wired |access-date=8 August 2022}}

Amazon removed all new and used print and digital copies of The Turner Diaries (an antisemitic and racist dystopian novel) in late 2020 from its bookselling platform, including its AbeBooks and Book Depository subsidiaries, effectively removing it from the digital bookselling market. The company cited the book's connection with the QAnon movement as the reason, and had already purged a number of self-published and small-press titles connected with QAnon from its platform.{{cite web |last1=Statt |first1=Nick |title=Amazon pulls white supremacist novel The Turner Diaries alongside QAnon purge |url=https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/12/22227049/amazon-the-turner-diaries-q-anon-purge-removal-capitol-attack |website=www.theverge.com |date=January 12, 2021 |publisher=The Verge |access-date=24 November 2021}} Amazon subsidiary Goodreads purged the metadata from all editions of The Turner Diaries, replacing the author and title fields with "NOT A BOOK" (capitalization intended), a designation normally used by the platform to weed non-book items with ISBN numbers, as well as plagiarized titles, from its catalogue.{{Cite web|url=https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/530270.NOT_A_BOOK|title=NOT A BOOK by NOT A BOOK|website=www.goodreads.com}}

Amazon began offering access through its Prime streaming service in 2022 to the documentary film, Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America, which had been endorsed by Kyrie Irving. The film contains a number of conspiracy theories, including Holocaust denial and the theory that European Jews were responsible for the Atlantic slave trade. Variety defended Amazon: "The radio silence [of Amazon] shouldn't be misinterpreted as indifference. To the contrary, insiders say how to properly handle "Hebrews" [the film] has been the subject of endless debates at numerous meetings, some of which have involved the top brass at Amazon ... [W]hile the company has a long and arguably inconsistent track record when it comes to policing controversial content on its own platform, "Hebrews" has been particularly challenging given how high-profile the Irving saga became. Few execs from the company’s headquarters in Seattle or its studio business in Culver City have been spared an earful from those wondering why the company is selling such vile material on its website."{{cite web |last1=Wallenstein |first1=Andrew |title=Inside Amazon's Struggle to Deal With an Antisemitic Film (EXCLUSIVE) |url=https://variety.com/vip/inside-amazons-struggle-to-deal-with-an-anti-semitic-film-exclusive-1235435729/ |website=Variety |date=November 21, 2022 |access-date=13 December 2022}} CEO Andy Jassy said that the film had to remain on Amazon even if the viewpoint was objectionable.{{cite web |last1=Spangler |first1=Todd |title=Amazon Will Continue to Sell Antisemitic Documentary for Now: 'We Have to Allow Access to Those Viewpoints, Even If They Are Objectionable,' CEO Says |url=https://variety.com/2022/digital/news/amazon-ceo-no-decision-antisemitic-documentary-hebrews-to-negroes-1235445763/ |website=Variety |date=November 30, 2022 |access-date=13 December 2022}}{{cite web |last1=Serrano |first1=Jody |title=Amazon Won't Remove the Antisemitic 'Hebrews to Negroes' Film Promoted by Kyrie Irving |url=https://gizmodo.com/amazon-kyrie-irving-antisemitic-film-hebrews-negroes-1849840449 |website=gizmodo.com |date=December 2022 |publisher=Gizmodo |access-date=13 December 2022}} Stephen A. Smith criticized former Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos for the decision: "Jeff Bezos, you’re supposed to be a better man than that. Get rid of that. Get that off your platform, please, since all of this noise is being made."{{cite web |last1=Contes |first1=Brandon |title=Stephen A. Smith blasts Jeff Bezos for continuing to sell antisemitic film on Amazon: 'It's sickening' |url=https://awfulannouncing.com/espn/stephen-a-smith-blasts-jeff-bezos-antisemitic-film-amazon.html |website=awfulannouncing.com |date=November 14, 2022 |publisher=Awful Announcing |access-date=13 December 2022}}

On November 10, 2010, a controversy arose about the marketing by Amazon of an e-book by Phillip R. Greaves entitled The Pedophile's Guide to Love and Pleasure: A Child-lover's Code of Conduct.{{cite news|url=http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9JDI0VG0.htm|title=Amazon sells book offering advice to pedophiles|first=Dana|last=Wollman|agency=Associated Press|date=November 10, 2010|access-date=November 24, 2010|archive-date=June 28, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628195324/http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9JDI0VG0.htm|url-status=dead}} Readers threatened to boycott Amazon for selling the book, which was described by critics as a "pedophile guide". Amazon initially defended its action, saying that it "believes it is censorship not to sell certain books simply because we or others believe their message is objectionable"{{cite news|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2010/11/11/businessinsider-amazon-caves-pedophile-guide-pulled-from-the-kindle-store-2010-11.DTL#ixzz14z2BGJUn |title=Amazon Caves: Pedophile Guide Pulled From The Kindle Store (AMZN) |newspaper=San Francisco Gate |access-date=November 11, 2010 |first=Nick |last=Saint |date=November 11, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101113103155/http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=%2Fg%2Fa%2F2010%2F11%2F11%2Fbusinessinsider-amazon-caves-pedophile-guide-pulled-from-the-kindle-store-2010-11.DTL |archive-date=November 13, 2010 |url-status=live }} and "supported the right of every individual to make their own purchasing decisions". The company later removed the book.{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/amazon/8126013/Amazon-removes-paedophile-guide-from-Kindle-store.html|title=Amazon removes 'paedophile guide' from Kindle store|newspaper=The Telegraph|access-date=November 11, 2010|date=November 11, 2010|first=Claudine|last=Beaumont|location=London| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20101114015346/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/amazon/8126013/Amazon-removes-paedophile-guide-from-Kindle-store.html| archive-date= November 14, 2010 | url-status= live}} According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Amazon "defended the book, then removed it, then reinstated it, and then removed it {{em|again}}".

American Booksellers for Free Expression president Christopher Finan said that Amazon had the right to sell the book; it is not child pornography or legally obscene, since it does not have pictures. Enough Is Enough (a child-safety organization), however, said that the book should be removed and "lends the impression that child abuse is normal".{{cite news|url=https://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5ivT42MBS-p3W453JeFgNop0vxQ9Q?docId=004a6acf3c774853b1fb08fc8ff07679|title=Amazon no longer selling guide for pedophiles|agency=Associated Press|date=November 11, 2010|access-date=November 11, 2010| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20101114051600/https://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5ivT42MBS-p3W453JeFgNop0vxQ9Q?docId=004a6acf3c774853b1fb08fc8ff07679| archive-date= November 14, 2010 | url-status= dead}} People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), citing the removal of The Pedophile's Guide from Amazon, urged the website to also remove books on dog-fighting from its catalogue.{{cite web|url=http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2010/11/13/PETA-wants-animal-fighting-books-removed/UPI-70901289672465/|title=PETA wants animal-fighting books removed|publisher=United Press International|date=November 13, 2010|access-date=November 13, 2010| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20101203182649/http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2010/11/13/PETA-wants-animal-fighting-books-removed/UPI-70901289672465/| archive-date= December 3, 2010 | url-status= live}}

Greaves was arrested on December 20, 2010, at his Pueblo, Colorado home on a felony warrant issued by the Polk County Sheriff's Office in Lakeland, Florida. Detectives from the county's Internet Crimes Division ordered a signed copy of Greaves' book and had it shipped to the agency's jurisdiction, where it violated state obscenity laws. According to Sheriff Grady Judd, Greaves violated local laws prohibiting the distribution of "obscene material depicting minors engaged in harmful conduct" (a third-degree felony).{{cite web|url=http://www.baynews9.com/article/news/2010/december/185471/Polk-Sheriff:-Pedophilia-book-author-arrested |title=Polk Sheriff: Pedophilia book author arrested |publisher=Bay News 9 |date=December 20, 2010 |access-date=December 20, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101223081907/http://www.baynews9.com/article/news/2010/december/185471/Polk-Sheriff%3A-Pedophilia-book-author-arrested |archive-date=December 23, 2010 }} Greaves pleaded no contest to the charges and was released on probation, with his previous jail time counting as time served.{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-12994248|title=Phillip Greaves gets probation for 'paedophile guide'|date=April 6, 2011|work=BBC Online|access-date=May 19, 2011| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110407165259/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-12994248| archive-date= April 7, 2011 | url-status= live}}

On October 16, 2016, Apple filed a trademark-infringement case against Mobile Star LLC for selling counterfeit Apple products to Amazon. In the suit, Apple provided evidence that Amazon was selling counterfeit Apple products and advertising them as genuine. Apple had a 90-percent success rate in identifying counterfeit products, which Amazon sold without determining if they were genuine. Mobile Star LLC settled with Apple for an undisclosed amount on April 27, 2017.{{cite web |url=http://www.patentlyapple.com/patently-apple/2016/10/apple-sues-mobile-star-for-selling-counterfeit-power-adapters-and-charging-cables-through-amazon.html |title=Apple Sues Mobile Star for Selling Counterfeit Power Adapters and Charging Cables through Amazon |website=Patently Apple |access-date=December 15, 2018 |archive-date=November 11, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111223640/https://www.patentlyapple.com/patently-apple/2016/10/apple-sues-mobile-star-for-selling-counterfeit-power-adapters-and-charging-cables-through-amazon.html |url-status=live }}

The sale of counterfeit products by Amazon has attracted widespread notice, with purchases marked as fulfilled by third parties and those shipped directly from Amazon warehouses found to be counterfeit.{{cite web |last1=Shepard |first1=Wade |title=Fuse Chicken Vs. Amazon Is The David Vs. Goliath Lawsuit To Watch In 2018 |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/wadeshepard/2018/01/14/fuse-chicken-vs-amazon-is-the-david-vs-goliath-lawsuit-to-watch-in-2018/#2c8de5165115 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201125141347/https://www.forbes.com/sites/wadeshepard/2018/01/14/fuse-chicken-vs-amazon-is-the-david-vs-goliath-lawsuit-to-watch-in-2018/#2c8de5165115 |archive-date=November 25, 2020 |access-date=28 May 2020 |website=Forbes |language=en}} This has included products sold directly by Amazon, marked as "ships from and sold by Amazon.com".{{cite news |last=Greene |first=Jay |date=November 14, 2019 |title=How Amazon's quest for more, cheaper products has resulted in a flea market of fakes |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019/11/14/how-amazons-quest-more-cheaper-products-has-resulted-flea-market-fakes/ |access-date=May 28, 2020}} Counterfeit charging cables sold on Amazon as purported Apple products have been found to be a fire hazard.{{cite web |date=May 4, 2018 |title='GMA' Investigates: Inexpensive lightning cables that could harm your phone |url=https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/living/story/gma-investigates-inexpensive-lightning-cables-harm-phone-54920478 |access-date=May 28, 2020 |work=Good Morning America}}{{cite news |last=Suthivarakom |first=Ganda |date=February 11, 2020 |title=What to Do If You Think Your Amazon Purchase Is a Fake |website=Wirecutter |url=https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/blog/what-to-do-amazon-purchase-fake/ |access-date=May 28, 2020}} Selling Apple products is now a restricted category on Amazon, meaning resellers have to get approval from the brand to sell those products on the site.{{Cite news |last=Dastin |first=Jeffrey |date=November 9, 2018 |title=Amazon strikes deal with Apple to sell iPhones, iPads |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/world/amazon-strikes-deal-with-apple-to-sell-iphones-ipads-idUSKCN1NE2IB/ |work=Reuters |pages=1–2}}

Counterfeits have included a variety of products, from big-ticket items to tweezers, gloves,{{cite news |last=Suthivarakom |first=Ganda |date=February 11, 2020 |title=Welcome to the Era of Fake Products |website=Wirecutter |url=https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/blog/amazon-counterfeit-fake-products/ |access-date=May 28, 2020}} and umbrellas.{{cite news |last=Varghese |first=Daniel |date=May 25, 2018 |title=Bogus Umbrellas, Towels, and Luggage Zippers: New This Week |website=Wirecutter |url=https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/blog/bogus-umbrellas-bath-towels-luggage-zippers/ |access-date=May 28, 2020}} More recently, this has spread to Amazon's newer grocery services.{{cite web |last1=Palmer |first1=Annie |date=October 20, 2019 |title=Amazon is shipping expired food, from baby formula to old beef jerky, scaring consumers and putting big brands at risk |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/20/amazon-is-shipping-expired-baby-formula-and-other-out-of-date-foods.html |access-date=May 28, 2020 |website=CNBC |language=en}} Counterfeiting was reportedly a problem for artists and small businesses, whose products were rapidly copied for sale on the site.{{cite news |last=Levi |first=Ari |date=May 26, 2016 |title=Amazon counterfeiters wreak havoc on artists and small businesses |website=CNBC |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2016/05/25/amazon-counterfeiters-wreak-havoc-on-artists-and-small-businesses.html |access-date=August 28, 2020}} Companies such as Birkenstock and Nike have pulled their products from Amazon.

Seller accounts on Amazon are set by default to use "commingled inventory", which encourages counterfeiting. The goods a seller sends to Amazon are mixed with those of the producer of the product and those of all other sellers supplying what is supposed to be the same product.{{cite web |last=Quirk |first=Mary Beth |date=May 12, 2014 |title=Does Amazon's Inventory Commingling Help Fake Products Fly Under The Radar? |url=https://consumerist.com/2014/05/12/does-amazons-inventory-commingling-help-fake-products-fly-under-the-radar/ |access-date=August 30, 2020 |work=Consumerist}}

In 2023, Amazon said it spent more than $1.2 billion and employed more than 15,000 people that were dedicated to protecting customers from counterfeit, fraud, and other abuse. Between 2020 and 2023, the Amazon Counterfeit Crimes Unit pursued more than 21,000 bad actors through litigation and criminal referrals to law enforcement. The company posts updated numbers in its annual Brand Protection Report.{{Cite web |last=Redden |first=Sydney |date=2023-04-18 |title=New Amazon Report Shows Dedication to Protecting Brands and Customers |url=https://www.uschamber.com/intellectual-property/new-amazon-report-shows-dedication-to-protecting-brands-and-customers |access-date=2025-01-09 |website=www.uschamber.com |language=en}}

In June 2019, BuzzFeed reported that some products identified on the site as "Amazon's choice" were low quality and had a history of customer complaints and evidence of product-review manipulation.{{cite web |last=Nguyen |first=Nicole |date=June 14, 2019 |title='Amazon's Choice' Does Not Necessarily Mean A Product Is Good |url=https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/nicolenguyen/amazons-choice-bad-products |access-date=August 30, 2020 |website=BuzzFeed News}} The Wall Street Journal reported in August 2019 that it had found more than 4,000 items for sale on Amazon's site that had been declared unsafe by federal agencies, had misleading labels, or had been banned by federal regulators.{{cite web |last1=Berzon |first1=Alexandra |last2=Shifflett |first2=Shane |last3=Scheck |first3=Justin |date=August 23, 2019 |title=Amazon Has Ceded Control of Its Site. The Result: Thousands of Banned, Unsafe or Mislabeled Products |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/amazon-has-ceded-control-of-its-site-the-result-thousands-of-banned-unsafe-or-mislabeled-products-11566564990?shareToken=stf528a8da601e4017bdfc2faa508e09a2 |access-date=August 30, 2020 |newspaper=The Wall Street Journal}} In the wake of the WSJ investigation, three U.S. senators{{snd}}Richard Blumenthal, Ed Markey, and Bob Menendez{{snd}}sent an open letter to Bezos demanding action against the sale of unsafe items on the site: "Unquestionably, Amazon is falling short of its commitment to keeping safe those consumers who use its massive platform."{{cite web |last=Palmer |first=Annie |date=August 29, 2019 |title=Senators ask Jeff Bezos to crackdown on thousands of unsafe products on Amazon |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/29/senators-ask-jeff-bezos-to-crack-down-on-unsafe-products-on-amazon.html |access-date=August 30, 2020 |website=CNBC}} The letter questioned the company's practices and gave Bezos a September 29, 2019, deadline to respond: "We call on you to immediately remove from the platform all the problematic products examined in the recent WSJ report; explain how you are going about this process; conduct a sweeping internal investigation of your enforcement and consumer safety policies; and institute changes that will continue to keep unsafe products off your platform." Earlier that month, Blumenthal and Menendez had sent Bezos a letter about the BuzzFeed report. In December 2019, The Wall Street Journal reported that people were retrieving trash from dumpsters and selling it on Amazon as new. The reporters learned that it was easy for a seller to set up an account and sell cleaned-up junk as new. In addition to trash, sellers were obtaining inventory from clearance bins, thrift stores, and pawn shops.{{cite web |last1=Safdar |first1=Khadeeja |last2=Shifflett |first2=Shane |last3=Blostein |first3=Denise |date=December 18, 2019 |title=You Might Be Buying Trash on Amazon – Literally |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/you-might-be-buying-trash-on-amazonliterally-11576599910?mod=e2twd |access-date=August 29, 2020 |work=The Wall Street Journal}}{{cite news |last=Jones |first=Mark |date=December 19, 2019 |title=Shocking report finds dumpster divers selling trash on Amazon |work=Komando.com |url=https://www.komando.com/news/amazon-sells-literal-trash/697331/ |access-date=August 29, 2020}}

In August 2020, an appeals court in California ruled that Amazon could be held liable for unsafe products sold on its website. A Californian bought a replacement laptop battery which caught fire, giving her third-degree burns.{{cite news |last=Palmer |first=Annie |date=August 13, 2020 |title=California court rules Amazon can be liable for defective goods sold on its marketplace |website=CNBC |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2020/08/13/amazon-can-be-held-liable-for-faulty-goods-court-rules.html |access-date=August 29, 2020}}

American copyright lobbyists have accused Amazon of facilitating the sale of unlicensed CDs and DVDs, particularly in the Chinese market.{{cite web |last=Sanchez |first=Daniel |date=2016-10-31 |title=An RIAA study shows that Amazon is guilty of selling counterfeit CDs |url=https://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2016/10/31/amazon-counterfeit-cds/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180901214055/https://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2016/10/31/amazon-counterfeit-cds/ |archive-date=September 1, 2018 |access-date=2018-12-14 |publisher=Digital Music News}} The Chinese government responded by announcing plans to increase regulation of Amazon, Apple and Taobao in relation to Internet copyright infringement. Amazon has shut down third-party distributors due to pressure from the National Copyright Administration of China (NCAC).{{cite web |last=Hsu |first=Alex |date=1 Jul 2013 |title=Chinese Government Planning to Tighten Intellectual Property Regulation of Apple, Amazon, and Taobao |url=http://bw-original-reporting.tumblr.com/post/54347685132/chinese-government-planning-to-tighten-intellectual |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140225104620/http://bw-original-reporting.tumblr.com/post/54347685132/chinese-government-planning-to-tighten-intellectual |archive-date=February 25, 2014 |work=BrightWire News}}

Amazon has been caught selling counterfeit books, which mimic an authentic edition of a published work but are not authorized for publication by the copyright holder; one example is The Sanford Guide to Antimicrobial Therapy, a non-fiction medical book. According to David Streitfeld of The New York Times, "Amazon takes a hands-off approach to what goes on in its bookstore, never checking the authenticity, much less the quality, of what it sells. It does not oversee the sellers who have flocked to its site in any organized way. That has resulted in a kind of lawlessness. Publishers, writers and groups such as the Authors Guild said counterfeiting of books on Amazon had surged. The company has been reactive rather than proactive in dealing with the issue, often taking action only when a buyer complains. Many times, they added, there is nowhere to appeal and their only recourse is to integrate even more closely with Amazon."{{cite news |last1=Streitfeld |first1=David |title=What Happens After Amazon's Domination Is Complete? Its Bookstore Offers Clues |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/23/technology/amazon-domination-bookstore-books.html |website=The New York Times |date=June 23, 2019 |access-date=4 September 2022}}

This was not the first instance of a counterfeit book appearing on Amazon. According to the New York Post, the problem also encompasses plagiarized books; author Martin Kleppmann said that Amazon was selling pirated copies of his textbook with "pages overlapping" and bleeding ink, making the book unreadable and sparking negative reviews.{{cite web |last1=Wayt |first1=Theo |title=Pirated books thrive on Amazon — and authors say web giant ignores fraud |url=https://nypost.com/2022/07/31/pirated-books-thrive-on-amazon-authors-say-web-giant-ignores-fraud/ |website=New York Post |date=July 31, 2022 |publisher=The New York Post |access-date=4 September 2022}} In 2019, InterVarsity Press announced that counterfeiters had sold $240,000 worth of fake copies of Tish Harrison Warren's Liturgy of the Ordinary on Amazon{{cite news |last1=Blair |first1=Leonardo |title=Christian author asks for help, prayers after Amazon sells $240K worth of fake copies of her book |url=https://www.christianpost.com/news/christian-author-asks-for-help-prayers-after-amazon-sells-240k-worth-of-fake-copies-of-her-book.html |access-date=30 January 2023 |work=Christian Post |date=July 10, 2019}}—as many as 20,000 copies, compared to an estimated 121,000 legitimate copies sold by IVP to that point.{{cite news |last1=Riess |first1=Jana |title=Tish Harrison Warren, a rising star in Christian spiritual writing |url=https://religionnews.com/2021/02/26/tish-harrison-warren-a-rising-star-in-christian-spiritual-writing/ |access-date=30 January 2023 |agency=Religion News Service |date=February 26, 2021}}

According to a 2019 Vox article, Amazon benefits from the sale of counterfeit books. The article citing a small-press publisher forced to partner with Amazon to return legitimate books to the market: "Bill Pollock, founder of the San Francisco-based programming and science guide publisher No Starch, told the New York Times that this solution was just putting even more onus on rights holders to protect themselves: 'Why should we be responsible for policing Amazon for fakes? That’s their job'. No Starch said that it was spending '$3,000 a month and rising' to keep its search placement higher than the people who are copying it."{{cite web |last1=Tiffany |first1=Kaitlyn |title=How Amazon benefits from counterfeit books |url=https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/6/24/18715584/amazon-counterfeit-book-problem-nyt-project-zero |website=www.vox.com |date=June 24, 2019 |publisher=Vox |access-date=4 September 2022}}

A 2019 Wall Street Journal (WSJ) investigation found third-party retailers selling over 4,000 unsafe, banned, or deceptively-labeled products on Amazon.com. When customers sued Amazon for unsafe products sold by third-party sellers on Amazon.com, Amazon's legal defense has been that it is not the seller and cannot be held liable.{{Cite news|last1=Berzon|first1=Alexandra|last2=Shifflett|first2=Shane|last3=Scheck|first3=Justin|date=August 23, 2019|title=Amazon Has Ceded Control of Its Site. The Result: Thousands of Banned, Unsafe or Mislabeled Products|language=en-US|work=The Wall Street Journal|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/amazon-has-ceded-control-of-its-site-the-result-thousands-of-banned-unsafe-or-mislabeled-products-11566564990|access-date=2020-12-13|issn=0099-9660|quote=Amazon has proven unable or unwilling to effectively police third-party sellers on its site.|archive-date=December 11, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201211174420/https://www.wsj.com/articles/amazon-has-ceded-control-of-its-site-the-result-thousands-of-banned-unsafe-or-mislabeled-products-11566564990|url-status=live}} Wirecutter reported in 2020 that over a several-month period, they "were able to purchase items through Amazon Prime that were either confirmed counterfeits, lookalikes unsafe for use, or otherwise misrepresented."{{Cite web|last=Suthivarakom|first=Ganda|date=2020-02-11|title=Welcome to the Era of Fake Products|url=https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/blog/amazon-counterfeit-fake-products/|access-date=2020-12-13|website=Wirecutter: Reviews for the Real World|language=en-US|archive-date=January 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210108223842/https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/blog/amazon-counterfeit-fake-products/|url-status=live}} CNBC reported in 2019 that Amazon third-party sellers regularly sold expired food products, and the size of Amazon Marketplace has made policing the platform difficult for the company.{{Cite web|last=Palmer|first=Annie|date=2019-10-20|title=Amazon is shipping expired food, from baby formula to old beef jerky, scaring consumers and putting big brands at risk|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/20/amazon-is-shipping-expired-baby-formula-and-other-out-of-date-foods.html|access-date=2020-12-13|website=CNBC|language=en|archive-date=December 8, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201208185940/https://www.cnbc.com/2019/10/20/amazon-is-shipping-expired-baby-formula-and-other-out-of-date-foods.html|url-status=live}}

By 2020, third-party sellers accounted for 54 percent of sales on Amazon platforms.{{Cite web|title=Amazon: third-party seller share 2020|url=https://www.statista.com/statistics/259782/third-party-seller-share-of-amazon-platform/|last=Palmer|first=Annie|date=October 22, 2019|access-date=2020-12-13|website=Statista|language=en|archive-date=May 21, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210521053809/https://www.statista.com/statistics/259782/third-party-seller-share-of-amazon-platform/|url-status=live}} In 2019, Amazon earned $54 billion in fees from third-party retailers for seller services.{{Cite web|title=Amazon: global net revenue by product 2019|url=https://www.statista.com/statistics/672747/amazons-consolidated-net-revenue-by-segment/|access-date=2020-12-13|website=Statista|language=en|archive-date=December 14, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201214060852/https://www.statista.com/statistics/672747/amazons-consolidated-net-revenue-by-segment/|url-status=live}}

Nora Roberts, an American romance author who has had a number of titles of hers plagiarized and re-published through Kindle Direct Publishing, said about Amazon's self-publishing branch: "I'm getting one hell of an education on the sick, greedy, opportunistic culture that games Amazon's absurdly weak system. And everything I learn enrages me ... this culture, this ugly underbelly of legitimate self-publishing is all about content. More, more, more, fast, fast, fast!". Roberts said during an interview with The Guardian that she would sue her unnamed plagiarists.{{cite web |last1=Flood |first1=Alison |title=Plagiarism, 'book-stuffing', clickfarms ... the rotten side of self-publishing |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/mar/28/plagiarism-book-stuffing-clickfarms-the-rotten-side-of-self-publishing |website=The Guardian |date=March 28, 2019 |access-date=4 August 2022}} In 2019, the Authors Guild said that "the way KDP and KU [Kindle Unlimited] are set up, which attracts scammers who take advantage of weaknesses in the system to repackage other authors' books and anthologies ... they pass them off as them as 'new' works". Goodreads and Google Books often retain metadata for counterfeits and plagiarized titles after Amazon removes them from its sales platforms, which leads to improper author attribution, ambiguity and reader confusion.{{cite web |last1=Barley |first1=Aleah |title=Amazon Selling Plagiarized Books |url=https://nwu.org/amazon-selling-plagiarized-books/ |website=nwu.org |date=April 3, 2019 |publisher=National Writers Union |access-date=30 January 2023}}{{cite web |last1=Lanzendorfer |first1=Joy |title=Stealing Books in the Age of Self-Publishing |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2016/06/plagiarism-in-the-age-of-self-publishing/485525/ |website=www.theatlantic.com |date=June 5, 2016 |publisher=The Atlantic |access-date=29 January 2023}}

Amazon maintains that it checks for plagiarism by monitoring user accounts and checking uploaded files, although critics say that Amazon's system is not robust enough to handle issues such as identity theft, minors accessing the platform, or internet anonymity. The Urban Writers said that "Amazon is extremely sensitive about plagiarized work and, if flagged, your account could be deactivated."{{cite web |last1=Urban Writers |first1=The |title=Always Run Plagiarism Checks Before Publishing on Amazon – What Self Publishers Need to Know |url=https://theurbanwriters.com/blogs/publishing/why-self-publishers-plagriarism-check-amazon |website=theurbanwriters.com |date=February 20, 2020 |publisher=The Urban Writers |access-date=8 August 2022}}

Other writers and reports have been more critical of Amazon's response to plagiarism, noting a number of cases where Amazon did nothing to stop one or more plagiarists from uploading copyrighted files and claiming them as their own, claiming to be the author themselves, uploading stolen information from an author (such as tax numbers or a home address) to falsely claim their identity, claiming public domain works under their own name, and making up names to avoid legal consequences. CNET writer Michelle Starr described a 2012 case where "sci-fi authors C.H. Cherryh and John Scalzi issued Amazon with DMCA takedown notices for books of theirs that one Ibnul Jaif Farabi had uploaded, with titles slightly changed, under his own name. He had also done the same thing with works by deceased authors, such as Robert Heinlein and Arthur C. Clarke, who, of course, are slightly too deceased to notice."{{cite web |last1=Starr |first1=Michelle |title=Amazon and the problem with plagiarism |url=https://www.cnet.com/tech/tech-industry/amazon-and-the-problem-with-plagiarism/ |website=www.cnet.com |publisher=CNET |access-date=8 August 2022}}

In most cases, Amazon stops publishing (and selling) the titles while retaining metadata on websites such as Goodreads. Rachel Ann Nunes, a writer of Mormon fiction, said in an interview for The Atlantic that emotional stress and reputation damage were even worse than the financial implications of her books being plagiarized: "I felt like I was being attacked ... and when I went on social media, I didn’t know what would be waiting for me." Nunes said that she had been unable to sleep, gained weight, found herself unable to enjoy writing any more, and paid thousands of dollars in legal fees for attempting to catch her plagiarist, who had a number of aliases and uploaded false information to Amazon's databases.{{cite web |last1=Lanzendorfer |first1=Joy |title=Stealing Books in the Age of Self-Publishing |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2016/06/plagiarism-in-the-age-of-self-publishing/485525/ |website=www.theatlantic.com |date=June 5, 2016 |publisher=The Atlantic |access-date=8 August 2022}}

According to Jonathan Bailey of Plagiarism Today, "Amazon doesn't do much to vet the books it publishes. Plagiarism isn't even mentioned in its KDP help files. What this means is that it's trivial to publish almost anything you want regardless of the quality of the work or, in these cases, how original it is. In fact, many complain that Amazon fails to vet works for even simple issues such as formatting and layout. Though Amazon will, sometimes, remove works that violates their terms of service after they get complaints, they're happy to sell the books and reap the profits until they get such a notice. And, from Amazon's perspective, this is completely legal. They are protected by the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) as well as other laws, in particular Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, that basically mean they are under no obligation to vet or check the works they publish. They are legally free to produce and sell books, physical and digital, regardless of whether they are plagiarized, copyright infringing or otherwise illegal."{{cite web |last1=Bailey |first1=Jonathan |title=How Amazon Could Fix Its Plagiarism Problem: And why it never will ... |url=https://www.plagiarismtoday.com/2019/02/26/how-amazon-could-fix-its-plagiarism-problem/ |website=www.plagiarismtoday.com |date=February 26, 2019 |publisher=Plagiarism Today |access-date=8 August 2022}}

Vox journalist Kaitlyn Tiffany investigated a bizarre subset of self-published "celebrity biographies" on Amazon in 2019 which were published under the pen name "Matt Green" by Kindle Direct Publishing which contained plagiarized and unauthorized material, often with typos and grammatical errors. Tiffany defended Amazon's approach to content control, however: "Amazon has already quashed quite a few e-book scams. At first, users could download public domain books from sources like Project Gutenberg, upload them, and sell them to readers who didn't know better. A policy change in 2011 put an end to that. In 2012, Gawker's Max Read came across another good one: hundreds of thousands of books that were just compilations of Wikipedia articles with titles like 'Celebrities with Big Dicks'. One author he found was just publishing random data sets like 'The 2007–2012 Outlook for Tufted Washable Scatter Rugs, Bathmats and Sets That Measure 6-Feet by 9-Feet or Smaller in India'". Tiffany wrote that although Amazon is known for rampant scams in its self-publishing subsidiaries, the company tries its best to stop scams when it becomes aware of them; outright plagiarism and other illegal content is difficult to detect. She cited the use of pen names as a problem and agreed with Jonathan Bailey that the Digital Millennium Copyright Act shields Amazon too much from liability for plagiarism or illegal material in published books.{{cite web |last1=Tiffany |first1=Kaitlyn |title=The terrible celebrity biographies of Amazon, not explained |url=https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/1/17/18187174/amazon-celebrity-biographies-kindle-self-publishing |website=www.vox.com |date=January 17, 2019 |publisher=Vox |access-date=16 December 2022}}

The German-speaking press and blogosphere have criticized Amazon for selling tens of thousands of print on demand books which reproduced Wikipedia articles.{{cite web

| last = Thiel

| first = Thomas

| title = Wikipedia und Amazon: Der Marketplace soll es richten

| work = Faz.net

| publisher = Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung

| language = de

| access-date =December 6, 2010

| date = September 27, 2010

| url = https://www.faz.net/s/RubCF3AEB154CE64960822FA5429A182360/Doc~E7A20980B9C0D46E99A9F60BC09506343~ATpl~Ecommon~Scontent.html

| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20101126184904/https://www.faz.net/s/RubCF3AEB154CE64960822FA5429A182360/Doc~E7A20980B9C0D46E99A9F60BC09506343~ATpl~Ecommon~Scontent.html| archive-date= November 26, 2010 | url-status= live}}{{cite web|title=amazon.com erlaubt Verkauf von freien Wikipedia Artikeln |work=Preisgenau.de IT-News für Verbraucher |access-date=April 9, 2010 |date=April 6, 2010 |url=http://news.preisgenau.de/amazoncom-erlaubt-verkauf-von-freien-wikipedia-artikeln-6466.html |language=de |archive-url=https://www.webcitation.org/5ppnx69m5?url=http://news.preisgenau.de/amazoncom-erlaubt-verkauf-von-freien-wikipedia-artikeln-6466.html |archive-date=May 19, 2010 |url-status=live |df=mdy }} This webpage refers to: {{cite web|last=Haines |first=Eric |author-link=Eric Haines |title=Best Book Title Ever, Period |work=Realtimerendering.com |access-date=May 17, 2010 |date=March 30, 2010 |url=http://www.realtimerendering.com/blog/best-book-title-ever-period/ |archive-url=https://www.webcitation.org/5ppv2UEqI?url=http://www.realtimerendering.com/blog/best-book-title-ever-period/ |archive-date=May 19, 2010 |url-status=live |df=mdy }}{{cite web

|last=Rückert

|first=Hermann

|title=Copy and Paste als Geschäftsmodell: Amazon bietet die Plattform für tausende absurde Buchtitel

|trans-title=Copy and paste as business model: Amazon offers its platform to thousands of absurd book titles

|language=de

|work=Telepolis knews

|publisher=Heise online

|location=Hannover

|access-date=December 7, 2010

|date=September 20, 2010

|url=http://www.heise.de/tp/blogs/6/148413

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100923130602/http://www.heise.de/tp/blogs/6/148413

|archive-date=September 23, 2010

|url-status=dead

|df=mdy

}}{{cite web

|title=Wikipedia-Bücher: Geschäft mit freien Inhalten – Verschiedene Anbieter versuchen, mit Benutzer-generierten Inhalten von Wikipedia auf Amazon das große Geld zu machen

|language=de

|work=tt.com

|publisher=Tiroler Tageszeitung

|location=Innsbruck

|access-date=December 14, 2010

|date=September 21, 2010

|url=http://portal.tt.com/csp/cms/sites/tt/%C3%9Cberblick/Freizeit%C3%BCberblick/Multimedia/1307149-6/wikipedia-b%C3%BCcher-gesch%C3%A4ft-mit-freien-inhalten.csp

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717110718/http://portal.tt.com/csp/cms/sites/tt/%C3%9Cberblick/Freizeit%C3%BCberblick/Multimedia/1307149-6/wikipedia-b%C3%BCcher-gesch%C3%A4ft-mit-freien-inhalten.csp

|archive-date=July 17, 2011

|url-status=dead

|df=mdy

}} The books are produced by the American company Books LLC and by three Mauritian subsidiaries of the German publisher VDM: Alphascript Publishing, Betascript Publishing and Fastbook Publishing. Amazon did not acknowledge the issue, including requests by some customers to remove the titles from its catalog. The collaboration between amazon.com and VDM began in 2007.{{cite web |url=http://www.offenes-presseportal.de/medien_kommunikation/vdm_verlag_erweitert_sein_angebot_kostenloser_buchveroeffentlichungen_mit_isbn_19773.htm |title=VDM Verlag erweitert sein Angebot kostenloser Buchveröffentlichungen mit ISBN |date=June 8, 2007 |publisher=Offenes-Presseportal.de |location=Germany |language=de |access-date=February 27, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719070409/http://www.offenes-presseportal.de/medien_kommunikation/vdm_verlag_erweitert_sein_angebot_kostenloser_buchveroeffentlichungen_mit_isbn_19773.htm |archive-date=July 19, 2011 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }}

Amazon removed a book in 2014, described by critics as a "guide to rape", which claimed to reveal how women could be pressured into accepting sexual advances.{{cite news|first=Sara|last=Nelson|work=Huffington Post|date=2014-04-02|title=Last Minute Resistance (LMR) Vincent Vinturi Is Accused Of Being 'Rape Apologist'|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/01/31/last-minute-resistance-lmr-vincent-vinturis-accused-rape-apologist-warning-graphic-material_n_4702356.html|access-date=November 16, 2020|archive-date=November 22, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211122163229/https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/01/31/last-minute-resistance-lmr-vincent-vinturis-accused-rape-apologist-warning-graphic-material_n_4702356.html|url-status=live}}{{cite news |first=Ewan |last=Palmer |publisher=IB Times |date=2014-01-31 |title=LMR Exposed: Amazon Drops 'Guide How to Rape' Book |url=https://www.ibtimes.co.uk/lmr-exposed-amazon-drops-guide-how-rape-book-1434697 |access-date=November 16, 2020 |archive-date=August 12, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200812174558/https://www.ibtimes.co.uk/lmr-exposed-amazon-drops-guide-how-rape-book-1434697 |url-status=live }} The company later removed a book by anti-Muslim activist Tommy Robinson.{{cite news |date=2019-03-07 |title=Amazon bans book co-written by Tommy Robinson from their website |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/amazon-ban-tommy-robinson-website-koran-a8812111.html. |access-date=November 16, 2020 |archive-date=March 14, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220314221518/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/amazon-ban-tommy-robinson-website-koran-a8812111.html |url-status=live }}

Its 2015 listing of A MAD World Order, a self-published e-book by Canadian serial killer and rapist Paul Bernardo (who apparently accessed Amazon's self-publishing services through a prison computer), triggered a backlash.{{cite web |last1=Miller |first1=Adam |title=Paul Bernardo e-book rises to the top of Amazon Canada's best seller list |url=https://globalnews.ca/news/2337543/paul-bernardo-e-book-rises-to-the-top-of-amazon-canadas-best-seller-list/ |website=globalnews.ca |publisher=Global News |access-date=5 August 2022}} Amazon quietly removed the e-book from all its platforms; no print version was ever published, although a metadata record still exists on Goodreads.{{cite web |last1=Canadian Press |first1=The |title=Paul Bernardo's e-book disappears from Amazon |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/paul-bernardo-book-disappears-1.3319838 |website=www.cbc.ca |publisher=CBC News |access-date=5 August 2022}}{{cite news |last1=Canadian Press |first1=The |title=Amazon quietly pulls Paul Bernardo's ebook 'A Mad World Order' from its site |url=https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/amazon-quietly-pulls-paul-bernardos-ebook-a-mad-world-order-from-its-site |newspaper=National Post |date=November 16, 2015 |access-date=5 August 2022}}

The company temporarily banned a book promoting non-mainstream claims about the COVID-19 pandemic and books which promoted COVID-19 cures not sanctioned by US government agencies.{{Cite news|last=Trachtenberg|first=Jeffrey A.|date=2020-06-05|title=Covid-19 Skepticism Puts Author Alex Berenson at Center of Amazon Controversy|language=en-US|work=The Wall Street Journal|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/covid-19-skepticism-puts-alex-berenson-at-center-of-amazon-controversy-11591391956|access-date=2021-02-03|issn=0099-9660|archive-date=February 7, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210207234321/https://www.wsj.com/articles/covid-19-skepticism-puts-alex-berenson-at-center-of-amazon-controversy-11591391956|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|date=2020|title=Amazon reverses ban on book critical of coronavirus lockdown after decision is blasted by many, including Elon Musk|newspaper=The Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/06/04/amazon-coronavirus-book-ban/|archive-date=January 7, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210107053534/https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/06/04/amazon-coronavirus-book-ban/|url-status=live}} In 2021, Amazon removed listings for a 2018 book by conservative philosopher Ryan T. Anderson because it criticized legal protections for transgender people.{{cite web|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/amazon-wont-sell-books-framing-lgbtq-identities-as-mental-illnesses-11615511380?mod=rsswn|title=Amazon won't sell books framing LGBTQ+ identities as mental illnesses|first=Jeffrey|last=Trachtenberg|newspaper=The Wall Street Journal|date=2021-03-11|access-date=2021-03-30|archive-date=March 16, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210316160223/https://www.wsj.com/articles/amazon-wont-sell-books-framing-lgbtq-identities-as-mental-illnesses-11615511380?mod=rsswn|url-status=live}}{{cite web

|url=https://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/542888-amazon-removing-books-that-frame-lgbtq-issues-as-mental-illness/

|title=Amazon removing books that frame LGBTQ issues as mental illness

|first=Morgan

|last=Gstalter

|work=The Hill

|date=March 12, 2021

|access-date=March 30, 2021

|archive-date=March 13, 2021

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210313225404/https://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/542888-amazon-removing-books-that-frame-lgbtq-issues-as-mental-illness

|url-status=live

}}

{{see also|Amazon Kindle#Criticism}}

The New York Times reported in July 2009 that amazon.com had deleted all customer copies of books published in violation of US copyright laws by MobileReference,{{cite news| url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/18/technology/companies/18amazon.html | work=The New York Times | title=Amazon Erases Orwell Books From Kindle | first=Brad | last=Stone | date=July 18, 2009 | access-date=March 27, 2010| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100410001949/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/18/technology/companies/18amazon.html| archive-date= April 10, 2010 | url-status= live}} including Nineteen Eighty-Four and Animal Farm, from users' Kindles. The action was taken without prior notification or permission from individual users. Customers received a refund of the purchase price and, later, an offer of an Amazon gift certificate or a check for $30. The e-books were initially published by MobileReference on Mobipocket for sale in Australia only, because the works had become public domain in that country. When the e-books were automatically uploaded to Amazon by MobiPocket, however, the territorial restriction was not honored and the book was sold in countries (such as the United States) where the copyright term had not expired.

Author Selena Kitt was a victim of Amazon content removal in December 2010; some of her fiction described incest. Amazon said, "Due to a technical issue, for a short window of time three books were temporarily unavailable for re-download by customers who had previously purchased them. When this was brought to our attention, we fixed the problem ..." in an attempt to defuse user complaints about the deletions.[https://arstechnica.com/media/news/2010/12/amazons-latest-kindle-deletion-erotic-incest-themed-fiction.ars Amazon's latest Kindle deletion: erotic, incest-themed fiction] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120503234712/http://arstechnica.com/media/news/2010/12/amazons-latest-kindle-deletion-erotic-incest-themed-fiction.ars |date=May 3, 2012 }}, Jacqui Cheng, Ars Technica, December 15, 2010

Late in 2013, the online blog The Kernel published several articles about "an epidemic of filth" on Amazon and other e-book storefronts. Amazon then blocked books dealing with incest, bestiality, child pornography, virginity, monsters, and young sex.[http://daliadaudelin.com/blog/2013/10/16/throwing-the-baby-out-with-the-bathwater-censorship-in-self-publishing-is-on-the-rise Throwing the Baby Out With The Bathwater: Censorship in Self Publishing is On the Rise] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140102191903/http://daliadaudelin.com/blog/2013/10/16/throwing-the-baby-out-with-the-bathwater-censorship-in-self-publishing-is-on-the-rise |date=January 2, 2014 }}, Dalia Daudelin, October 16, 2013[https://articles.latimes.com/2013/oct/17/entertainment/la-et-jc-self-published-erotica-writers-strike-back-20131017 Self-published erotica writers strike back] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180209203752/http://articles.latimes.com/2013/oct/17/entertainment/la-et-jc-self-published-erotica-writers-strike-back-20131017 |date=February 9, 2018 }}, Hector Tobar, Los Angeles Times, October 17, 2013

In April 2009, it was reported that some lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, feminist, and politically-liberal books were excluded from Amazon's sales rankings.{{cite news | first=Andrea | last=James | title=Amazon under fire for perceived anti-gay policy | date=April 13, 2009 | work=Seattle Post-Intelligencer | url =http://blog.seattlepi.com/amazon/archives/166259.asp | access-date =April 13, 2009 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090413055449/http://blog.seattlepi.com/amazon/archives/166259.asp| archive-date= April 13, 2009 | url-status= live}} Books and other media were flagged as "adult content", including children's books, self-help books, non-fiction, and non-explicit fiction. As a result, works by E. M. Forster, Gore Vidal, Jeanette Winterson and D. H. Lawrence were un-ranked.Bobby Johnson and Helen Pidd [https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2009/apr/13/amazon-gay-writers "'Gay writing' falls foul of Amazon sales ranking system"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170208023521/https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2009/apr/13/amazon-gay-writers |date=February 8, 2017 }}, The Guardian, April 13, 2009 The change was first reported on the blog of author Mark R. Probst, who posted an e-mail from Amazon describing a policy of de-ranking "adult" material.

Amazon later said that it had no policy of de-ranking lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender material, blaming the change first on a "glitch"{{cite news | first=Steven | last=Musil | title=Amazon criticized for de-ranking 'adult' books | date=April 13, 2009 | publisher=CNET News | url =http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-10217715-93.html | access-date =April 13, 2009 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090414051801/http://news.cnet.com//8301-1023_3-10217715-93.html| archive-date= April 14, 2009 | url-status= live}} and then on "an embarrassing and ham-fisted cataloging error" affecting 57,310 books;{{cite news | first=Amy | last=Martinez | title=amazon.com says it has fixed error that removed gay, lesbian sales rankings | date=April 13, 2009 | work=Seattle Times| url =http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2009033443_webamazon14.html | access-date =April 13, 2009 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090415120159/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/businesstechnology/2009033443_webamazon14.html| archive-date= April 15, 2009 | url-status= live}} a hacker claimed responsibility for the metadata loss.{{cite news |title=Hacker: I Was Behind Amazon Gay Book Delisting |work=Fox News |url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/2009/04/14/hacker-was-behind-amazon-gay-book-delisting.html |date=April 14, 2009 |access-date=May 29, 2016 |archive-date=June 30, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160630065606/http://www.foxnews.com/story/2009/04/14/hacker-was-behind-amazon-gay-book-delisting.html |url-status=live }}

In June 2022, Amazon complied with a UAE government demand to restrict LGBTQ products and search results in the Emirates. Searches with keywords such as "pride", "lgbt", "transgender flag" and "lgbt iphone cases" yielded "no results" in the country. Books which included Nagata Kabi's My Lesbian Experience With Loneliness, Roxane Gay's Bad Feminist and Maia Kobabe's Gender Queer: A Memoir were removed. Amazon said that it had to "comply with the local laws and regulations of the countries in which we operate", but was committed to protect the rights of LGBTQ people.{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/29/business/amazon-lgbtq-uae-emirates.html|title=Amazon Restricts L.G.B.T.Q. Products in United Arab Emirates|access-date=29 June 2022|website=The New York Times|date=June 29, 2022 |last1=Weise |first1=Karen }}{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/jun/30/amazon-bows-to-uae-pressure-to-restrict-lgbt-search-results|title=United Arab Emirates: Amazon agrees to remove LGBT products from its search results|access-date=30 June 2022|website=The Guardian|date=June 30, 2022 }}

Amazon has sold a number of items, primarily self-published books, with misinformation and pseudoscience about autism spectrum disorder and Asperger's syndrome.{{cite news |last1=Hsu |first1=Tiffany |title=Amazon Pulls 2 Books That Promote Unscientific Autism 'Cures' |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/13/technology/amazon-autism-books.html |website=The New York Times |date=March 13, 2019 |access-date=8 August 2022}}{{cite web |last1=Lieu |first1=Johnny |title=Amazon removes books promoting misinformation on autism cures |url=https://mashable.com/article/amazon-books-health-misinformation |website=mashable.com |date=March 13, 2019 |publisher=Mashable |access-date=8 August 2022}} According to Wired journalist Matt Reynolds, "[T]o test the system, we uploaded a fake Kindle book titled How To Cure Autism: A guide to using chlorine dioxide to cure autism. The listing was approved within two hours. When creating the book, Amazon's Kindle publishing service suggested a stock cover image that made it appear as though the book had been approved by the FDA." Reynolds wrote that a number of other real Kindle titles promoting bleach cures and other misinformation were already available on Amazon.{{cite magazine |last1=Reynolds |first1=Matt |title=Amazon sells 'autism cure' books that suggest children drink toxic, bleach-like substances |url=https://www.wired.co.uk/article/amazon-autism-fake-cure-books |magazine=Wired UK |access-date=26 August 2021}}

Amazon later pulled self-published titles promoting autism-related anti-vaccination theories from its sales platforms, which Lindsey Bever of The Washington Post said bordered on censorship of legal reading material.{{cite news |last1=Bever |first1=Lindsey |title=Censorship or social responsibility? Amazon removes some books peddling vaccine misinformation. |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2019/03/18/censorship-or-social-responsibility-amazon-removes-some-books-peddling-vaccine-misinformation/ |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=8 August 2022}} News outlets, including NBC and CBS, reported that Amazon was removing the books.{{cite web |last1=Zadrozny |first1=Brandy |author-link1=Brandy Zadrozny |title=Amazon removes books promoting autism cures and vaccine misinformation |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/internet/amazon-removes-books-promoting-autism-cures-vaccine-misinformation-n982576 |website=www.nbcnews.com |date=March 13, 2019 |publisher=NBC News |access-date=8 August 2022}}{{cite web |last1=O'Kane |first1=Caitlin |title=Amazon removes books promoting autism "cures" and vaccine misinformation |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/amazon-removes-books-promoting-autism-cures-and-vaccine-misinformation/ |date=March 13, 2019 |work=CBS News |access-date=8 August 2022}}{{cite web |last1=Feiner |first1=Lauren |title=Amazon removes books touting debunked autism 'cures,' as criticism of misinformation mounts |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2019/03/13/amazon-removes-books-touting-debunked-autism-cures.html |website=www.cnbc.com |date=March 13, 2019 |publisher=CNBC |access-date=8 August 2022}} Science Alert later reported that Amazon was still selling autism-misinformation books.{{cite web |last1=Cassella |first1=Carly |title=Amazon Is Still Selling Books Recommending Dangerous And Fake 'Cures' For Autism |url=https://www.sciencealert.com/amazon-removed-2-books-recommending-dangerous-and-fake-cures-for-autism |website=www.sciencealert.com |date=March 15, 2019 |publisher=Science Alert |access-date=8 August 2022}} Misinformation about COVID-19 began appearing on Amazon in 2021, and Senator Elizabeth Warren questioned Amazon CEO Andy Jassy about the company's search algorithms promoting misinformation.{{cite web |last1=Palmer |first1=Annie |title=Sen. Elizabeth Warren asks Amazon CEO Andy Jassy to explain why the company's algorithms recommend Covid misinformation |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/08/elizabeth-warren-asks-amazon-ceo-to-crack-down-on-covid-misinformation.html |website=www.cnbc.com |date=September 8, 2021 |publisher=CNBC |access-date=8 August 2022}}

Anti-vaccination and non-evidence-based cancer "cures" have appeared in Amazon books and videos, possibly due to positive reviews posted by supporters of untested methods or gaming of algorithms by truthers.{{cite web |last=Naughton |first=John |date=August 8, 2020 |title=How Amazon puts misinformation at the top of your reading list |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/aug/08/amazon-algorithm-curated-misinformation-books-data |access-date=August 11, 2020 |website=The Guardian}}{{cite magazine |date=May 3, 2019 |title=How Amazon's Algorithms Curated a Dystopian Bookstore |url=https://www.wired.com/story/amazon-and-the-spread-of-health-misinformation/ |magazine=Wired |access-date=May 11, 2020}}{{Cite web |last=Robinson |first=Rebekah |date=2022-09-23 |title=Medical misinformation rife in Amazon bestsellers about public health |url=https://www.codastory.com/newsletters/amazon-books-misinformation/ |access-date=2022-09-28 |website=Coda Media |language=en-US}} Wired found that Amazon Prime Video contained "pseudoscientific documentaries laden with conspiracy theories and pointing viewers towards unproven treatments".{{cite magazine |date=June 3, 2019 |title=Amazon Prime Video is full of dodgy documentaries pushing dangerous cancer 'cures' |url=https://www.wired.co.uk/article/amazon-prime-video-cancer-cure-documentaries |magazine=Wired |access-date=August 11, 2020}}

U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff expressed concern that Amazon was "recommending products and content that discourage parents from vaccinating their children", and the company removed five anti-vaccination documentaries.{{cite web |date=March 1, 2019 |title=House Rep. Schiff calls Amazon's anti-vaccination content 'direct threat to public health' in letter to Bezos |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2019/03/01/schiff-calls-amazons-anti-vaccine-content-threat-to-public-health.html |access-date=August 11, 2020 |website=CNBC}} Amazon also removed 12 books which claimed that bleach could cure conditions which included malaria and childhood autism. This followed an NBC News report about parents who used bleach in an attempt to reverse their children's autism.{{cite web |last=Zadrozny |first=Brandy |date=May 28, 2019 |title=Amazon removes books promoting dangerous bleach 'cures' for autism and other conditions |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/internet/amazon-removes-books-promoting-dangerous-bleach-cures-autism-other-illnesses-n1010861 |access-date=August 11, 2020 |website=NBC News |language=en-US}}

Amazon Web Services, a cloud-computing branch of the company, is used by a large number of major Western corporations and other services such as healthcare, media, food delivery and government. A 2021 series of outages caused the temporary shutdown of most of these platforms, which included Amazon subsidiaries, Netflix, Tinder, McDonald's, Sweetgreen, Disney+ and Roku. Some colleges and universities using AWS had to postpone scheduled tests and assignment due dates because of the outages. Amazon delivery drivers could not properly deliver packages, and Amazon tech products such as its Ring doorbell and Alexa stopped working. The host AWS servers are unknown by the general public, so hacking was not suspected. Journalists Aaron Gregg and Drew Harwell criticized the outages: "[T]he disruptions affect millions of people on an increasingly interconnected Web: we are putting more eggs into fewer and fewer baskets. More eggs get broken that way." The cause of the outages was never explained; to Insider, Amazon called them "an AWS service event that affected Amazon Operations and other customers".{{cite news |last1=Gregg |first1=Aaron |last2=Harwell |first2=Drew |title=Amazon Web Services' third outage in a month exposes a weak point in the Internet's backbone |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/12/22/amazon-web-services-experiences-another-big-outage/ |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=12 February 2023}}{{cite web |last1=Gilbert |first1=Ben |title=Why everything from Netflix to Nintendo goes offline when Amazon's servers have issues |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/why-does-everything-break-when-amazon-servers-go-down-2021-12 |website=www.businessinsider.com |publisher=Insider |access-date=12 February 2023}}{{cite web |last1=Palmer |first1=Annie |title=Dead Roombas, stranded packages and delayed exams: How the AWS outage wreaked havoc across the U.S. |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2021/12/09/how-the-aws-outage-wreaked-havoc-across-the-us.html |website=www.cnbc.com |date=December 9, 2021 |publisher=CNBC |access-date=12 February 2023}}

Conservative political commentator Matt Walsh has published books considered transphobic {{Citation needed|date=July 2024}}, including Johnny the Walrus (a children's allegory about a boy whose parents surgically transition him into a walrus after catching him pretending to be one). Some of the books became bestsellers on Amazon, upsetting the company's employees. Amazon held a discussion for offended employees; others held a "die-in" protest, saying that media transphobia contributed to hate speech, suicide by trans youth, and misconceptions about trans people.{{cite web |last1=Goins-Phillips |first1=Tré |title=Amazon Employees Stage 'Die-In' During Corporate 'Pride' Event Over Matt Walsh's Book Sales |url=https://www1.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2022/june/amazon-employees-stage-lsquo-die-in-rsquo-during-corporate-lsquo-pride-rsquo-event-over-matt-walsh-rsquo-s-book-sales |website=www1.cbn.com |date=June 3, 2022 |publisher=CBN News |access-date=8 August 2022}}{{cite web |last1=Johnston |first1=Jeff |title='Johnny the Walrus' Loved by Critics – But Makes Some Amazon Employees and Customers Really Sad |url=https://dailycitizen.focusonthefamily.com/johnny-the-walrus-loved-by-critics-but-makes-some-amazon-employees-and-customers-really-sad/ |website=dailycitizen.focusonthefamily.com |date=April 28, 2022 |publisher=Daily Citizen |access-date=8 August 2022}}{{cite web |last1=Paul |first1=Andrew |title=Workers stage 'die-in' at Amazon Pride to protest transphobic book sales |url=https://www.inputmag.com/culture/amazon-pride-die-in-protest-trans-book-sales |website=www.inputmag.com |date=June 2, 2022 |publisher=Input Mag |access-date=8 August 2022}} Walsh was amused by the reaction of the Amazon employees, noting that Johnny the Walrus had been listed on Amazon as the company's bestselling LGBT book. The book was later moved to a political category, and some Amazon employees said that books promoting transphobia should be banned from the company's platforms.{{cite news |last1=Soper |first1=Spencer |last2=Ceron |first2=Ella |title=Amazon Staff Demand Ban of Books Calling Transgender People Mentally Ill |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-06-25/amazon-employees-want-amazon-to-ban-books-they-deem-anti-transgender |newspaper=Bloomberg.com |date=June 25, 2022 |publisher=Bloomberg |access-date=8 August 2022}}{{cite web |last1=Paterson |first1=Alex |title=Amazon's bestselling LGBTQ book is a hateful picture book comparing being trans to pretending to be a walrus |url=https://www.mediamatters.org/daily-wire/amazons-bestselling-lgbtq-book-hateful-picture-book-comparing-being-trans-pretending-be |website=www.mediamatters.org |date=December 8, 2021 |publisher=Media Matters |access-date=8 August 2022}}{{cite web |last1=Wakefield |first1=Lily |title=Right-wing pundit gloats as Amazon lists hateful, transphobic book as 'LGBT+ best seller' |url=https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2021/12/09/amazon-trans-johnny-walrus-matt-walsh-lgbt/ |website=www.pinknews.co.uk |date=December 9, 2021 |publisher=Pink News |access-date=8 August 2022}}

File:%22Make_Amazon_Pay!%22_Demonstration_in_Berlin_15.jpg

Amazon has been criticized for the quality of its working environment and treatment of its workforce. A group known as The FACE (Former And Current Employees) of Amazon has used social media to criticize the company and accuse it of providing poor working conditions.{{Cite web|url=https://www.fastcompany.com/90329525/amazon-peccy|title=Meet Peccy, the bizarre, beloved mascot you didn't know Amazon had|last=McCracken|first=Harry|date=2019-04-12|website=Fast Company|language=en-US|access-date=2019-04-18|archive-date=November 25, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201125045615/https://www.fastcompany.com/90329525/amazon-peccy|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.inc.com/walter-chen/four-lessons-in-building-a-culture-that-doesnt-suck-from-ex-amazon-employees.html|title=How Not To Create A Toxic Culture, Courtesy Of Ex-Amazon Employees|last=Chen|first=Walter|date=2016-08-26|website=Inc.com|access-date=2019-04-18|archive-date=July 29, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200729010418/https://www.inc.com/walter-chen/four-lessons-in-building-a-culture-that-doesnt-suck-from-ex-amazon-employees.html|url-status=live}}

Amazon has been accused of mistakenly firing employees on medical leave as no-shows, not fixing an inaccuracy in its payroll systems which resulted in some of its blue- and white-collar employees being underpaid for months, and violating labor law by denying unpaid leave.{{cite news |title=Inside Amazon's Worst Human Resources Problem |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/24/technology/amazon-employee-leave-errors.html |date= October 24, 2021|archive-url=https://archive.today/20211025032625/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/24/technology/amazon-employee-leave-errors.html |archive-date=25 October 2021 |work=The New York Times |last1=Kantor |first1=Jodi |last2=Weise |first2=Karen |last3=Ashford |first3=Grace }}

{{main|Amazon worker organization}}

File:Organize Amazon Workers contingent in Peoplehood Parade, Philadelphia, PA-002.jpg]]

Amazon has opposed efforts by trade unions to organize in the United States and the United Kingdom.

In 2001, 850 employees in Seattle were laid off by Amazon after a unionization drive. The Washington Alliance of Technology Workers (WashTech) accused the company of violating labor law, saying that Amazon managers subjected it to intimidation and propaganda. Amazon denied any link between the unionization effort and the layoffs.{{cite web|url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20010203/ai_n14364804|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080410033727/http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20010203/ai_n14364804 |url-status=dead|archive-date=April 10, 2008|title=Short shrift for unions in Amazon's silicon jungle |agency = Independent, The (London)|website= BNET.com|date=April 10, 2008|first = Andrew|last = Gumbel}} That year, Amazon.co.uk hired The Burke Group (a US management consultant) to help in defeating a campaign by the Graphical, Paper and Media Union (GPMU, now part of Unite the Union) to achieve recognition at the Milton Keynes distribution depot. It was alleged that the company victimized or sacked four union members during the 2001 recognition drive and held a series of captive meetings with employees.{{cite news|first1=Jon|last1=Henley|first2=Ed|last2=Pilkington|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2008/feb/26/tradeunions.workandcareers|title=Divide and rule|newspaper=Guardian|date=February 26, 2008|access-date=August 29, 2010|location=London|archive-date=November 9, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109021246/https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2008/feb/26/tradeunions.workandcareers|url-status=live}}

In July 2015, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers union filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against Amazon, alleging that the company engaged in unfair labor practices by surveilling, threatening, and “informing employees that it would be futile to vote for union representation” during a union drive in 2014 and 2015 at an Amazon warehouse in Chester, Virginia.{{Cite news |last=Streitfeld |first=David |date=2021-03-16 |title=How Amazon Crushes Unions |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/16/technology/amazon-unions-virginia.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240217161253/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/16/technology/amazon-unions-virginia.html |archive-date=February 17, 2024 |access-date=2024-05-21 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 }} In 2016, Amazon settled the complaint with the NLRB, denying any wrongdoing but agreeing to post a list at the warehouse of 22 forms of union-busting behavior that the company promised not to engage in, including threatening workers with the loss of a job or other reprisals if they were union supporters, interrogating workers about the union, or engaging in surveillance of workers while they participated in union activities.

In 2018, Amazon distributed a 45-minute union-busting training video to managers at Whole Foods, which it had acquired in 2017, which said, "We are not anti-union, but we are not neutral either. We do not believe unions are in the best interest of our customers or shareholders or most importantly, our associates." The video encouraged the reporting of "warning signs" of worker organization which included workers using terms such as "living wage", employees "suddenly hanging out together," and workers showing "unusual interest in policies, benefits, employee lists, or other company information."{{Cite web |last=Ellis |first=Avery |date=2018-09-26 |title=Amazon's Aggressive Anti-Union Tactics Revealed in Leaked 45-Minute Video |url=https://gizmodo.com/amazons-aggressive-anti-union-tactics-revealed-in-leake-1829305201 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240427223022/https://gizmodo.com/amazons-aggressive-anti-union-tactics-revealed-in-leake-1829305201 |archive-date=2024-04-27 |access-date=2024-05-08 |website=Gizmodo |language=en}}{{cite web|url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2020/04/02/amazon_coronavirus_firing/|title=Amazon says it fired a guy for breaking pandemic rules. Same guy who organized a staff protest over a lack of coronavirus protection|first=Thomas|last=Claburn|publisher=The Register|date=2020-04-02|access-date=2020-04-02|archive-date=October 31, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201031231943/https://www.theregister.com/2020/04/02/amazon_coronavirus_firing/|url-status=live}}

In early 2020, Amazon internal documents were leaked which said that Whole Foods was using a heat map to track which of its 510 stores had the highest levels of pro-union sentiment. Factors including racial diversity, proximity to other unions, poverty levels in the surrounding community, and calls to the NLRB were named as contributors to "unionization risk."{{cite web|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/whole-foods-tracks-unionization-risk-with-heat-map-2020-1?r=US&IR=T|title=Amazon-owned Whole Foods is quietly tracking its employees with a heat map tool that ranks which stores are most at risk of unionizing|first=Hayley|last=Peterson|work=Business Insider|date=2020-04-20|access-date=2020-04-21|archive-date=December 16, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201216204639/https://www.businessinsider.com/whole-foods-tracks-unionization-risk-with-heat-map-2020-1?r=US&IR=T|url-status=live}} Data collected on the heat map suggested that stores with low racial and ethnic diversity, especially those in poor communities, were more likely to unionize. Amazon had a job listing for an intelligence analyst to identify and tackle threats to Amazon, including unions.{{cite news|url=https://www.zdnet.com/article/amazon-is-hiring-intelligence-analysts-to-watch-organized-labor-hostile-political-leaders-more/|title=Amazon is hiring intelligence analysts to watch organized labor, hostile political leaders, more|first=Catalin|last=Cimpanu|publisher=ZD Net|date=2020-09-01|access-date=November 16, 2020|archive-date=November 24, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211124155436/https://www.zdnet.com/article/amazon-is-hiring-intelligence-analysts-to-watch-organized-labor-hostile-political-leaders-more/|url-status=live}}{{cite news |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2020/09/01/amazon-seeks-intelligence-analyst-to-track-labor-organizing-threats.html |title=Amazon deletes job listings for analysts to track 'labor organizing threats' following public outcry |first=Annie |last=Palmer |date=2020-09-01 |publisher=CNBC |access-date=November 16, 2020 |archive-date=November 24, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211124155436/https://www.cnbc.com/2020/09/01/amazon-seeks-intelligence-analyst-to-track-labor-organizing-threats.html |url-status=live }}

On 4 December 2020, the NLRB found that Amazon had illegally fired two employees in retaliation for efforts to organize workers.{{cite news |last1=Weise |first1=Karen |date=April 5, 2021 |title=Amazon Illegally Fired Activist Workers, Labor Board Finds |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/05/technology/amazon-nlrb-activist-workers.html |url-access=limited |access-date=April 5, 2021 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20211228/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/05/technology/amazon-nlrb-activist-workers.html |archive-date=2021-12-28}}{{cbignore}}

In April 2021, after most workers in Bessemer, Alabama voted against joining the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, the union asked for a hearing with the NLRB to determine whether the company created "an atmosphere of confusion, coercion and/or fear of reprisals" before the union vote.{{cite news |last1=Selyukh |first1=Alina |date=April 9, 2021 |title=It's A No: Amazon Warehouse Workers Vote Against Unionizing In Historic Election |work=National Public Radio |url=https://www.npr.org/2021/04/09/982139494/its-a-no-amazon-warehouse-workers-vote-against-unionizing-in-historic-election |access-date=April 12, 2021}} The vote had been met with "anti-union" signs and mandatory "union education meetings", according to Amazon employee Jennifer Bates.{{cite web|url=https://www.politico.com/news/2021/03/26/amazon-union-battle-biden-labor-478229|title='Bellwether' for unions: Amazon battle could transform Biden's labor revival|first=Rebecca|last=Rainey|work=Politico|date=2021-03-26|access-date=2021-03-30|archive-date=March 30, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210330143815/https://www.politico.com/news/2021/03/26/amazon-union-battle-biden-labor-478229|url-status=live}} During the vote, President Joe Biden made a speech acknowledging the organizing workers in Alabama and called for "no anti-union propaganda".{{cite web|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2021/03/25/amazon-blasts-bernie-sanders-as-he-heads-to-alabama-to-support-union-drive.html|title=Amazon blasts Bernie Sanders as he heads to Alabama to support union drive|first=Annie|last=Palmer|publisher=NBC News|date=2021-03-25|access-date=2021-03-30|archive-date=March 14, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220314221512/https://www.cnbc.com/2021/03/25/amazon-blasts-bernie-sanders-as-he-heads-to-alabama-to-support-union-drive.html|url-status=live}} This was followed by an increase in activity by public-relations staff on Twitter, reportedly at the direction of Jeff Bezos. The tone of some posts led one Amazon engineer to initially suspect that the accounts had been hacked.{{cite web|url=https://www.vox.com/recode/2021/3/28/22354604/amazon-twitter-bernie-sanders-jeff-bezos-union-alabama-elizabeth-warren|title=Amazon started a Twitter war because Jeff Bezos was pissed|first=Jason|last=Del Rey|publisher=Recode|date=2021-03-28|access-date=2021-03-28|archive-date=March 30, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210330203541/https://www.vox.com/recode/2021/3/28/22354604/amazon-twitter-bernie-sanders-jeff-bezos-union-alabama-elizabeth-warren|url-status=live}} Some of the criticism of unions came from generic, recently-created accounts rather than known Amazon personalities. One account, which was quickly banned, attempted to use the likeness of YouTuber Tyler Toney from Dude Perfect.{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-56581266|title='Fake' Amazon workers defend company on Twitter|publisher=BBC|date=2021-03-30|access-date=2021-03-30|archive-date=November 25, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211125155042/https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-56581266|url-status=live}}

In April 2021, The Intercept reported on a planned internal Amazon messaging app which would ban terms such as "union", "living wage", "freedom", "pay raise" or "restrooms".{{Cite web |author=Ken Klippenstein |date=April 3, 2022 |title=LEAKED: NEW AMAZON WORKER CHAT APP WOULD BAN WORDS LIKE "UNION," "RESTROOMS," "PAY RAISE," AND "PLANTATION" |url=https://theintercept.com/2022/04/04/amazon-union-living-wage-restrooms-chat-app/ |access-date=April 7, 2022 |work=The Intercept}}{{Cite web |author=Dani Anguiano |date=April 6, 2022 |title=Amazon to ban 'union' and other words from staff chat app – report |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/apr/05/amazon-banned-words-list-union-internal-app |access-date=April 7, 2022 |work=The Guardian}}

In April 2022, Amazon workers in Staten Island voted to form Amazon Labor Union, the company's first legally-recognized union.{{Cite web |last=O'Brien |first=Sara Ashley |date=April 2022 |title=Amazon workers at New York warehouse vote to form company's first US union |url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/04/01/tech/amazon-union-election-staten-island/index.html |access-date=2022-04-01 |website=CNN}}{{Cite news |date=2022-04-01 |title=Amazon beaten by workers in fight for unionisation in New York |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-60944677 |access-date=2022-04-01}}{{Cite web |last=Hogan |first=Gwynne |date=2022-04-01 |title=Staten Island workers prevail in vote for first ever Amazon union |url=https://gothamist.com/ |access-date=2022-04-01 |website=Gothamist |language=en}} In August of that year, workers in Albany, New York filed a petition for an election in an attempt to become the fourth unionized warehouse at the time.{{Cite news |title=Amazon workers in Albany, N.Y., file for a union election |language=en-US |newspaper=Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/08/16/amazon-albany-union-election/ |access-date=2022-08-26 |issn=0190-8286}}

In May 2024, workers at an Amazon warehouse in St. Peters, Missouri filed an unfair labor practice charge against the company with the NLRB, accusing the company of using "intrusive algorithms" as part of a surveillance program to deter union organizing at the warehouse.{{Cite news |last=Sainato |first=Michael |date=2024-05-21 |title='You feel like you're in prison': workers claim Amazon's surveillance violates labor law |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/may/21/amazon-surveillance-lawsuit-union |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240521105501/https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/may/21/amazon-surveillance-lawsuit-union |archive-date=May 21, 2024 |access-date=2024-05-21 |work=The Guardian |issn=0261-3077 }}

In June 2024, a group of 104 delivery drivers at Amazon's DIL7 facility in Skokie, Illinois, employed by contractor Four Star Express Delivery as part of Amazon's Delivery Service Partner subcontractor program, and organized with the Teamsters Local 704 union, filed unfair labor practice charges with the NLRB against both Amazon and Four Star Express as a single or joint employer, alleging that their employer terminated employees for organizing a union, surveilled workers attempting to organize, implemented a hiring freeze in response to unionization efforts, suppressed pro-union speech on employee message boards, altered terms of employment in response to union activity, and sought to permanently close the DIL7 facility in response to union organizing.{{Cite web |last=Meadows |first=Jonah |date=2024-07-03 |title=Amazon Drivers Strike Over Labor Violations At Skokie Station |url=https://patch.com/illinois/skokie/amazon-drivers-strike-over-labor-violations-skokie-station |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240703221235/https://patch.com/illinois/skokie/amazon-drivers-strike-over-labor-violations-skokie-station |archive-date=2024-07-03 |access-date=2024-07-10 |website=Skokie, IL Patch |publisher=Patch Media |language=en}}

During the summer of 2018, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders criticized Amazon's wages and working conditions in a series of YouTube videos and media appearances. Sanders noted that Amazon had paid no federal income tax the previous year,{{cite web |last=Wohlfeil |first=Samantha |date=September 6, 2018 |title=Workers describe pressures at Amazon warehouses as Bernie Sanders gears up to make the corporation pay |url=https://www.inlander.com/spokane/workers-describe-pressures-at-amazon-warehouses-as-sen-bernie-sanders-gears-up-to-make-the-corporation-pay/Content?oid=12226281 |access-date=September 22, 2018 |publisher=Inlander}} and solicited stories from Amazon warehouse workers who felt exploited by the company.{{Cite news |last=Matsakis |first=Louise |date=September 6, 2018 |title=Bernie Sanders and the Truth About Amazon, Food Stamps, and Tax Breaks |magazine=Wired |url=https://www.wired.com/story/truth-about-amazon-food-stamps-tax-breaks/ |access-date=February 20, 2019 |issn=1059-1028}} A story by James Bloodworth described the environment as akin to "a low-security prison", saying that company culture used Orwellian newspeak.{{cite news |last=Bloodworth |first=James |date=September 17, 2018 |title=I worked in an Amazon warehouse. Bernie Sanders is right to target them |newspaper=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/sep/17/amazon-warehouse-bernie-sanders |access-date=September 22, 2018}} Reports cited a finding by New Food Economy that one-third of fulfillment-center workers in Arizona were on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).{{cite web |last=Robertson |first=Adi |date=September 5, 2018 |title=Bernie Sanders introduces "Stop BEZOS" bill to tax Amazon for underpaying workers |url=https://www.theverge.com/2018/9/5/17819450/bernie-sanders-stop-bezos-amazon-worker-pay-corporate-welfare-tax-bill |access-date=September 14, 2018 |website=The Verge}} Responses by Amazon included incentives for employees to tweet positive stories and a statement which called the salary figures used by Sanders "inaccurate and misleading". According to the statement, it was inappropriate of Sanders to refer to SNAP as "food stamps". Sanders and Ro Khanna introduced the Stop Bad Employers by Zeroing Out Subsidies (Stop BEZOS) Act on September 5, 2018, aimed at Amazon and other reported beneficiaries of corporate welfare such as Walmart, McDonald's and Uber.{{cite web |last=Gibson |first=Kate |date=September 5, 2018 |title=Bernie Sanders targets Amazon, Walmart with 100% tax |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/bernie-sanders-amazon-walmart-with-100-tax/ |access-date=September 14, 2018 |publisher=CBS}} Among the bill's supporters were Tucker Carlson of Fox News and Matt Taibbi, who criticized himself and other journalists for not covering Amazon's contribution to wealth inequality earlier.{{cite news |last=Delaney |first=Arthur |date=August 31, 2018 |title=Why Bernie Sanders and Tucker Carlson agree on food stamps |work=The Huffington Post |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/tucker-carlson-bernie-sanders-food-stamps_us_5b895651e4b0511db3d7aa34 |access-date=September 14, 2018}}{{cite magazine |last=Taibbi |first=Matt |date=September 18, 2018 |title=Bernie Sanders' Anti-Amazon Bill is an Indictment of the Media, Too |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/bernie-sanders-amazon-bezos-725282/ |magazine=Rolling Stone |access-date=September 22, 2018}} On October 2, 2018, Amazon announced that its minimum wage for all American employees would be raised to $15 per hour; Sanders congratulated the company for the decision.{{cite web |last=Porter |first=Jon |date=October 2, 2018 |title=Amazon raises minimum wage to $15 for all 350,000 US workers following criticism |url=https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/2/17927478/amazon-minimum-wage-15-dollars-increase-bernie-sanders |access-date=October 20, 2018 |website=The Verge}}

In 2023, over 350 workers at Amazon's Coventry warehouse in the United Kingdom walked off the job for a pay raise from £10.50 to £15 an hour. Amazon offered a 50p-per-hour increase, which was rejected by GMB.{{Cite news |date=2023-02-13 |title=Amazon: Unionised Coventry workers announce strike escalation |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-coventry-warwickshire-64624787 |access-date=2023-02-14}}

File:Organize_Amazon_Workers_contingent_in_Peoplehood_Parade,_Philadelphia,_PA-004.jpg

Former employees, current employees, the media, and politicians have criticized Amazon for poor working conditions.{{cite web |last=Ciubotariu |first=Nick |date=August 16, 2015 |title=An Amazonian's response to 'Inside Amazon: Wrestling Big Ideas in a Bruising Workplace' |url=https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/amazonians-response-inside-amazon-wrestling-big-ideas-nick-ciubotariu |work=LinkedIn Pulse}}{{cite web |date=August 2, 2013 |title=Amazon under fire for staffing practices in Randstad contract |url=https://www.recruiter.co.uk/news/2013/08/amazon-under-fire-for-staffing-practices-in-randstad-contract/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130804221109/http://www.recruiter.co.uk/news/2013/08/amazon-under-fire-for-staffing-practices-in-randstad-contract/ |archive-date=August 4, 2013 |work=Recruiter}}{{cite web |last=Edwards |first=Jim |date=August 5, 2013 |title=Brutal Conditions In Amazon's Warehouse's Threaten To Ruin The Company's Image |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/brutal-conditions-in-amazons-warehouses-2013-8 |access-date=February 24, 2014 |work=Business Insider}} In 2011, it was publicized that workers had to perform tasks in {{convert|100|°F|°C|adj=on}} heat at the Breinigsville, Pennsylvania warehouse. Workers became dehydrated and collapsed, but loading-bay doors were not opened to allow in fresh air because of concerns about theft.{{cite news |last1=Soper |first1=Spencer |date=September 18, 2011 |title=Inside Amazon's Warehouse |work=The Morning Call |url=https://www.mcall.com/news/watchdog/mc-allentown-amazon-complaints-20110917-story.html |access-date=March 15, 2018}} Amazon's initial response was to pay for an ambulance to wait outside on call for overheated employees, but the company eventually installed air conditioning in the warehouse.{{cite news |last1=Soper |first1=Spencer |last2=Kraus |first2=Scott |date=September 25, 2011 |title=Amazon gets heat over warehouse |work=The Morning Call |url=https://www.mcall.com/news/watchdog/mc-allentown-amazon-folo-20110917-story.html |access-date=March 15, 2018}}

Some workers ("pickers") who travel the building with a trolley and a handheld scanner "picking" customer orders can walk up to {{Convert|15|mi|km}} during a workday; if they fall behind on their quotas, they can be reprimanded. The handheld scanner informs an employee in real time about how quickly they are working, and allow team leaders and area managers to track employee location and idle time.{{cite web |last1=Yarrow |first1=Jay |last2=Kovach |first2=Steve |date=September 20, 2011 |title=10 Crazy Rules That Could Get You Fired From Amazon Warehouses |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-warehouse-rules-2011-9 |access-date=April 21, 2013 |work=Business Insider}}{{cite web |last1=O'Connor |first1=Sarah |date=February 8, 2013 |title=Amazon unpacked |url=https://www.ft.com/content/ed6a985c-70bd-11e2-85d0-00144feab49a |access-date=April 21, 2013 |work=Financial Times}} The work has been described as dehumanizing and robotic.{{cite magazine |last1=Guendelsberger |first1=Emily |title=I Worked at an Amazon Fulfillment Center; They Treat Workers Like Robots |url=https://time.com/5629233/amazon-warehouse-employee-treatment-robots/ |access-date=10 June 2024 |magazine=TIME |date=18 July 2019 |language=en}}{{cite news |last1=Westwood |first1=Darren |title=Amazon treats me worse than the warehouse robots – that's why I'm walking out |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/feb/28/amazon-warehouse-robots-striking-50p-pay-jeff-bezos |access-date=10 June 2024 |work=The Guardian |date=28 February 2023}}

For a February 2013 German television report, journalists Diana Löbl and Peter Onneken conducted a covert investigation at an Amazon distribution center in Bad Hersfeld, Hessen. The report highlighted the behavior of some security guards, employed by a third-party company, who had a neo-Nazi background or dressed in neo-Nazi apparel and intimidated foreign and temporary female workers. The third-party security company involved was delisted by Amazon shortly after the report.{{cite web |title=Kritik an Arbeitsbedingungen bei Amazon |url=https://www.tagesschau.de/inland/amazon136.html |access-date=February 20, 2013 |publisher=Tagesschau |language=de}}{{cite web |date=February 13, 2013 |title=Ausgeliefert! Leiharbeiter ... – Ausgeliefert! Leiharbeiter bei Amazon – Reportage & Documentation – ARD | Das Erste |url=http://www.daserste.de/information/reportage-dokumentation/dokus/sendung/hr/13022013-ausgeliefert-leiharbeiter-bei-amazon-100.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130218013257/http://www.daserste.de/information/reportage-dokumentation/dokus/sendung/hr/13022013-ausgeliefert-leiharbeiter-bei-amazon-100.html |archive-date=February 18, 2013 |access-date=February 20, 2013 |publisher=Daserste.de}}{{cite news |last=Paterson |first=Tony |date=February 14, 2013 |title=Amazon 'used neo-Nazi guards to keep immigrant workforce under control' in Germany – Europe – World |work=The Independent |location=London |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/amazon-used-neonazi-guards-to-keep-immigrant-workforce-under-control-in-germany-8495843.html |url-status=live |url-access=limited |access-date=February 20, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130216103830/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/amazon-used-neonazi-guards-to-keep-immigrant-workforce-under-control-in-germany-8495843.html |archive-date=2013-02-16}}{{cite web |title=Amazon to investigate reports temporary staff in Germany were mistreated |url=http://globalnews.ca/news/392864/amazon-to-investigate-reports-temporary-staff-in-germany-were-mistreated/ |access-date=July 14, 2015 |website=Globalnews.ca}}

In March 2015, it was reported in The Verge that Amazon would remove 18-month non-compete clauses from its US employment contracts for hourly workers after criticism that it unreasonably prevented such employees from finding other work. Short-term temporary workers must sign an agreement prohibiting them from working at any company where they would "directly or indirectly" support any good or service which competes with Amazon, even if they are fired or laid off.{{cite news |last1=Woodman |first1=Spencer |date=March 26, 2015 |title=Exclusive: Amazon makes even temporary warehouse workers sign 18-month non-competes |work=The Verge |url=https://www.theverge.com/2015/3/26/8280309/amazon-warehouse-jobs-exclusive-noncompete-contracts |access-date=March 28, 2015}}{{cite news |last1=Kasperkevic |first1=Jana |date=March 27, 2015 |title=Amazon to remove non-compete clause from contracts for hourly workers |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2015/mar/27/amazon-remove-noncompete-clause-contracts-hourly-workers |access-date=March 28, 2015}} A front-page article in The New York Times profiled several former Amazon employees{{Cite news |last1=Kantor |first1=Jodi |author-link=Jodi Kantor |last2=Streitfeld |first2=David |author-link2=David Streitfeld |date=August 15, 2015 |title=Inside Amazon: Wrestling Big Ideas in a Bruising Workplace |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/16/technology/inside-amazon-wrestling-big-ideas-in-a-bruising-workplace.html |access-date=February 20, 2019 |issn=0362-4331}} who described a "bruising" workplace culture in which sick workers or those with personal crises were pushed out or unfairly evaluated.{{Cite news |last1=Streitfeld |first1=David |author-link1=David Streitfeld |last2=Kantor |first2=Jodi |author-link2=Jodi Kantor |date=August 17, 2015 |title=Jeff Bezos and Amazon Employees Join Debate Over Its Culture |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/18/technology/amazon-bezos-workplace-management-practices.html |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=February 20, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150817142224/http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/18/technology/amazon-bezos-workplace-management-practices.html |archive-date=2015-08-17 |issn=0362-4331}} Bezos responded with a Sunday memo to employees{{Cite news |last=Cook |first=John |date=November 8, 2017 |title=Full memo: Jeff Bezos responds to brutal NYT story, says it doesn't represent the Amazon he leads |language=en-US |work=GeekWire |url=https://www.geekwire.com/2015/full-memo-jeff-bezos-responds-to-cutting-nyt-expose-says-tolerance-for-lack-of-empathy-needs-to-be-zero/ |access-date=April 3, 2018}} disputing the Times account of "shockingly callous management practices" which he said would never be tolerated at the company. To boost employee morale, Amazon announced on November 2, 2015, that it would extend its paid leave for new mothers and fathers. The change, for birth and adoptive parents, could be used in conjunction with existing maternity leave and medical leave for new mothers.{{cite web |date=November 2, 2015 |title=Amazon increases paid leave for new parents |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/technology/amazon-increases-paid-leave-for-new-parents/ |access-date=November 13, 2015 |work=The Seattle Times}}

In mid-2018, investigations by journalists and media such as The Guardian reported poor working conditions at Amazon's fulfillment centers.{{cite news |last=Picchi |first=Aimee |date=April 19, 2018 |title=Inside an Amazon warehouse: 'Treating human beings as robots' |work=CBS MoneyWatch |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/inside-an-amazon-warehouse-treating-human-beings-as-robots/ |access-date=September 22, 2018}}{{cite news |last=Sainato |first=Michael |date=July 30, 2018 |title=Accidents at Amazon: workers left to suffer after warehouse injuries |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/jul/30/accidents-at-amazon-workers-left-to-suffer-after-warehouse-injuries |access-date=September 22, 2018}} In response to criticism that Amazon does not pay its workers a living wage, Jeff Bezos announced that effective November 1, 2018, all US and UK Amazon employees would have a $15-per-hour minimum wage.{{cite web |last=Osborne |first=Mark |date=October 2, 2018 |title=Amazon to raise wages for more than 350,000 employees |url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/amazon-raise-companys-minimum-wage-15-employees/story?id=58225644 |access-date=January 3, 2019 |website=ABC News}} Amazon would also lobby for a $15-per-hour federal minimum wage.{{cite web |last=Partington |first=Richard |date=October 2, 2018 |title=Amazon raises minimum wage for US and UK employees |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/oct/02/amazon-raises-minimum-wage-us-uk-employees |access-date=January 3, 2019 |work=The Guardian}} The company also eliminated stock awards and bonuses for hourly employees.{{cite news |last=Soper |first=Spencer |date=October 3, 2018 |title=Amazon Warehouse Workers Lose Bonuses, Stock Awards for Raises |work=Bloomberg |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-10-03/amazon-eliminating-bonuses-stock-awards-to-help-pay-for-raises |access-date=October 4, 2018}} A September 11, 2018, article exposed poor working conditions for Amazon's delivery drivers, describing missing wages, lack of overtime pay, favoritism, intimidation, and time constraints which forced drivers to speed and skip meals and bathroom breaks.{{cite web |last=Peterson |first=Hayley |date=September 11, 2018 |title=Missing wages, grueling shifts, and bottles of urine: The disturbing accounts of Amazon delivery drivers may reveal the true human cost of 'free' shipping |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-delivery-drivers-reveal-claims-of-disturbing-work-conditions-2018-8 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201208033949/https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-delivery-drivers-reveal-claims-of-disturbing-work-conditions-2018-8 |archive-date=December 8, 2020 |access-date=November 5, 2018 |website=www.businessinsider.com}} Amazon uses Netradyne artificial intelligence cameras in some partner vans to monitor safety incidents and driver behavior, which some drivers have criticized.{{cite web |last1=Palmer |first1=Annie |date=4 February 2021 |title=Amazon is using AI-equipped cameras in delivery vans and some drivers are concerned about privacy |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/03/amazon-using-ai-equipped-cameras-in-delivery-vans.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210206060419/https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/03/amazon-using-ai-equipped-cameras-in-delivery-vans.html |archive-date=6 February 2021 |website=CNBC |language=en}} On Black Friday in 2018, Amazon warehouse workers in several European countries (including Italy, Germany, Spain, and the United Kingdom) went on strike to protest inhumane working conditions and low pay.{{cite news |last=Hamilton |first=Isobel Asher |date=November 23, 2018 |title='We are not robots': Thousands of Amazon workers across Europe are striking on Black Friday over warehouse working conditions |work=Business Insider |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/black-friday-amazon-workers-protest-poor-working-conditions-2018-11 |access-date=November 24, 2018}}

The Daily Beast reported in March 2019 that emergency services responded to 189 calls from 46 Amazon warehouses in 17 states between 2013 and 2018 relating to suicidal employees. Workers attributed their mental breakdowns to employer-imposed social isolation, aggressive surveillance, and hurried and dangerous working conditions at the warehouses. One former employee said, "It's this isolating colony of hell where people having breakdowns is a regular occurrence."{{cite news |last1=Zahn |first1=Max |last2=Paget |first2=Sharif |date=March 11, 2019 |title='Colony of Hell': 911 Calls From Inside Amazon Warehouses |work=The Daily Beast |url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/amazon-the-shocking-911-calls-from-inside-its-warehouses |access-date=March 13, 2019}}

On July 15, 2019, during Amazon's Prime Day, employees in the United States and Germany went on strike to protest unfair wages and poor working conditions.{{cite news |last=Chen |first=Michelle |date=July 16, 2019 |title=Amazon Prime Day deals aren't worth the moral cost of exploiting their workers |work=NBC News |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/amazon-prime-day-deals-aren-t-worth-moral-cost-exploiting-ncna1030361 |access-date=July 17, 2019}}{{cite news |last1=Woodyatt |first1=Amy |last2=Wojazer |first2=Barbara |title=Amazon workers go on strike in Germany as Prime Day begins |work=CNN Business |url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/15/business/german-amazon-workers-strike-prime-day-scli-intl/index.html |access-date=July 15, 2019}} In August 2019, the BBC reported on Amazon's Twitter ambassadors. Their support for, and defense of, Amazon and its practices have led Twitter users to suspect that they are bots used to dismiss issues affecting Amazon workers.{{Cite news |date=August 16, 2019 |title='Fake' Amazon ambassadors baited on Twitter |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-49372809 |access-date=December 14, 2020}} A flurry of new ambassador accounts claiming to be employees defended the company against a March 2021 unionization drive, in some cases falsely claiming that opting out of union dues was impossible. Amazon confirmed that at least one was fake, and Twitter shut down several for violating its terms of use.{{cite news |date=30 March 2021 |title='Fake' Amazon workers defend the company on Twitter |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-56581266}} In November 2019, NBC reported that some contracted Amazon locations, against company policy, allowed people to make deliveries using the badges and passwords of others to circumvent employee background checks and avoid financial penalties (or termination) for sub-standard performance. Amazon's performance quotas were criticized as unrealistic, pressuring drivers to speed, run stop signs, carry overloaded vehicles, and urinate in bottles due to lack of time for bathroom stops; the company generally avoided legal liability for vehicle crashes by using independent contractors.{{cite web |last1=Ingram |first1=David |author2=Jo Ling Kent |date=27 Nov 2019 |title=NBC News spoke with 18 people in 11 states who detailed safety problems across the e-commerce giant's |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/inside-amazon-s-delivery-push-employees-drivers-say-overworked-system-n1087661 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210701110220/https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/inside-amazon-s-delivery-push-employees-drivers-say-overworked-system-n1087661 |archive-date=July 1, 2021 |access-date=June 22, 2021 |website=NBC News}}

During the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, when the government instructed companies to restrict social contact, Amazon's UK staff was forced to work overtime to meet demand spiked by the disease. A GMB spokesperson said that the company had put "profit before safety".{{Cite news |last=Jones |first=Lora |date=March 17, 2020 |title=Amazon staff told to work overtime as virus hits |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-51921916 |access-date=March 17, 2020}} GMB has continued to raise concerns about "grueling conditions, unrealistic productivity targets, surveillance, bogus self-employment and a refusal to recognise or engage with unions unless forced", calling for the UK government and safety regulators to address these issues.{{cite web |author=GMB Union |date=October 14, 2020 |title=Government must stand up to Amazon on workers' rights |url=https://www.gmb.org.uk/news/government-must-stand-amazon-workers-rights}} In its 2020 statement to US shareholders, Amazon said: "We respect and support the Core Conventions of the International Labour Organization (ILO), the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, and the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights". Observance of the global human-rights principles has been "long held at Amazon and codifying them demonstrates our support for fundamental human rights and the dignity of workers everywhere we operate".{{cite web |author=Amazon |date=May 27, 2020 |title=Notice of 2020 Annual Meeting of Shareholders & Proxy Statement |url=https://s2.q4cdn.com/299287126/files/doc_financials/2020/ar/updated/2020-Proxy-Statement.pdf}} Subcontracted delivery drivers in Canada brought a class-action lawsuit against Amazon Canada in June 2020, saying that $200 million in unpaid wages were owed to them because Amazon retained "effective control" over their work and should legally be considered their employer.{{Cite news |last=Mojtehedzadeh |first=Sara |date=June 26, 2020 |title=Amazon delivery drivers in Canada launch $200 million class action claiming unpaid wages |work=Toronto Star |url=https://www.thestar.com/business/2020/06/26/amazon-delivery-drivers-in-canada-launch-200-million-class-action-claiming-unpaid-wages.html |url-status=live |access-date=July 17, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200714191137/https://www.thestar.com/business/2020/06/26/amazon-delivery-drivers-in-canada-launch-200-million-class-action-claiming-unpaid-wages.html |archive-date=July 14, 2020}} On November 27, 2020, Amnesty International said that Amazon workers had faced great health and safety risks since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. On Black Friday, one of Amazon's busiest periods, the company failed to ensure key safety features in France, Poland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Workers risked their health and lives to ensure that essential goods were delivered to consumers, helping Amazon achieve record profits.{{cite web |date=27 November 2020 |title=Black Friday rush must not cost Amazon workers their health and safety |url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2020/11/black-friday-rush-must-not-cost-amazon-workers-their-health-and-safety/ |access-date=November 27, 2020 |work=Amnesty International}}

Amazon said on January 6, 2021, that it planned to build 20,000 affordable houses, spending $2 billion in regions with major facilities.{{Cite news |date=January 6, 2021 |title=Amazon.com to spend $2 billion in homebuilding near key U.S. offices |language=en |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-amazon-com-housing-idUSKBN29B1MV |access-date=January 6, 2021}} On January 24, 2021, Amazon said that it planned to open a pop-up clinic in partnership with Virginia Mason Franciscan Health in Seattle to vaccinate 2,000 people against COVID-19 on the clinic's first day.{{Cite news |date=January 22, 2021 |title=Amazon to open pop-up COVID-19 vaccine clinic in Seattle headquarters |language=en |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-amazon-com-vaccine-idUSKBN29R0D8 |access-date=January 22, 2021}} The following month, Amazon said that it planned to put cameras in its delivery vehicles. Although many drivers were upset by this decision, the company said that videos would only be sent under certain circumstances.{{cite news |last=McFarland |first=Matt |date=February 25, 2021 |title=Amazon is putting cameras in its delivery vans and some drivers aren't happy |work=CNN Business |url=https://www.cnn.com/2021/02/25/tech/amazon-driver-monitoring/index.html |access-date=February 26, 2021}} Drivers have said that they sometimes have to urinate and defecate in their vans as a result of pressure to meet quotas. This was denied in a tweet from the official Amazon News account: "You don't really believe the peeing in bottles thing, do you? If that were true, nobody would work for us." Amazon employees then leaked an email to The Intercept{{cite news |last=Klippenstein |first=Ken |date=March 25, 2021 |title=Documents Show Amazon Is Aware Drivers Pee in Bottles and Even Defecate En Route, Despite Company Denial |work=The Intercept |location= |url=https://theintercept.com/2021/03/25/amazon-drivers-pee-bottles-union/ |access-date=April 1, 2021}} indicating that the company was aware that its drivers were doing so: "This evening, an associate discovered human feces in an Amazon bag that was returned to station by a driver. This is the 3rd occasion in the last 2 months when bags have been returned to the station with poop inside."{{Cite news |last=Paul |first=Kari |date=March 25, 2021 |title=Leaked memo shows Amazon knows delivery drivers resort to urinating in bottles |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2021/mar/25/amazon-delivery-workers-bathrooms-memo |access-date=March 28, 2021}} Amazon acknowledged the issue after denying it.{{Cite news |last1=Kalia |first1=Shubham |date=April 3, 2021 |title=Amazon acknowledges issue of drivers urinating in bottles in apology to Rep. Pocan |publisher=Reuters |location=Bangalore |editor1=David Holmes |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN2BQ0DC |url-status=bot: unknown |access-date=April 3, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210403134010/https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN2BQ0DC |archive-date=April 3, 2021 }}

A June 2021 analysis of Occupational Safety and Health Administration data by The Washington Post found that Amazon warehouse jobs "can be more dangerous than at comparable warehouses."{{cite news |last1=Greene |first1=Jay |last2=Alcantara |first2=Chris |title=Amazon warehouse workers suffer serious injuries at higher rates than other firms |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/06/01/amazon-osha-injury-rate/ |access-date=11 April 2022 |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=June 1, 2021}}

The following month, workers at the New York City warehouse filed a complaint with OSHA describing harsh, 12-hour workdays with sweltering internal temperatures which resulted in fainting workers carried out on stretchers: "Internal temperature is too hot. We have no ventilation, dusty, dirty fans that spread debris into our lungs and eyes, are working at a non-stop pace and [we] are fainting out from heat exhaustion, getting nose bleeds from high blood pressure, and feeling dizzy and nauseous." Many fans provided by the company reportedly did not work, water fountains were often dry, and cooling systems were insufficient. The filers were affiliated with the Amazon Labor Union which was attempting to unionize the warehouse despite company opposition. Similar conditions have been reported elsewhere, such as in Kent, Washington during the 2021 heat wave.{{cite news |last=Gurley |first=Lauren Kaori |date=July 8, 2021 |title=Amazon Workers Describe 'Excessive Heat,' 'Fainting' in NYC Warehouse |work=Vice |location= |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/amazon-workers-describe-excessive-heat-fainting-in-nyc-warehouse/ |access-date=July 9, 2021}}{{cite news |last=Chariton |first=Jordan |author-link=Jordan Chariton |date=July 8, 2021 |title=Prime Delivery: Amazon Workers Fainting, Carted Off on Stretchers Amid Sweltering Warehouse Heat |work=Status Coup |location= |url=https://statuscoup.substack.com/p/amazon-workers-warehouse-heat |access-date=July 9, 2021}}

A 2021 report by the National Employment Law Project found that working conditions at Amazon fulfillment centers in Minnesota were dangerous and unsustainable, with more than double the rate of injuries compared to non-Amazon warehouses from 2018 to 2020.{{cite news |last=Press |first=Alex N. |date=December 10, 2021 |title=A New Report Shows Just How Brutal Amazon Warehouse Work Can Get |url=https://jacobinmag.com/2021/12/minnesota-fulfillment-centers-injuries-turnover-wages-bezos |work=Jacobin |location= |access-date=December 12, 2021 |archive-date=December 12, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211212195246/https://jacobinmag.com/2021/12/minnesota-fulfillment-centers-injuries-turnover-wages-bezos |url-status=live }} In December 2021, after a tornado destroyed an Amazon warehouse in Illinois, the company and its policies were criticized for forcing people to continue working despite the imminent arrival of the tornado;{{Cite web|title='Inexcusable': Amazon Under Fire After Warehouse Collapse Kills at Least Six|url=https://www.commondreams.org/news/2021/12/12/inexcusable-amazon-under-fire-after-warehouse-collapse-kills-least-six|access-date=2021-12-13|website=Common Dreams|language=en|archive-date=December 13, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211213012108/https://www.commondreams.org/news/2021/12/12/inexcusable-amazon-under-fire-after-warehouse-collapse-kills-least-six|url-status=live}} a cellphone ban preventing access to emergency alerts,{{Cite web|title=Amazon employees speak out against controversial phone ban after deadly tornado kills at least 6 warehouse workers in Edwardsville, Illinois|url=https://news.yahoo.com/amazon-employees-speak-against-controversial-163350203.html|access-date=2021-12-13|website=news.yahoo.com|date=December 12, 2021 |language=en-US|archive-date=December 13, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211213011056/https://news.yahoo.com/amazon-employees-speak-against-controversial-163350203.html|url-status=live}} and company founder Jeff Bezos' apparent insensitivity to the catastrophe as he celebrated his space company's latest achievement and only belatedly acknowledged the loss of life.{{Cite web|title=Bezos under fire for posting about Blue Origin space mission after tornadoes kill staff at Amazon depot|url=https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/bezos-under-fire-posting-blue-052336106.html|access-date=2021-12-13|website=Yahoo|date=December 12, 2021 |language=en-US|archive-date=December 13, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211213011055/https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/bezos-under-fire-posting-blue-052336106.html|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|title=Jeff Bezos criticized for celebrating Blue Origin launch before addressing Amazon warehouse collapse|url=https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/news/jeff-bezos-criticized-for-celebrating-blue-origin-launch-before-addressing-amazon-warehouse-collapse/ar-AARJlEH|access-date=2021-12-13|website=www.msn.com|archive-date=December 13, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211213011051/https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/news/jeff-bezos-criticized-for-celebrating-blue-origin-launch-before-addressing-amazon-warehouse-collapse/ar-AARJlEH|url-status=live}}

In July 2022, a worker in a fulfillment center in Cartaret, New Jersey died due to heat stress, while working through the busy Prime Day week.{{Cite web |date=2022-07-22 |title=Amazon workers demand more details in warehouse employee's death |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/amazon-worker-death-prime-day-new-jersey-rcna39534 |access-date=2024-07-25 |website=NBC News |language=en}} The temperature outside was recorded at 92 F. Workers across multiple US fulfillment centers have claimed (often by sneaking in thermometers to prove their claims) that indoors temperatures are much higher.{{Cite web |title=WWRC - Extreme Heat at Amazon Air |url=https://warehouseworkers.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/WWRC-Amazon-High-Heat-Report-2022.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922115224/https://warehouseworkers.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/WWRC-Amazon-High-Heat-Report-2022.pdf |archive-date=2022-09-22 |access-date=2024-07-25 |website=warehouseworkers.org}} Amazon claimed that the worker's death was not related to the heat,{{Cite web |title=Amazon denied a worker's death was caused by heat in the warehouse, but it's since installed new AC and more fans, report says {{!}} Business Insider India |url=https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/amazon-denied-a-workers-death-was-caused-by-heat-in-the-warehouse-but-its-since-installed-new-ac-and-more-fans-report-says/articleshow/93739493.cms |access-date=2024-07-25 |website=Business Insider |language=en}} however they installed air conditioning a few weeks after the incident.{{Cite web |date=2022-08-22 |title=Amazon warehouse quietly addresses safety concerns following a worker's sudden death |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/amazon-warehouse-death-heat-safety-new-jersey-rcna43639 |access-date=2024-07-25 |website=NBC News |language=en}}

In March 2022, the Washington state labor department fined Amazon $60,000 for willfully violating workplace safety laws by requiring workers at an Amazon warehouse in Kent, Washington to perform repetitive motions at a fast pace, leading to an increased risk of injury.{{Cite news |last=Wiessner |first=Daniel |date=2022-03-21 |title=Wash. agency says Amazon willfully violated safety laws at warehouse |url=https://www.reuters.com/legal/transactional/wash-agency-says-amazon-willfully-violated-safety-laws-warehouse-2022-03-21/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220322031124/https://www.reuters.com/legal/transactional/wash-agency-says-amazon-willfully-violated-safety-laws-warehouse-2022-03-21/ |archive-date=2022-03-22 |access-date=2024-07-02 |work=Reuters}}

In December 2022, OSHA fined Amazon $29,008 for injury record-keeping violations.{{Cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2023/1/18/23561506/amazon-osha-citations-ergonomics-struck-by-pace|title=Amazon's OSHA fine for warehouse safety violations could be about $60K|first=Mitchell|last=Clark|date=January 19, 2023|website=The Verge|access-date=March 7, 2023}} The agency fined Amazon $60,269 the following month for unsafe conditions in three warehouses, including falling boxes and un-ergonomic and exhausting lifting requirements which resulted in serious lower-back injuries.{{Cite web|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/osha-cites-amazon-workplace-conditions-causing-physical-harm/story?id=96507872|title=OSHA cites Amazon for workplace conditions that were 'failing to keep workers safe'|website=ABC News|access-date=March 7, 2023}} The fines were low compared to the company's profits, but were the maximum allowed for general duty clause violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act.{{cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/2023/01/18/1149787345/amazon-workers-back-injuries-fined-osha |title=OSHA cites Amazon for ergonomic hazards and other safety risks in warehouses|date=January 18, 2023|work=NPR |access-date=2023-03-07}} In June 2023, Bernie Sanders began a Senate investigation into "dangerous and illegal" working conditions at Amazon's fulfillment centers.{{cite news |last=Mandler |first=C |date=June 20, 2023 |title=Bernie Sanders announces Senate investigation into Amazon's "dangerous and illegal" labor practices|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/amazon-bernie-sanders-senate-investigation-labor-practices/|work=CBS News |location= |access-date=June 21, 2023}}

In February 2024, California Occupational Safety and Health Administration fined Amazon $14,625 for not giving air freight workers adequate shade and water on very hot summer days in 2023.{{cite news |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/summer-was-scary-amazon-fined-for-not-giving-workers-enough-shade-water/ |title='Summer Was Scary': Amazon Fined for Not Giving Workers Enough Shade, Water |author=Jules Roscoe |date=February 21, 2024 |publisher=Vice}}

In June 2024, the California Labor Commissioner’s Office fined Amazon $5.9 million, after an investigation of two warehouses east of Los Angeles revealed 59,017 violations of California's 2022 Warehouse Quotas law, which requires employers to disclose productivity quotas to employees and prohibits employers from requiring warehouse workers to meet unsafe quotas.{{Cite web |last=Palmer |first=Annie |date=2024-06-18 |title=Amazon fined $5.9 million for over 59,000 violations of California labor laws |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2024/06/18/amazon-hit-with-5point9-million-fine-for-violating-california-labor-law.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240618203714/https://www.cnbc.com/2024/06/18/amazon-hit-with-5point9-million-fine-for-violating-california-labor-law.html |archive-date=2024-06-18 |access-date=2024-07-03 |website=CNBC |language=en}}

Spanish unions called on 1,000 Amazon workers to strike from July 10 through Amazon Prime Day, with calls for the strike to be seen worldwide and for customers to follow suit.{{Cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/amazon-prime-day-2018-strike-deals-uk-sales-latest-a8441726.html|title=Amazon Prime Day hit by huge strike|work=The Independent|access-date=2018-07-11|language=en-GB|archive-date=July 11, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180711163955/https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/amazon-prime-day-2018-strike-deals-uk-sales-latest-a8441726.html|url-status=live}} A Comisiones Obreras (CCOO) union representative said that complaints were based on wage cuts, working conditions, and restrictions on time off.{{Cite news|url=https://inews.co.uk/news/amazon-prime-day-strikes/|title=Amazon strike: workers ask public to boycott Prime Day|date=2018-07-11|work=iNews|access-date=2018-07-11|language=en-GB|archive-date=July 12, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180712023956/https://inews.co.uk/news/amazon-prime-day-strikes/|url-status=live}} Amazon workers in Poland, Germany, Italy, England, and France have also voiced grievances.{{Cite news|url=http://observer.com/2018/07/amazon-prime-day-boycott-european-workers/|title=European Amazon Workers Strike and Urge Prime Day Boycott—Will the US Follow Suit?|date=2018-07-10|work=Observer|access-date=2018-07-11|archive-date=July 11, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180711130401/http://observer.com/2018/07/amazon-prime-day-boycott-european-workers/|url-status=live}}

On September 5, 2018, Senator Bernie Sanders and Representative Ro Khanna introduced the Stop Bad Employers by Zeroing Out Subsidies (Stop BEZOS) Act, aimed at Amazon and other alleged beneficiaries of corporate welfare such as Walmart, McDonald's, and Uber.{{cite web|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/bernie-sanders-amazon-walmart-with-100-tax/|title=Bernie Sanders targets Amazon, Walmart with 100% tax|first=Kate|last=Gibson|work=CBS|date=2018-09-05|access-date=2018-09-14|archive-date=September 14, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180914131946/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/bernie-sanders-amazon-walmart-with-100-tax/|url-status=live}} This followed several media appearances in which Sanders underscored the need for legislation to ensure that Amazon workers received a living wage.{{cite web|url=https://www.inlander.com/spokane/workers-describe-pressures-at-amazon-warehouses-as-sen-bernie-sanders-gears-up-to-make-the-corporation-pay/Content?oid=12226281|title=Workers describe pressures at Amazon warehouses as Bernie Sanders gears up to make the corporation pay|first=Samantha|last=Wohlfeil|publisher=Inlander|date=2018-09-06|access-date=2018-09-22|archive-date=June 10, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200610034222/https://www.inlander.com/spokane/workers-describe-pressures-at-amazon-warehouses-as-sen-bernie-sanders-gears-up-to-make-the-corporation-pay/Content?oid=12226281|url-status=live}}{{cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/story/truth-about-amazon-food-stamps-tax-breaks/|title=The truth about Amazon, food stamps and tax breaks|first=Louise|last=Matsakis|magazine=Wired|date=2018-09-06|access-date=2018-09-22|archive-date=November 12, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112031420/https://www.wired.com/story/truth-about-amazon-food-stamps-tax-breaks/|url-status=live}} Reports cited a finding by New Food Economy that one third of Amazon warehouse workers in Arizona were on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).{{cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2018/9/5/17819450/bernie-sanders-stop-bezos-amazon-worker-pay-corporate-welfare-tax-bill|title=Bernie Sanders introduces "Stop BEZOS" bill to tax Amazon for underpaying workers|first=Adi|last=Robertson|website=The Verge|date=2018-09-05|access-date=2018-09-14|archive-date=September 14, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180914131936/https://www.theverge.com/2018/9/5/17819450/bernie-sanders-stop-bezos-amazon-worker-pay-corporate-welfare-tax-bill|url-status=live}} Amazon initially released a statement which called this "inaccurate and misleading", but an October 2 announcement affirmed that its minimum wage for all employees would be raised to $15 per hour.{{cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/2/17927478/amazon-minimum-wage-15-dollars-increase-bernie-sanders|title=Amazon raises minimum wage to $15 for all 350,000 US workers following criticism|first=Jon|last=Porter|website=The Verge|date=2018-10-02|access-date=2018-10-20|archive-date=November 12, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112034742/https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/2/17927478/amazon-minimum-wage-15-dollars-increase-bernie-sanders|url-status=live}}

Current and former Amazon corporate workers, including former diversity lead Chanin Kelly-Rae, went public in 2021 about alleged systemic discrimination against women and people of color.{{Cite web |last=Rey |first=Jason Del |date=26 February 2021 |title=Bias, disrespect, and demotions: Black employees say Amazon has a race problem |url=https://www.vox.com/recode/2021/2/26/22297554/amazon-race-black-diversity-inclusion |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220221113851/https://www.vox.com/recode/2021/2/26/22297554/amazon-race-black-diversity-inclusion |archive-date=2022-02-21 |access-date=2022-03-14 |website=Vox Media |language=en}} That year, a number of Black employees filed discrimination lawsuits against the company.{{Cite web |last=Ayers |first=Christin |date=5 April 2021 |title=Current and former Black Amazon employees claim racial discrimination |url=https://www.king5.com/article/news/community/facing-race/current-and-former-black-amazon-employees-claim-racial-discrimination/281-8e91902f-c8e0-41c0-8809-e4413a58f859 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220217123550/https://www.king5.com/article/news/community/facing-race/current-and-former-black-amazon-employees-claim-racial-discrimination/281-8e91902f-c8e0-41c0-8809-e4413a58f859 |archive-date=2022-02-17 |access-date=2022-03-14 |website=King5 |language=en-US}}

An Amazon warehouse protest on March 30, 2020, in Staten Island led to the firing of its organizer, Chris Smalls. Amazon defended the decision by saying that Smalls was supposed to be in self-isolation at the time, and leading the protest put its other workers at risk. Smalls called the response "ridiculous".{{cite web |last=Johnson |first=Jake |date=2020-03-31 |title=New York AG Denounces 'Immoral and Inhumane' Firing of Amazon Worker Who Led Protest Over Lack of Coronavirus Protections |url=https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/03/31/new-york-ag-denounces-immoral-and-inhumane-firing-amazon-worker-who-led-protest-over |access-date=March 31, 2020 |website=Common Dreams |language=en}} New York State attorney general Letitia James was considering legal reaction to the firing, which she called "immoral and inhumane", and asked the National Labor Relations Board to investigate. Smalls accused the company of retaliating against him for organizing a protest. At the Staten Island warehouse, one case of COVID-19 was confirmed by Amazon; workers believed that there were more and said that the company had not cleaned the building, given them suitable protection, or informed them of potential cases. Smalls said that many workers were in risk categories, and the protest demanded that the building be sanitized and the employees paid during that process. Derrick Palmer, another worker at the Staten Island facility, told The Verge that Amazon quickly communicates through text and email when they need staff to work mandatory overtime but waited days to tell employees when a colleague contracted the disease. Amazon said that the Staten Island protest only attracted 15 of the facility's 5,000 workers,{{cite web |last=Rubin |first=Ben Fox |date=2020-03-31 |title=Amazon fires warehouse worker who organized Staten Island protest |url=https://www.cnet.com/news/amazon-workers-in-staten-island-protest-coronavirus-working-conditions/ |access-date=March 31, 2020 |website=CNET |language=en}} but other sources reported much larger crowds. On April 14, 2020, two Amazon employees were fired for "repeatedly violating internal policies" after they circulated an internal petition about health risks for warehouse workers.{{cite web |last1=Paul |first1=Kari |date=April 14, 2020 |title=Amazon fires two employees who condemned treatment of warehouse workers |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/apr/14/amazon-workers-fired-coronavirus-emily-cunningham-maren-costa |access-date=April 15, 2020 |website=The Guardian |language=en}} During the COVID-19 pandemic, Amazon introduced $2-per-hour hazard pay of, changes to overtime pay and unlimited, unpaid time off until April 30, 2020. Hazard pay expired in June 2020 and the paid-time-off policy in May 2022.{{cite web |last=Del Rey |first=Jason |date=May 13, 2020 |title=Amazon extends bonus pay for front-line workers but says it ends in June |url=https://www.vox.com/recode/2020/5/13/21256756/amazon-pay-increases-frontline-warehouse-workers-covid-19-coronavirus-pandemic-may |access-date=June 3, 2020 |website=Vox |language=en}}{{Cite news |date=2022-05-01 |title=Amazon ends COVID paid leave for U.S. workers |language=en |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/us/amazon-ends-covid-paid-leave-us-workers-2022-05-01/ |access-date=2022-05-01}} Amazon introduced temporary restrictions on the sale of non-essential goods, and hired 100,000 more staff in the US and Canada.{{cite news |last=Otto |first=Ben |date=September 14, 2020 |title=Amazon to Hire 100,000 in U.S. and Canada |newspaper=The Wall Street Journal |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/amazon-to-hire-100-000-in-u-s-and-canada-11600071208 |access-date=2020-12-15}} Some Amazon workers in the US, France, and Italy protested the company's decision to "run normal shifts" despite many COVID-19 infections.{{Cite news |date=April 14, 2020 |title=Amazon hiring spree as orders surge under lockdown |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-52276149 |access-date=April 14, 2020}}{{cite news |date=March 19, 2020 |title=Amazon workers protest over normal shifts despite Covid-19 cases |work=Financial Times |url=https://www.ft.com/content/08395e49-0bb1-4f49-a6f5-c6639ce3d719 |access-date=March 19, 2020}} In Spain, the company faced legal complaints over its policies.{{Cite news |date=March 31, 2020 |title=Amazon workers strike over virus protection |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-52096273 |access-date=March 31, 2020}} A group of US Senators wrote an open letter to Bezos in March 2020 expressing concerns about worker safety.{{cite web |last=Dzieza |first=Josh |date=March 30, 2020 |title=Amazon warehouse workers walk out in rising tide of COVID-19 protests |url=https://www.theverge.com/2020/3/30/21199942/amazon-warehouse-coronavirus-covid-new-york-protest-walkout |access-date=March 31, 2020 |website=The Verge |language=en}} On May 4, Amazon vice president Tim Bray resigned "in dismay" over the firing of whistleblowers who spoke out about the lack of COVID-19 protections, including shortages of face masks and the company's failure to implement promised temperature checks. Bray called the firings "chickenshit" and said they were "designed to create a climate of fear" in Amazon warehouses.{{cite news |last=Paul |first=Kari |date=May 4, 2020 |title=Amazon executive resigns over company's 'chickenshit' firings of employee activists |language=en-US |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/may/04/amazon-tim-bray-resigns-working-conditions-coronavirus |access-date=May 7, 2020}} In a Q1 2020 financial report, Jeff Bezos announced that Amazon expected to spend $4 billion or more (predicted operating profit for Q2) on COVID-19 issues: personal protective equipment, higher wages for hourly teams, cleaning of facilities, and expanding Amazon's COVID-19 testing capabilities.{{cite web |date=April 30, 2020 |title=Amazon Q1 2020 Earnings Release |url=https://s2.q4cdn.com/299287126/files/doc_financials/2020/Q1/Amazon-Q1-2020-Earnings-Release.pdf?ots=1&tag=curbedcom06-20&linkCode=w50 |access-date=2020-11-19 |website=s2.q4cdn.com}} From the beginning of 2020 until September of that year, Amazon said that 19,816 employees had contracted COVID-19.{{cite web |last=Palmer |first=Annie |date=October 1, 2020 |title=Amazon says more than 19,000 workers got Covid-19 |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2020/10/01/amazon-says-more-than-19000-workers-got-covid-19.html |access-date=2020-12-14 |website=cnbc.com}}

France's SUD trade unions brought a court case against Amazon for unsafe working conditions. On April 15, 2020, the district court in Nanterre ordered the company to limit its deliveries to essential items (including electronics, food, medical or hygienic products, and supplies for home improvement, animals, and offices) or face a fine of €1 million per day.{{cite news |author=Olivia Détroyat |date=April 16, 2020 |title=Amazon ferme ses entrepôts pour cinq jours en France |language=fr |newspaper=Le Figaro |url=https://www.lefigaro.fr/flash-eco/amazon-menace-de-suspendre-l-activite-de-ses-centres-en-france-20200415}} Amazon immediately closed its six warehouses in France, continuing to pay workers but limiting deliveries to items shipped from third-party sellers and warehouses outside France.{{cite news |last=Gold |first=Hadas |date=May 19, 2020 |title=Amazon is reopening its warehouses in France after dispute with workers ends |language=en-US |work=cnn |url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/19/tech/amazon-france-reopen/index.html |access-date=2020-07-07}} The company said that the €100,000 fine for each prohibited item shipped could result in billions of dollars in fines, even with a fraction of items misclassified.{{cite web |last=Gold |first=Hadas |date=April 24, 2020 |title=Amazon loses appeal against worker safety ruling in France that prompted it to close |url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/24/tech/amazon-france-appeal/index.html |website=CNN}} After losing an appeal and reaching an agreement with labor unions for higher pay and staggered work schedules, the company reopened its French warehouses on May 19 of that year.

In 2014, former Amazon employee Kivin Varghese threatened to begin a hunger strike to protest Amazon's unfair policies.{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/nov/22/former-amazon-employee-hunger-strike-seattle-headquarters|title=Former Amazon employee set for hunger strike at Seattle headquarters|last1=Bakare|first1=Lanre|date=2014-11-22|work=The Guardian|access-date=2019-05-22|last2=Laughland|first2=Oliver|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077|archive-date=May 6, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200506175109/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/nov/22/former-amazon-employee-hunger-strike-seattle-headquarters|url-status=live}} In November 2016, an Amazon employee jumped from the roof of the company's headquarters office due to unfair treatment at work.{{Cite web|url=https://nypost.com/2016/11/29/amazon-employee-jumps-off-company-building-after-ranting-email-to-staff/|title=Amazon employee jumps off company building after ranting email to staff|last=Musumeci|first=Natalie|date=2016-11-29|website=New York Post|language=en|access-date=2019-05-22|archive-date=May 7, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200507055148/https://nypost.com/2016/11/29/amazon-employee-jumps-off-company-building-after-ranting-email-to-staff/|url-status=live}} Amazon Web Services vice-president Tim Bray resigned in 2020 in protest of the company's treatment of employees who publicly agitated against unhealthy working conditions in Amazon warehouses during the COVID-19 pandemic.{{Cite web |title=Amazon VP Resigns, Calls Company 'Chickenshit' for Firing Protesting Workers |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/amazon-vp-tim-bray-resigns-calls-company-chickenshit-for-firing-protesting-workers/ |date=4 May 2020 |archive-date=August 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20210802125803/https://www.vice.com/en/article/z3bjpj/amazon-vp-tim-bray-resigns-calls-company-chickenshit-for-firing-protesting-workers |last=Koebler |first=Jason |work=Vice |access-date=August 2, 2021 |url-status=live }} In April 2022, The Intercept reported that Amazon's planned internal messaging app would ban words (such as "union", "living wage", "freedom", "pay raise" and "restrooms") which might indicate worker unhappiness.{{Cite web|url=https://theintercept.com/2022/04/04/amazon-union-living-wage-restrooms-chat-app/|title=LEAKED: NEW AMAZON WORKER CHAT APP WOULD BAN WORDS LIKE "UNION," "RESTROOMS," "PAY RAISE," AND "PLANTATION"|access-date=April 7, 2022|date=April 3, 2022|work=The Intercept|author=Ken Klippenstein}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/apr/05/amazon-banned-words-list-union-internal-app|title=Amazon to ban 'union' and other words from staff chat app – report|access-date=April 7, 2022|date=April 6, 2022|work=The Guardian|author=Dani Anguiano}}

According to a report by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, a think tank partially funded by the US Department of Defense, Amazon is a company "potentially directly or indirectly benefiting" from forced Uyghur labor.{{Cite web|last1=Xu|first1=Vicky Xiuzhong|last2=Cave|first2=Danielle|last3=Leiboid|first3=James|last4=Munro|first4=Kelsey|last5=Ruser|first5=Nathan|date=February 2020|title=Uyghurs for Sale|url=https://www.aspi.org.au/report/uyghurs-sale|access-date=2021-01-20|website=Australian Strategic Policy Institute|language=en|archive-date=August 24, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200824215335/https://www.aspi.org.au/report/uyghurs-sale|url-status=dead}}

In September 2000, price discrimination potentially violating the Robinson–Patman Act was found on amazon.com. Amazon offered to sell a buyer a DVD for one price, but after the buyer deleted cookies which identified him as a regular Amazon customer he was offered the same DVD for a substantially lower price.{{cite news|author= Anita Ramasastry |url=http://edition.cnn.com/2005/LAW/06/24/ramasastry.website.prices/ |title=CNN: Web sites change prices based on customers' habits |work=CNN |date=June 24, 2005 |access-date=August 29, 2010| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100819234507/http://edition.cnn.com/2005/LAW/06/24/ramasastry.website.prices/| archive-date= August 19, 2010 | url-status= live}} Jeff Bezos apologized for the differential pricing and said that Amazon "never will test prices based on customer demographics". The company said that the difference was the result of a random price test and offered to refund customers who paid higher prices.{{cite news |url=http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2000/09/25/daily21.html |title=Bezos calls Amazon experiment 'a mistake' |publisher=Bizjournals.com |date=September 28, 2000 |access-date=August 29, 2010 |archive-date=November 16, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111116062913/http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/stories/2000/09/25/daily21.html |url-status=live }} Amazon had experimented with random price tests in 2000, when customers comparing prices on a bargain-hunter website discovered that Amazon randomly offered the Diamond Rio MP3 player for substantially less than its regular price.{{cite web |last=Wolverton |first=Troy |url=http://news.cnet.com/2100-1017-240700.html |title=MP3 player "sale" exposes Amazon's flexible prices |publisher=News.cnet.com |access-date=August 29, 2010 |archive-date=February 13, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120213091502/http://news.cnet.com/2100-1017-240700.html |url-status=live }}

The British consumer organization Which? published information about Amazon Marketplace in the UK which indicates that when small electrical products are sold on the marketplace, the delivered product may not be the same as the product advertised.{{cite web |url=http://conversation.which.co.uk/technology/counterfeit-electricals-plugs-travel-adaptors-amazon-marketplace-ebay/ |title=Ever been sent dodgy electricals by an online shop? |date=August 15, 2014 |access-date=September 22, 2015 |archive-date=September 14, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150914014546/http://conversation.which.co.uk/technology/counterfeit-electricals-plugs-travel-adaptors-amazon-marketplace-ebay/ |url-status=live }} A test purchase was described in which eleven orders were placed with different suppliers via a single listing. Only one of the suppliers delivered the actual product displayed; two others delivered different, functionally-equivalent products, and eight suppliers delivered products which were quite different and incapable of safely performing the advertised function. The Which? article described how customer reviews of a product were actually a mix of reviews for all the different products, with no way to identify which product came from which supplier. The issue was raised in evidence to the UK Parliament in connection with a new consumer-rights bill.{{cite web |url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmpublic/consumer/memo/cr22.htm |title=There is a need to increase consumer protection regarding dangerous electrical accessories. |first=David |last=Peacock |date=March 5, 2014 |access-date=September 30, 2014 |archive-date=October 6, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006224000/http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmpublic/consumer/memo/cr22.htm |url-status=live }}

In 2018, it was reported that Amazon contained sponsored ads pretending to be items on a baby registry. The ads looked similar to actual items on the registry.{{cite web|url = https://qz.com/1478347/how-amazon-hijacked-the-baby-registry/|title = How Amazon hijacked the baby registry|work = Quartz|date = November 29, 2018|first = Alison|last = Griswold|access-date = November 29, 2018|archive-date = November 29, 2018|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181129161820/https://qz.com/1478347/how-amazon-hijacked-the-baby-registry/|url-status = live}}

On December 1, 2010, Amazon stopped hosting the website associated with WikiLeaks; the company did not initially say whether it forced the site to leave.{{Cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/2010/12/01/131730912/wikileaks-leaves-amazon-host-servers%20|title=Wikileaks leaves Amazon host servers|website=NPR |access-date=September 19, 2019}} According to The New York Times, "Senator Joseph I. Lieberman, an independent of Connecticut, said Amazon had stopped hosting the WikiLeaks site on Wednesday after being contacted by the staff of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee".{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/03/world/europe/03assange.html |title=Swedish Court Confirms Arrest Warrant for WikiLeaks Founder|work=The New York Times|first1=John F.|last1=Burns|first2=Alan|last2=Cowell|date=December 2, 2010|access-date=February 18, 2017|archive-date=June 29, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180629074419/https://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/03/world/europe/03assange.html?_r=1&hpw|url-status=live}}

In a later press release, Amazon said that the reason was "a violation of [Amazon's] terms of service", because Wikileaks.org was "securing and storing large quantities of data that isn't rightfully theirs, and publishing this data without ensuring it won't injure others."{{Cite web|url=https://aws.amazon.com/message/65348/|title=WikiLeaks|website=Amazon Web Services, Inc.|access-date=September 19, 2019|archive-date=September 16, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190916165210/https://aws.amazon.com/message/65348/|url-status=live}} Assange said that WikiLeaks chose Amazon knowing it would probably be kicked off the service "in order to separate rhetoric from reality" and to show that the jurisdiction "suffered a free speech deficit".{{Cite web |title=WikiLeaks got kicked off Amazon on purpose, says Assange |url=https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/wikileaks-got-kicked-off-amazon-on-purpose-says-assange/ |access-date=2023-10-23 |website=CNET |language=en}}{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/blog/2010/dec/03/julian-assange-wikileaks|title=Julian Assange answers your questions|location=London|work=The Guardian|date=December 3, 2010|access-date=December 11, 2016|archive-date=December 9, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161209090137/https://www.theguardian.com/world/blog/2010/dec/03/julian-assange-wikileaks|url-status=live}}

Amazon's action led to an open letter from Daniel Ellsberg, who wrote that he was "disgusted by Amazon's cowardice and servility", likening it to "China's control of information and deterrence of whistleblowing", and called for a "broad" and "immediate" boycott of Amazon.{{cite web|last=Ellsberg|first=Daniel|author-link=Daniel Ellsberg|work=Antiwar.com|access-date=December 12, 2010|date=December 2, 2010|url=http://www.antiwar.com/blog/2010/12/02/daniel-ellsberg-says-boycott-amazon/#idc-cover|title=Open Letter to Amazon.com Customer Service|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101211020721/http://www.antiwar.com/blog/2010/12/02/daniel-ellsberg-says-boycott-amazon/|archive-date=December 11, 2010|url-status=live|df=mdy}}

The Amazon Echo sparked concern about the company releasing customer data at the behest of government authorities. According to Amazon, voice recordings of customer interactions with the assistant are stored with the possibility of release in response to a warrant or subpoena.{{cite web |last=Sayer |first=Peter |date=15 June 2015 |title=Amazon Now An Open Book On Search Warrants And Subpoenas |url=http://www.networkworld.com/article/2935894/amazon-now-an-open-book-on-search-warrants-and-subpoenas.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181127121023/https://www.networkworld.com/article/2935894/amazon-now-an-open-book-on-search-warrants-and-subpoenas.html |archive-date=November 27, 2018 |access-date=December 15, 2018 |work=Network World}} Police requested such data during their investigation of the November 22, 2015, death of Victor Collins at the home of James Andrew Bates in Bentonville, Arkansas.{{cite news |last=Weise |first=Elizabeth |date=December 27, 2016 |title=Alexa: Who dunnit? |newspaper=USA Today |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/news/2016/12/27/amazon-alexa-echo-murder-case-bentonville-hot-tub-james-andrew-bates/95879532/ |url-status=live |access-date=December 27, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161228085308/http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/news/2016/12/27/amazon-alexa-echo-murder-case-bentonville-hot-tub-james-andrew-bates/95879532/ |archive-date=December 28, 2016}}{{cite news |last=Balakrishnan |first=Anita |date=December 27, 2016 |title=Police said to probe Amazon Echo in relation to murder case |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2016/12/27/police-said-to-probe-amazon-echo-in-relation-to-murder-case.html |url-status=live |access-date=December 27, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161228102752/http://www.cnbc.com/2016/12/27/police-said-to-probe-amazon-echo-in-relation-to-murder-case.html |archive-date=December 28, 2016}} Amazon refused to comply at first, but Bates later consented.{{cite news |last1=McLaughlin |first1=Elliot |date=26 April 2017 |title=Suspect OKs Amazon to hand over Echo recordings in murder case |work=CNN |url=http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/07/tech/amazon-echo-alexa-bentonville-arkansas-murder-case/ |url-status=live |access-date=1 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190119183537/https://www.cnn.com/2017/03/07/tech/amazon-echo-alexa-bentonville-arkansas-murder-case/ |archive-date=January 19, 2019}}{{cite news |last1=Heater |first1=Brian |date=7 March 2017 |title=After pushing back, Amazon hands over Echo data in Arkansas murder case |publisher=TechCrunch |url=https://techcrunch.com/2017/03/07/amazon-echo-murder/ |url-status=live |access-date=1 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181205125855/https://techcrunch.com/2017/03/07/amazon-echo-murder/ |archive-date=December 5, 2018}}

Although Amazon has publicly opposed government surveillance, according to Freedom of Information Act requests it has supplied facial-recognition support to law enforcement in the forms of Amazon Rekognition technology and consulting services. Initial testing included Orlando, Florida, and Washington County, Oregon. Amazon offered to connect Washington County with other Amazon government customers interested in Rekognition and a body-camera manufacturer. The ventures are opposed by a coalition of civil-rights groups, who are concerned that they could lead expanded surveillance and abuse; it could automate the identification and tracking of anyone, particularly in the context of potential police body-camera integration.{{Cite news |date=May 22, 2018 |title=Amazon is selling facial recognition to law enforcement — for a fistful of dollars |language=en-US |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2018/05/22/amazon-is-selling-facial-recognition-to-law-enforcement-for-a-fistful-of-dollars/ |url-status=live |access-date=December 15, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201015001022/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2018/05/22/amazon-is-selling-facial-recognition-to-law-enforcement-for-a-fistful-of-dollars/ |archive-date=October 15, 2020}}{{Cite web |date=May 31, 2018 |title=Yes, Amazon is tracking people |url=https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/yes-amazon-is-tracking-people-and-sending-their-data-to-police |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109015612/https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/yes-amazon-is-tracking-people-and-sending-their-data-to-police |archive-date=November 9, 2020 |access-date=September 19, 2019 |website=Washington Examiner}}{{Cite web |title=Amazon Teams Up With Government to Deploy Dangerous New Facial Recognition Technology |url=https://www.aclu.org/blog/privacy-technology/surveillance-technologies/amazon-teams-government-deploy-dangerous-new |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201121143039/https://www.aclu.org/blog/privacy-technology/surveillance-technologies/amazon-teams-government-deploy-dangerous-new |archive-date=November 21, 2020 |access-date=September 19, 2019 |website=American Civil Liberties Union|date=May 21, 2018 }} Due to a backlash, the city of Orlando said that it would no longer use the technology but might reconsider at a later date.{{Cite news |date=June 26, 2018 |title=Orlando Stops Using Amazon's Face-Scanning Tech Amid Spying Concerns |language=en-USA |url=https://www.newsweek.com/orlando-stops-using-amazons-facial-recognition-tech-996057 |url-status=live |access-date=December 15, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200725050540/https://www.newsweek.com/orlando-stops-using-amazons-facial-recognition-tech-996057 |archive-date=July 25, 2020}}

A February 17, 2020, BBC Panorama documentary highlighted the amount of data collected by Amazon and its move into surveillance, concerning for politicians and regulators in the US and Europe.{{cite news |title=Panorama - Amazon: What They Know About Us |work=BBC |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m000fjdz/panorama-amazon-what-they-know-about-us |access-date=2022-01-09}}{{cite web |title=Amazon: How Bezos built his data machine |url=https://bbc.co.uk/news/extra/CLQYZENMBI/amazon-data |work=BBC News}} On July 16, 2021, the Luxembourg National Commission for Data Protection fined Amazon Europe Core SARL{{Refn|European Amazon Headquarters, a subsidiary of Amazon Inc., is based in Luxembourg.|group=note}} a record €746 million ($888 million) for processing personal data in violation of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).{{cite web |last1=Bodoni |first1=Stephanie |date=July 30, 2021 |title=Amazon Gets Record $888 Million EU Fine Over Data Violations |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-07-30/amazon-given-record-888-million-eu-fine-for-data-privacy-breach |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210808141701/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-07-30/amazon-given-record-888-million-eu-fine-for-data-privacy-breach |archive-date=August 8, 2021 |access-date=August 8, 2021 |publisher=Bloomberg}} The fine, about 4.2 percent of Amazon's reported $21.3 billion 2020 income,{{cite web |last1=Lawler |first1=Richard |date=July 30, 2021 |title=Amazon fined record $887 million over EU privacy violations |url=https://www.theverge.com/2021/7/30/22601661/amazon-gdpr-fine-cnpd-marketplace-antitrust-data |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210808141701/https://www.theverge.com/2021/7/30/22601661/amazon-gdpr-fine-cnpd-marketplace-antitrust-data |archive-date=August 8, 2021 |access-date=August 8, 2021 |publisher=The Verge}} and was the largest ever imposed for a violation of the GDPR.{{cite web |date=July 31, 2021 |title=Amazon Fined Record EUR 746 Million in Luxembourg Over Data Privacy |url=https://gadgets.ndtv.com/apps/news/amazon-eu-fine-record-data-protection-violation-privacy-eur-746-million-2499250 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210808141703/https://gadgets.ndtv.com/apps/news/amazon-eu-fine-record-data-protection-violation-privacy-eur-746-million-2499250 |archive-date=August 8, 2021 |access-date=August 8, 2021 |via=Agence France-Presse}} Amazon announced that it would appeal the decision.{{cite web |date=July 30, 2021 |title=Amazon hit with record EU data privacy fine |url=https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/amazon-hit-with-886-million-eu-data-privacy-fine-2021-07-30/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210808141701/https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/amazon-hit-with-886-million-eu-data-privacy-fine-2021-07-30/ |archive-date=August 8, 2021 |access-date=August 8, 2021 |publisher=Reuters}}

In June 2023, Amazon agreed to pay the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) $25 million for violating children's privacy with its Amazon Alexa. The company was accused of keeping Alexa recordings for years and using them illegally to develop algorithms, despite assuring users that it had deleted the recordings.{{cite news |last1=Wright |first1=George |title=Amazon to pay $25m over child privacy violations |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-65772154 |access-date=2023-06-02 |work=BBC |date=2023-06-01}}

In September 2024, the FTC released a report summarizing 9 company responses (including from Amazon) to orders made by the agency pursuant to Section 6(b) of the Federal Trade Commission Act of 1914 to provide information about user and non-user data collection (including of children and teenagers) and data use by the companies that found that the companies' user and non-user data practices put individuals vulnerable to identity theft, stalking, unlawful discrimination, emotional distress and mental health issues, social stigma, and reputational harm.{{cite news|last=Tolentino|first=Daysia|date=September 19, 2024|title=Social media companies engaged in 'vast surveillance,' FTC finds, calling status quo 'unacceptable'|publisher=NBC News|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/social-media-companies-engaged-vast-surveillance-ftc-finds-calling-sta-rcna171814|access-date=September 21, 2024}}{{cite news|last=Del Valle|first=Gaby|date=September 19, 2024|title=The FTC says social media companies can't be trusted to regulate themselves|website=The Verge|publisher=Vox Media|url=https://www.theverge.com/2024/9/19/24249073/ftc-data-retention-privacy-report-facebook-meta-youtube-reddit|access-date=September 21, 2024}}{{cite report|title=A Look Behind the Screens: Examining the Data Practices of Social Media and Video Streaming Services|year=2024|publisher=Federal Trade Commission|url=https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/ftc_gov/pdf/Social-Media-6b-Report-9-11-2024.pdf|access-date=September 21, 2024}}

As customer reviews have become integral to Amazon marketing, reviews have been challenged on accuracy and ethical grounds.{{Cite journal|url=https://hbr.org/2020/11/how-fake-customer-reviews-do-and-dont-work|title = How Fake Customer Reviews do — and Don't — Work|journal = Harvard Business Review|date = 24 November 2020| last1=Proserpio | first1=Davide | last2=Hollenbeck | first2=Brett | last3=He | first3=Sherry }} In 2004, The New York Times{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/14/us/amazon-glitch-unmasks-war-of-reviewers.html?scp=6&sq=amazon+book+reviews&st=nyt | work=The New York Times | first=Amy | last=Harmon | title=Amazon Glitch Unmasks War Of Reviewers | date=February 14, 2004 | access-date=February 18, 2017 | archive-date=September 13, 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170913091831/http://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/14/us/amazon-glitch-unmasks-war-of-reviewers.html?scp=6&sq=amazon+book+reviews&st=nyt | url-status=live }} reported that a glitch in the Amazon Canada website revealed that a number of book reviews had been written by authors of their own books or of competing books. Amazon changed its policy of allowing anonymous reviews to one which gave an online credential to reviewers registered with Amazon, although it still allowed them to remain anonymous with pen names. In April 2010, British historian Orlando Figes was found to have posted negative reviews of other authors' books.{{cite news | url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/apr/23/historian-orlando-figes-amazon-reviews-rivals | location=London | work=The Guardian | first1=Richard | last1=Lea | first2=Matthew | last2=Taylor | title=Historian Orlando Figes admits posting Amazon reviews that trashed rivals | date=April 23, 2010 | access-date=December 11, 2016 | archive-date=February 18, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210218035700/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/apr/23/historian-orlando-figes-amazon-reviews-rivals | url-status=live }} Two months later, a Cincinnati news blog uncovered a group of 75 Amazon book reviews which had been written and posted by a public-relations company on behalf of its clients.{{cite web|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120729031045/http://www.cincinnatibeacon.com/index.php?/contents/comments/amazon.com_rave_book_reviews_too_good_to_be_true/|archive-date=2012-07-29|url-status=dead|url=http://www.cincinnatibeacon.com/index.php?/contents/comments/amazon.com_rave_book_reviews_too_good_to_be_true/ |title=BEACON SPOTLIGHT: Amazon.com rave book reviews – too good to be true? – Cincinnati blog, Cincinnati news, Cincinnati politics |publisher=The Cincinnati Beacon |date=2010-05-25}} A Cornell University study that year{{cite web|url=http://www.news.cornell.edu/stories/June11/PinchAmazon.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110622045110/http://www.news.cornell.edu/stories/June11/PinchAmazon.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=June 22, 2011|title=Cornell Chronicle: Study hones in on Amazon reviewers|date=June 22, 2011}} said that 85 percent of Amazon's high-status consumer reviewers "had received free products from publishers, agents, authors and manufacturers." By June 2011, Amazon had moved into the publishing business and begun to solicit positive reviews from established authors in exchange for increased promotion of their books and upcoming projects.{{cite web|last=Witt |first=Emily |url=http://www.observer.com/2011/06/amazon-publishing-to-authors-%E2%80%98review%E2%80%99-our-books-and-we-will-promote-you/ |title=Amazon Publishing to Authors: 'Review' Our Books and We Will Promote You |work=The New York Observer|date=2011-06-28| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130620093629/http://observer.com/2011/06/amazon-publishing-to-authors-review-our-books-and-we-will-promote-you/ | archive-date=2013-06-20 |url-status=dead |access-date=2013-05-25}}

Amazon.com's customer reviews are monitored for indecency, but permit negative comments. Robert Spector, author of the book amazon.com, wrote: "When publishers and authors asked Bezos why amazon.com would publish negative reviews, he defended the practice by claiming that amazon.com was 'taking a different approach ... we want to make every book available – the good, the bad, and the ugly ... to let truth loose'" (Spector 132).{{full citation needed|date=November 2023}} Amazon allgedly deleted negative reviews of Scientology-related items, despite the reviews' compliance with comments guidelines.{{cite web|url=http://technorati.com/entertainment/glosslip/article/is-amazoncom-censuring-negative-reviews-of-scientology-books-sure-looks-like-it/ |title=Is Amazon.com Censoring Negative Reviews Of Scientology Books? Sure Looks Like It – Technorati Glosslip |publisher=Technorati |date=April 10, 2008 |access-date=August 29, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101220022048/http://technorati.com/entertainment/glosslip/article/is-amazoncom-censuring-negative-reviews-of-scientology-books-sure-looks-like-it |archive-date=December 20, 2010 }}{{cite web |url=http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20081022/1947002622.shtml |title=Amazon Caught Deleting Negative EA DRM-Related Reviews ... Again |publisher=Techdirt |date=October 23, 2008 |access-date=August 29, 2010 |archive-date=December 24, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101224201215/http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20081022/1947002622.shtml |url-status=live }}

In November 2012, it was reported that Amazon.co.uk deleted "a wave of reviews by authors of their fellow writers' books in what is believed to be a response to [a] 'sock puppet' scandal."{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2012/nov/05/amazon-removes-book-reviews |title=Amazon removes book reviews by fellow authors |work=The Guardian |first=Alison |last=Flood |date=5 November 2012 |access-date=November 5, 2012 |archive-date=August 30, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140830102945/http://www.theguardian.com/books/2012/nov/05/amazon-removes-book-reviews |url-status=live }} After the listing of Untouchable: The Strange Life and Tragic Death of Michael Jackson, a disparaging biography of Michael Jackson by Randall Sullivan, his fans were organized on social media as "Michael Jackson's Rapid Response Team to Media Attacks" and bombarded Amazon with negative reviews and negative ratings of positive reviews.{{cite news|title=Swarming a Book Online|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/21/business/a-casualty-on-the-battlefield-of-amazons-partisan-book-reviews.html|access-date=January 21, 2013|newspaper=The New York Times|date=January 20, 2013|author=David Streitfeld|archive-date=January 21, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130121151149/http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/21/business/a-casualty-on-the-battlefield-of-amazons-partisan-book-reviews.html|url-status=live}}

Amazon removed a large number of one-star reviews from the listing of former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's book, What Happened, in 2017.{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/sep/14/amazon-redacts-one-star-reviews-of-hillary-clintons-what-happened|title=Amazon redacts one-star reviews of Hillary Clinton's What Happened|first=Alison|last=Flood|newspaper=The Guardian |date=September 14, 2017|access-date=September 23, 2017|via=www.theguardian.com|archive-date=September 20, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170920192254/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/sep/14/amazon-redacts-one-star-reviews-of-hillary-clintons-what-happened|url-status=live}} In 2018 and 2020, it was reported that Amazon had allowed sellers to bait-and-switch; after reviewers had praised a product, it would be replaced by a different product while retaining the positive reviews.{{Cite web|url=https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/nicolenguyen/amazon-review-reuse-fraud|title=Here's Another Kind Of Review Fraud Happening On Amazon|website=BuzzFeed News|date=May 29, 2018 |access-date=January 10, 2021|archive-date=January 12, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210112014105/https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/nicolenguyen/amazon-review-reuse-fraud|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/12/amazon-still-hasnt-fixed-its-problem-with-bait-and-switch-reviews/|title=Amazon still hasn't fixed its problem with bait-and-switch reviews|first=Timothy B.|last=Lee|date=December 30, 2020|website=Ars Technica|access-date=January 10, 2021|archive-date=January 4, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210104215906/https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2020/12/amazon-still-hasnt-fixed-its-problem-with-bait-and-switch-reviews/|url-status=live}}

In 2022, researchers at UCLA found that millions of products purchase fake positive reviews in private Facebook groups.{{cite journal |last1=He |first1=Sherry |last2=Hollenbeck |first2=Brett |last3=Proserpio |first3=Davide |title=The Market for Fake Reviews |journal=Marketing Science |date=2022 |volume=41 |issue=5 |pages=896–921 |doi=10.1287/mksc.2022.1353 |ssrn=3664992 |url=https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3664992|url-access=subscription }} They indicated the widespread use of fake positive reviews by a variety of products, which substantially increase sales. Amazon said that in 2019, the company spent over $500 million and employed more than 8,000 people to stop fake reviews. In July and August 2022, it sued the administrators of 10,000 Facebook groups which coordinate fake product reviews and several companies involved in faking seller feedback and bypassing sales bans.{{cite news |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/amazon-moves-to-block-website-it-says-sells-fake-5-star-feedback/ |title=Amazon moves to block website it says sells fake 5-star feedback |date=August 10, 2022 |author=Lauren Rosenblatt |newspaper=Seattle Times}}

Goodreads has had a number of scandals concerning its book-review system, including a practice known as "review-bombing", which is a form of trolling and extortion used to decrease or inflate an author's book ratings. Reasons for this practice include cancel culture, financial gain, bullying and harassment, defamation and self-promotion. Both traditionally-published authors and self-published authors are targeted. Rin Chupeco, a popular fantasy novelist, has raised concerns that Goodreads leaves moderation primarily in the hands of volunteers with editing privileges and authors marginalized by race, gender, ethnicity and sexual orientation are often targets. Unlike Amazon, Goodreads does not verify if users own (or have access to) books they claim to have read and does not moderate sockpuppetry, trolling or fake accounts.{{cite magazine |last1=McCluskey |first1=Megan |title=How Extortion Scams and Review Bombing Trolls Turned Goodreads Into Many Authors' Worst Nightmare |url=https://time.com/6078993/goodreads-review-bombing/ |magazine=Time |date=August 9, 2021 |publisher=Time Magazine |access-date=29 January 2023}} Goodreads imposed new rules restricting reviews which criticize author behavior, such as those that mock an author's political affiliation or religion. Goodreads staff are responsible for moderating such content, and some malicious content remains publicly posted until the affected party takes legal action.{{cite web |title=Goodreads' growing pains: Attempt to curtail author bullying angers many users |url=https://old.gigaom.com/2013/09/23/goodreads-growing-pains-attempt-to-curtail-author-bullying-angers-many-users/ |website=old.gigaom.com |publisher=Old GigaOm |access-date=29 January 2023 |archive-date=January 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230129161102/https://old.gigaom.com/2013/09/23/goodreads-growing-pains-attempt-to-curtail-author-bullying-angers-many-users/ |url-status=dead }}

IMDb (the Internet Movie Database), like Goodreads, does not verify user access to or viewership of media. According to the website, "IMDb ratings are 'accurate' in the sense that they are calculated using a consistent, unbiased formula, but we don't claim that IMDb ratings are 'accurate' in an absolute qualitative sense. We offer these ratings as a simplified way to see what other IMDb users all over the world think about titles listed on our site."{{cite web |title=Ratings FAQ |url=https://help.imdb.com/article/imdb/track-movies-tv/ratings-faq/G67Y87TFYYP6TWAV?recentlyAuthenticated=true# |website=help.imdb.com |publisher=IMDb |access-date=29 January 2023}} IMDb's ratings system has been questioned. Alyssa Bereznak wrote for The Ringer in 2019, "Last week, HBO’s Chernobyl shot to the top of IMDb’s all-time TV rankings, outperforming other mega-popular hits like Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones, and various stoner-friendly seasons of Planet Earth. And as of Tuesday, it had a 9.6-star (out of 10) average rating from more than 200,000 users on the Amazon-owned entertainment site. To the knee-jerk press, the limited series’ ascension was evidence of a historic hit. The Economist ran with the numbers, comparing them to traffic spikes on the "Chernobyl nuclear disaster" Wikipedia page, declaring the show 'the highest-rated TV series ever', and marveling at the reach of its subject matter." Bereznak said that the ratings were primarily by white male users, noting earlier trolling scandals where media with largely female, racialized casts and crew were ranked lower in a form of review manipulation (particularly if the content was political).{{cite web |last1=Bereznak |first1=Alyssa |title=The Problem With IMDb's Rating System |url=https://www.theringer.com/tv/2019/6/12/18661850/imdb-rating-system-problems-chernobyl |website=www.theringer.com |date=June 12, 2019 |publisher=The Ringer |access-date=29 January 2023}} The debate about whether IMDb's reviews are coming from a mostly-white-male demographic arose again when review manipulation was allegedly used to lower the ratings of Black Panther, which had a mostly-black cast and a racial storyline.{{cite web |last1=Hadden |first1=James |title=Internet Trolls Are Purposely Altering Black Panther IMDb Score |url=https://www.screengeek.net/2018/02/10/black-panther-internet-trolls-imdb/ |website=www.screengeek.net |date=February 10, 2018 |publisher=ScreenGeek |access-date=29 January 2023}}{{cite web |last1=Ridgely |first1=Charlie |title=Internet Trolls Sabotaging 'Black Panther' Score on IMDb |url=https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/black-panther-reviews-sabotage-imdb-score/ |website=comicbook.com |date=February 9, 2018 |publisher=Comicbook |access-date=29 January 2023}}

Kate Erbland wrote for IndieWire that the film-aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes experienced the same type of trolling as IMDb for the 2018 Disney film A Wrinkle in Time, which had an ethnically-diverse cast (including Oprah Winfrey). According to Erbland, "there's no foolproof way to verify that anyone offering up an audience review or rating have actually seen it, and everyone knows it. Gaming the system is so easy that it can be weaponized against films and creators by something as lo-fi as a Facebook group, and that problem will likely only become a more sophisticated one as other groups dedicated to bringing down scores attempt to maneuver around roadblocks."{{cite web |last1=Erbland |first1=Kate |title='A Wrinkle in Time' Proves Rotten Tomatoes User Reviews and IMDb Ratings are Broken |url=https://www.indiewire.com/2018/03/a-wrinkle-in-time-rotten-tomatoes-imdb-ratings-user-reviews-1201938353/ |website=IndieWire |date=March 12, 2018 |access-date=29 January 2023}} Like Goodreads, IMDb has experienced review-bombing; the website halted reviews of the 2022 animated film Lightyear, which includes a same-sex couple briefly kissing.{{cite web |last1=Felt |first1=Klein |title=Chris Evans' Lightyear Gets Review Bombed on IMDb |url=https://thedirect.com/article/chris-evans-lightyear-review-bombed-imdb |website=thedirect.com |date=June 15, 2022 |publisher=The Direct |access-date=29 January 2023}}

{{Main|Amazon tax}}

Amazon's taxes were investigated in China, Germany, Poland, South Korea, France, Japan, Ireland, Singapore, Luxembourg, Italy, Spain, United Kingdom, the United States, and Portugal.{{cite news |date=April 5, 2012 |title=Amazon investigated by UK authorities over tax avoidance |language=en |website=The Independent |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/amazon-investigated-uk-authorities-over-tax-avoidance-7622019.html |url-status=live |url-access=limited |access-date=February 14, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210510183638/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/amazon-investigated-uk-authorities-over-tax-avoidance-7622019.html |archive-date=2021-05-10}} A report released by Fair Tax Mark in 2019 called the company the "worst" offender for tax avoidance, paying a 12-percent effective tax rate between 2010 and 2018 (in contrast with a 35-percent corporate tax rate in the US during the same period). According to Amazon, it had a 24-percent effective tax rate during that period.{{cite web |last=Neate |first=Rupert |date=December 2, 2019 |title=New study deems Amazon worst for 'aggressive' tax avoidance |url=http://www.theguardian.com/business/2019/dec/02/new-study-deems-amazon-worst-for-aggressive-tax-avoidance |access-date=February 14, 2021 |website=The Guardian |language=en}} The Fair Tax Foundation released a follow up report in 2025, and this again listed Amazon as 'the worst'.{{Cite web |last=Turner |first=Natasha |date=2025-04-15 |title=Silicon Six: Three ways to close big tech's enduring tax gap |url=https://fairtaxmark.net/silicon-six-three-ways-to-close-big-techs-enduring-tax-gap/ |access-date=2025-05-19 |website=Fair Tax Foundation |language=en-GB}}{{Cite news |last=Butler |first=Sarah |date=2025-04-14 |title=‘Silicon Six’ accused of avoiding almost $278bn in US corporation taxes over 10 years |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/15/silicon-six-accused-of-avoiding-almost-278bn-in-us-corporation-taxes-over-10-years |access-date=2025-05-19 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}

The announcement of Amazon's plan to build HQ2 (a second headquarters) was met with 238 proposed locations, 20 of which became finalist cities on January 18, 2018.{{cite news |last=Wingfield |first=Nick |date=January 18, 2018 |title=Amazon Chooses 20 Finalists for Second Headquarters |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/18/technology/amazon-finalists-headquarters.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=January 18, 2018 |archive-date=January 18, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180118143246/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/18/technology/amazon-finalists-headquarters.html |url-status=live }} In November of that year, the company was criticized for narrowing this down to "the two richest cities": Long Island City (in New York City) and Arlington, Virginia, in the Washington metropolitan area.{{cite web|url=https://splinternews.com/how-to-stop-the-amazon-extortion-from-happening-again-1830406069|title=How to Stop the Amazon Extortion From Happening Again|first=Hamilton|last=Nolan|publisher=Splinter|date=2018-11-13|access-date=2018-12-14|archive-date=December 15, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215123640/https://splinternews.com/how-to-stop-the-amazon-extortion-from-happening-again-1830406069|url-status=live}} Critics, including business professor Scott Galloway, called the bidding war "a con" and a pretext for gaining tax breaks and inside information for the company.{{cite web | last=Johnson | first=Eric | title=Amazon's HQ2 was a con, not a contest | website=Recode | date=November 9, 2018 | url=https://www.recode.net/2018/11/9/18077342/amazon-hq2-headquarters-jeff-bezos-dc-ny-virginia-long-island-kara-swisher-scott-galloway | access-date=November 14, 2018 | archive-date=November 12, 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181112181743/https://www.recode.net/2018/11/9/18077342/amazon-hq2-headquarters-jeff-bezos-dc-ny-virginia-long-island-kara-swisher-scott-galloway | url-status=live }}{{cite web|url=https://inthesetimes.com/article/21571/the-hq2-scam-how-amazon-used-a-bidding-war-to-scrape-cities-data|title=The HQ2 scam: How Amazon used a bidding war to scrape cities' data|first=David|last=Dayen|publisher=In These Times|date=2018-11-09|access-date=2018-12-14|archive-date=December 15, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215122956/https://inthesetimes.com/article/21571/the-hq2-scam-how-amazon-used-a-bidding-war-to-scrape-cities-data|url-status=live}}

Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez opposed the $1.5 billion in tax subsidies given to Amazon as part of the deal. Ocasio-Cortez said that restoring the city's subway system would be a better use for the money, despite a statement by New York governor Andrew Cuomo that the state would benefit economically.{{cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/13/politics/ocasio-cortez-amazon-hq2/index.html|title=Amazon HQ2: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez pushes back New York location|first=Lydia|last=DePhillis|work=CNN|date=2018-11-13|access-date=2018-12-14|archive-date=December 15, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215123831/https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/13/politics/ocasio-cortez-amazon-hq2/index.html|url-status=live}} Politico then reported that 1,500 affordable homes had been planned for the land occupied by Amazon's new office.{{cite web|url=https://www.politico.com/states/new-york/albany/story/2018/11/15/amazon-deal-will-disrupt-plans-for-affordable-housing-on-long-island-city-sites-700784|title=Amazon deal will disrupt plans for affordable housing on Long Island City sites|work=Politico|date=November 15, 2018 |access-date=December 15, 2018|archive-date=December 13, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181213110622/https://www.politico.com/states/new-york/albany/story/2018/11/15/amazon-deal-will-disrupt-plans-for-affordable-housing-on-long-island-city-sites-700784|url-status=live}} The request by Amazon executives for a helipad at each location was controversial, with a number of New York City Council members calling the proposal frivolous.{{cite web|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-hq2-helipad-demand-slammed-by-city-council-2018-12|title=Amazon HQ2 helipad demand slammed by New York City Council|first=Dennis|last=Green|website=Business Insider|date=2018-12-12|access-date=2018-12-14|archive-date=December 15, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215171330/https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-hq2-helipad-demand-slammed-by-city-council-2018-12|url-status=live}}

In October 2024, Amazon India was accused of rigging giveaway contests in favour of an individual named Chirag Gupta since 2014.{{cite web | last=Jain | first=Sanya | title=Amazon India under fire as one man wins multiple giveaways, accusations of rigged contests emerge | website=Hindustan Times | date=2024-10-10 | url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/trending/amazon-india-under-fire-as-one-man-wins-multiple-giveaways-accusations-of-rigged-contests-emerge-101728532660379.html?utm_source=twitter | access-date=2024-10-11}}

In 2013, Amazon secured a {{USD|600 million}} contract with the CIA which has been described as a potential conflict of interest involving the Bezos-owned Washington Post and his newspaper's coverage of the CIA."[https://www.huffingtonpost.com/norman-solomon/the-cia-amazon-bezos-and_b_4559317.html The CIA, Amazon, Bezos and the Washington Post : An Exchange with Executive Editor Martin Baron] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190111222119/https://www.huffingtonpost.com/norman-solomon/the-cia-amazon-bezos-and_b_4559317.html|date=January 11, 2019}}". The Huffington Post. January 8, 2014.{{cite web |last1=Streitfeld |first1=David |last2=Haughney |first2=Christine |date=August 18, 2013 |title=Expecting the Unexpected From Jeff Bezos |url=https://nytimes.com/2013/08/18/business/expecting-the-unexpected-from-jeff-bezos.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190320074118/https://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/18/business/expecting-the-unexpected-from-jeff-bezos.html |archive-date=March 20, 2019 |access-date=December 15, 2018 |work=The New York Times}} This was followed by a bid for a {{USD|10 billion}} contract with the Department of Defense. Although critics initially considered the government's preference for Amazon a foregone conclusion, the defense contract was signed with Microsoft.{{cite magazine |last=Jeong |first=May |date=2018-08-13 |title="Everybody immediately knew that it was for Amazon": Has Bezos become more powerful in DC than Trump? |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2018/08/has-bezos-become-more-powerful-in-dc-than-trump |url-status=live |magazine=Vanity Fair |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180821034524/https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2018/08/has-bezos-become-more-powerful-in-dc-than-trump |archive-date=August 21, 2018 |access-date=2018-09-14}}{{cite web |date=2019-10-26 |title=Microsoft wins Pentagon's $10bn cloud computing contract |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/oct/26/microsoft-wins-pentagons-10bn-cloud-computing-contract |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191118022426/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/oct/26/microsoft-wins-pentagons-10bn-cloud-computing-contract |archive-date=November 18, 2019 |access-date=2019-11-21 |work=The Guardian}}

Amazon, "committed to diversity, equity and inclusion", has ceded to the censorship demands of several countries.{{cite news |date=June 30, 2022 |title=Pride: Amazon restricts LGBT goods in United Arab Emirates |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-61991140 |access-date=30 June 2022}} In 2021, the company's Chinese website complied with an order from the Chinese government to remove customer reviews and ratings for a book about Chinese Communist Party general secretary Xi Jinping's speeches and writings. The book's comments section was also disabled.{{cite news |last1=Stecklow |first1=Steve |last2=Dastin |first2=Jeffrey |date=December 18, 2021 |title=Special Report: Amazon partnered with China propaganda arm |website=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/china/amazon-partnered-with-china-propaganda-arm-win-beijings-favor-document-shows-2021-12-17/ |access-date=18 December 2021}} In 2022, Amazon yielded to a UAE government demand and restricted LGBTQ products on its Emirati website. Documents indicated that, threatened with unknown penalties, Amazon removed searches for over 150 keywords related to LGBTQ products. A number of books were also blocked, including My Lesbian Experience With Loneliness by Nagata Kabi, Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe, and Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay.{{cite news |last1=Weise |first1=Karen |date=June 29, 2022 |title=Amazon Restricts L.G.B.T.Q. Products in United Arab Emirates |website=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/29/business/amazon-lgbtq-uae-emirates.html |access-date=29 June 2022}}{{cite web |date=June 30, 2022 |title=United Arab Emirates: Amazon agrees to remove LGBT products from its search results |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2022/jun/30/amazon-bows-to-uae-pressure-to-restrict-lgbt-search-results |access-date=30 June 2022 |website=The Guardian}} Amazon said that the company was required to "comply with the local laws and regulations of the countries in which we operate".

Project Nimbus is a $1.2 billion agreement in which Amazon and Google will provide Israel and its military with artificial intelligence, machine learning, and other cloud-computing services, including local cloud sites which will "keep information within Israel's borders under strict security guidelines."{{Cite news |last=Grant |first=Nico |date=2022-08-30 |title=Google Employee Who Played Key Role in Protest of Contract With Israel Quits |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/30/technology/google-employee-israel.html |access-date=2022-08-30 |issn=0362-4331}}{{Cite web |last=Biddle |first=Sam |date=July 24, 2022 |title=Documents Reveal Advanced AI Tools Google Is Selling to Israel |url=https://theintercept.com/2022/07/24/google-israel-artificial-intelligence-project-nimbus/ |access-date=2022-08-30 |website=The Intercept |language=en}}{{Cite news |date=2021-04-21 |title=Israel picks Amazon's AWS, Google for flagship cloud project |language=en |work=Reuters |agency=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-picks-amazons-aws-google-flagship-cloud-project-2021-04-21/ |access-date=2022-08-31}} The contract has been criticized by shareholders and employees concerned that the project may lead to abuses of Palestinian human rights in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict.{{Cite web |last=Biddle |first=Sam |date=May 18, 2022 |title=Google and Amazon Face Shareholder Revolt Over Israeli Defense Work |url=https://theintercept.com/2022/05/18/google-amazon-israel-military-nimbus/ |access-date=2022-08-30 |website=The Intercept |language=en}}{{Cite news |date=2021-10-12 |title=We are Google and Amazon workers. We condemn Project Nimbus Anonymous Google and Amazon workers |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2021/oct/12/google-amazon-workers-condemn-project-nimbus-israeli-military-contract |access-date=2022-08-30 |newspaper=The Guardian |language=en}} Concerns have been voiced about how the technology will facilitate the surveillance of Palestinians, unlawful data collection, and the expansion of Israeli settlements.

The UK government has given Amazon access to healthcare information published by the National Health Service.{{cite web |date=December 6, 2019 |title=Alexa, what is hidden behind your contract with the NHS? |url=https://privacyinternational.org/long-read/3298/alexa-what-hidden-behind-your-contract-nhs |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200125112306/https://privacyinternational.org/long-read/3298/alexa-what-hidden-behind-your-contract-nhs |archive-date=January 25, 2020 |access-date=January 24, 2020 |website=Privacy International |language=en-US}} The data will be used by Amazon's Alexa to answer medical questions, although Alexa also uses other sources of information. The material, which excludes patient data, could also allow the company to sell its products. The contract allows Amazon access to information on symptoms, causes, and definitions of conditions and "all related copyrightable content and data and other materials". Amazon can then create "new products, applications, cloud-based services and/or distributed software", from which the NHS will not financially benefit and which can be shared with third parties. The government said that allowing Alexa devices to offer health advice to users will reduce pressure on doctors and pharmacists.{{cite web |last=Walker |first=Amy |date=December 8, 2019 |title=NHS gives Amazon free use of health data under Alexa advice deal |url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/dec/08/nhs-gives-amazon-free-use-of-health-data-under-alexa-advice-deal |access-date=January 24, 2020 |website=The Guardian}}

In May 2018, Amazon threatened the Seattle City Council about an employee head-tax proposal which would have funded houselessness services and low-income housing. The tax would have cost Amazon about $800 per employee, or 0.7 percent of their average salary.{{Cite news |date=May 2, 2018 |title=Amazon puts high-profile Seattle plans on ice over proposal to tax large employers |language=en-US |work=The Seattle Times |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/business/amazon/amazon-pauses-plans-for-seattle-office-towers-while-city-council-considers-business-tax/ |access-date=May 3, 2018}} In response, Amazon paused construction on a new building, threatened to limit further investment in the city, and funded a repeal campaign. The measure, which originally passed, was repealed after a costly campaign spearheaded by Amazon.{{Cite news |date=July 13, 2018 |title='Show of force': Business-backed opponents of Seattle head tax outspent supporters 2 to 1 |language=en-US |work=The Seattle Times |url=https://seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/business-backed-opponents-of-seattle-head-tax-outspent-supporters-2-to-1/ |access-date=July 17, 2018}}

Incentives from the Metropolitan Council of Nashville and Davidson County to Amazon for the company's new Operations Center of Excellence in Nashville Yards (owned by Southwest Value Partners) have been controversial, including a decision by the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development to keep the full extent of the agreement secret.{{cite news |last1=Reicher |first1=Mike |date=January 4, 2019 |title=Tennessee wants to keep its incentives offer for Amazon's HQ2 secret for 5 years |work=The Tennessean |url=https://tennessean.com/story/news/2019/01/04/tennessee-amazon-incentives-kept-secret-five-years-public-records-original-pitch/2482548002/ |access-date=January 6, 2019}} Incentives include "$102 million in combined grants and tax credits for a scaled-down Amazon office building" and "a $65 million cash grant for capital expenditures" in exchange for the creation of 5,000 jobs over a seven-year period.

The Tennessee Coalition for Open Government called for more transparency. The People's Alliance for Transit, Housing, and Employment (PATHE), another local organization, suggested that no public money should be given to Amazon; instead, it should be spent on building more public housing for the working poor and the homeless and investing in more public transportation for city residents.{{cite news |last1=White |first1=Peter |date=December 13, 2018 |title=Will Amazon be Naughty or Nice? |work=Tennessee Tribune |url=https://tntribune.com/community/local/nashville/will-amazon-be-naughty-or-nice/ |access-date=December 21, 2018 |quote=PATHE does not want Metro to give Amazon a dime. They want the city to build at least 5,000 more affordable homes to address the "Amazon effect" on the local housing market. And they want a new transit referendum that focuses on the needs of working people and better public bus service. |archive-date=December 15, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181215112120/http://tntribune.com/community/local/nashville/will-amazon-be-naughty-or-nice/ |url-status=dead }} Others suggested that incentives to large corporations do not improve the local economy.{{cite news |last1=Mazza |first1=Sandy |date=November 19, 2018 |title=Did Tennessee taxpayers get a good deal with $102M Amazon payment? |work=The Tennessean |url=https://tennessean.com/story/money/2018/11/19/critics-worry-amazon-incentives-drain-community-services/1989884002/ |access-date=February 11, 2019}}

The proposal to give Amazon $15 million in incentives was criticized by the Nashville Firefighters Union and the Nashville chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police in November 2018,{{cite news |last1=Koehn |first1=Alexandra |date=November 29, 2018 |title=Metro employees feel 'left behind' after no pay raise |work=News Channel 5 |url=https://www.newschannel5.com/news/metro-employees-feel-left-behind-after-no-pay-raise |access-date=December 12, 2018}} who called it "corporate welfare."{{cite news |date=November 30, 2018 |title=Nashville police union: Amazon getting 'corporate welfare' |work=Associated Press |url=https://www.apnews.com/0a82b2c4d5ed4095b9bd4a1544f4615a |access-date=February 10, 2019}} In February 2019, another $15.2 million in infrastructure was approved by the council. It was opposed by three council members, including Angie Henderson (who called it "cronyism").{{cite news |last1=Garrison |first1=Joey |date=February 6, 2019 |title=Nashville council approves $15M in infrastructure work for future home of Amazon hub |work=The Tennessean |url=https://tennessean.com/story/news/2019/02/06/nashville-approves-15-m-infrastructure-future-home-amazon-hub/2777894002/ |access-date=February 10, 2019}}

In early 2018, US president Donald Trump repeatedly criticized Amazon's use of the United States Postal Service for the delivery of packages. "I am right about Amazon costing the United States Post Office massive amounts of money for being their Delivery Boy," Trump tweeted. "Amazon should pay these costs (plus) and not have them {{Sic|bourne}} by the American Taxpayer."{{Cite news |last=Franck |first=Thomas |date=April 3, 2018 |title=Amazon shares turn negative after Trump bashes company for a fourth time in a week |work=CNBC |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2018/04/03/amazon-shares-turn-negative-after-trump-bashes-company-for-a-fourth-time-in-a-week.html |access-date=April 3, 2018}} Amazon stock shares fell by six percent as a result of Trump's comments. Shepard Smith of Fox News disputed Trump's claims, citing evidence that the USPS was offering below-market prices to all customers and no advantage to Amazon. Analyst Tom Forte said that Amazon's payments to the USPS are not made public, however, and their contract is reportedly "a sweetheart deal".{{Cite news |title=Amazon shares fall 6 percent as Trump renews attack |language=en-US |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-amazon-com-trump/amazon-shares-fall-6-percent-as-trump-renews-attack-idUSKCN1H9185 |access-date=April 3, 2018}}{{Cite news |last=Manchester |first=Julia |title=Fox's Shep Smith fact-checks Trump's Amazon claims: 'None of that was true' |language=en-US |work=The Hill |url=https://thehill.com/homenews/media/381542-foxs-shep-smith-fact-checks-trumps-amazon-claims-none-of-that-was-true/ |access-date=April 3, 2018}}

Amazon has worked with the Chinese technology company Hikvision. According to The Nation, "The United States has considered sanctioning Hikvision, which has provided thousands of cameras that monitor mosques, schools, and concentration camps in Xinjiang."{{cite news |title=How the Left Should Respond to Ethnic Cleansing in China |url=https://www.thenation.com/article/left-foreign-policy-china/ |work=The Nation |date=January 15, 2019 |access-date=January 17, 2019 |archive-date=February 17, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200217134819/https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/left-foreign-policy-china/ |url-status=live }}

{{Main|Palantir Technologies#ICE Partnership (since 2014)}}

Amazon provides cloud web hosting services via Amazon Web Services (AWS) to Palantir,{{Cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/rachelsandler/2019/07/11/internal-email-amazon-faces-pressure-from-more-than-500-employees-to-cut-ties-with-palantir-for-working-with-ice/|title=Internal Email: Amazon Faces Pressure From More Than 500 Employees To Cut Ties With Palantir For Working With ICE|last=Sandler|first=Rachel|website=Forbes|language=en|access-date=2019-08-04|archive-date=August 4, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190804194704/https://www.forbes.com/sites/rachelsandler/2019/07/11/internal-email-amazon-faces-pressure-from-more-than-500-employees-to-cut-ties-with-palantir-for-working-with-ice/|url-status=live}} a data-analysis company which has developed software used to gather data on undocumented immigrants and hosted on Amazon's AWS cloud.{{Cite web|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-employees-letter-protest-palantir-ice-camps-2019-7|title=Read the internal letter sent by a group of Amazon employees asking the company to take a stand against ICE|last=Chan|first=Rosalie|website=Business Insider|access-date=2019-09-25|archive-date=September 25, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190925142741/https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-employees-letter-protest-palantir-ice-camps-2019-7|url-status=live}} In June 2018, Amazon employees signed a letter demanding that the company drop Palantir from AWS. According to Forbes, Palantir "has come under scrutiny because its software has been used by ICE agents to identify and start deportation proceedings against undocumented migrants."

On July 7, 2019, Make the Road New York and local leaders connected with Jews for Racial and Economic Justice led a protest by over 1,000 people in response to Amazon's financial ties to Palantir and its $150 million in contracts with the U.S. Immigration Customs Enforcement Agency (ICE). The protest shut down Amazon's midtown-Manhattan location of Amazon Books and was held on Tisha B'Av, the Jewish day of mourning and fasting which commemorates the destruction of ancient temples in Jerusalem.{{Cite web|url=https://jewschool.com/2019/08/171170/tisha-bav-closethecamps-nyc-amazon-action-a-protest-in-pictures/|title=Tisha B'Av #CloseTheCamps NYC Amazon action: a protest in pictures · Jewschool|date=2019-08-13|website=Jewschool|language=en-US|access-date=2019-09-25|archive-date=September 25, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190925142754/https://jewschool.com/2019/08/171170/tisha-bav-closethecamps-nyc-amazon-action-a-protest-in-pictures/|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/protesters-gather-at-amazon-in-manhattan-to-protest-companys-ice-involvement/|title=Hundreds protest at Amazon store in Manhattan against company's ICE involvement|website=CBS News|date=August 12, 2019 |language=en-US|access-date=2019-09-25|archive-date=September 14, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190914032650/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/protesters-gather-at-amazon-in-manhattan-to-protest-companys-ice-involvement/|url-status=live}}

In late May 2020, before its May 27 shareholders' meeting, at least eleven local news stations aired identically-worded segments which spoke positively about Amazon's response to the coronavirus pandemic.{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/may/26/amazon-local-news-segments-pr-coronavirus|title=US local news stations air segments on Amazon penned by company's PR team|first=Kari|last=Paul|website=TheGuardian.com |date=2020-05-26|access-date=2020-05-28|archive-date=May 28, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200528185330/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/may/26/amazon-local-news-segments-pr-coronavirus|url-status=live}} Zach Rael, an anchor for the Oklahoma City station KOCO-TV, posted that Amazon had tried to send him the same prepared package.{{cite web|url=https://www.avclub.com/oh-cool-amazon-is-dictating-the-local-news-now-1843705714|title=Oh cool, Amazon is dictating the local news now|first=Reid|last=McCarter|publisher=AV Club|date=2020-05-27|access-date=2020-05-28|archive-date=June 4, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200604102522/https://news.avclub.com/oh-cool-amazon-is-dictating-the-local-news-now-1843705714|url-status=live}} Senator and Amazon critic Bernie Sanders condemned the coverage, calling it propaganda.{{cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicholasreimann/2020/05/26/amazon-sent-out-a-scripted-news-segment-and-11-stations-aired-it/#58ba230448b9|title=Amazon sent out a scripted news segment, and 11 stations aired it|first=Nicholas|last=Reimann|work=Forbes|date=2020-05-26|access-date=2020-05-28|archive-date=May 27, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200527040142/https://www.forbes.com/sites/nicholasreimann/2020/05/26/amazon-sent-out-a-scripted-news-segment-and-11-stations-aired-it/#58ba230448b9|url-status=live}} Most of the provided video was narrated by Amazon public-relations manager Todd Walker.{{cite web|url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/local-news-stations-run-propaganda-segments-scripted-and-produced-by-amazon/|title=Local news stations run propaganda segment scripted and produced by Amazon|first=Lauren|last=Gurley|publisher=Vice|date=2020-05-27|access-date=2020-05-28|archive-date=May 28, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200528144830/https://www.vice.com/en_uk/article/4ayvwb/local-news-stations-run-propaganda-segments-scripted-and-produced-by-amazon|url-status=live}} Of the eleven identified channels, WTVG in Toledo, Ohio was the only one that attributed the statements to Walker.{{cite web|url=https://www.theverge.com/2020/5/26/21271137/amazon-propaganda-tv-news-stations-coronavirus-covid-19-safety|title=Amazon gave TV stations coronavirus propaganda, and some aired it|first=Nick|last=Statt|publisher=The Verge|date=2020-05-26|access-date=2020-05-28|archive-date=May 27, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200527040105/https://www.theverge.com/2020/5/26/21271137/amazon-propaganda-tv-news-stations-coronavirus-covid-19-safety|url-status=live}}

In 1999, the Amazon Bookstore Cooperative in Minneapolis, Minnesota sued amazon.com for trademark infringement. The cooperative had been using the name "Amazon" since 1970, and reached an out-of-court agreement to share the name with the online retailer.{{cite news |url=http://amazon.com |title=Bookstore Settle Suit |publisher=InternetNews |date=November 4, 1999 |access-date=June 27, 2010 |archive-date=August 28, 1999 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19990828014913/http://www.amazon.com/ |url-status=live }}

In 2014, UK courts ruled that Amazon had infringed the trademark of Lush soap. Lush (the soap manufacturer) had not made its products available on Amazon, but the company advertised alternative products via Google searches for "Lush soap".{{cite news |url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/03/07/us-amazon-britain-tax-idUKBREA261GK20140307 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140312062040/http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/03/07/us-amazon-britain-tax-idUKBREA261GK20140307 |url-status=dead |archive-date=March 12, 2014 |title=UK court ruling may prompt more scrutiny of Amazon tax plans |work=Reuters | last=Bergin | first=Tom | date=March 7, 2014 |access-date=March 14, 2014}}

In September 2009, Amazon was selling MP3 music downloads falsely suggesting that a well-known Premier League football manager was a sex offender. Despite a campaign urging the retailer to withdraw the item, Amazon cited freedom of speech.{{Cite web|title=Arsenal fans call for Amazon boycott over sale of disgusting Wenger chant|url=https://www.sport.co.uk/news/Football/26223/Arsenal_fans_call_for_Amazon_boycott_over_sale_of_disgusting_Wenger_chant.aspx|access-date=2021-01-10|website=www.sport.co.uk|archive-date=August 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210808141833/https://www.sport.co.uk/news/Football/26223/Arsenal_fans_call_for_Amazon_boycott_over_sale_of_disgusting_Wenger_chant.aspx|url-status=live}} The company eventually decided to withdraw the item from its UK website when legal action was threatened.{{cite web

|url=http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/UK-News/Obscene-Wenger-Chant-CD-Amazon-Withdraw-Manchester-United-Fan-Song-After-Arsenal-Outrage/Article/200909115375127?lpos=UK_News_Top_Stories_Header_4&lid=ARTICLE_15375127_Obscene_Wenger_Chant_CD%3A_Amazon_Withdraw_Manchester_United_Fan_Song_After_Arsenal_Outrage

|title=Amazon Climbdown Over Obscene Wenger CD

|access-date=December 28, 2009

|archive-date=March 14, 2022

|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220314221445/https://news.sky.com/?lpos=UK_News_Top_Stories_Header_4&lid=ARTICLE_15375127_Obscene_Wenger_Chant_CD%3A_Amazon_Withdraw_Manchester_United_Fan_Song_After_Arsenal_Outrage

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In October 2011, actress Junie Hoang filed a $1 million lawsuit against Amazon in Washington's Western District Court for allegedly revealing her age on Amazon subsidiary IMDb with details from her credit card. The lawsuit, which alleged fraud, breach of contract and violation of her private life and consumer rights, said that after joining IMDbPro in 2008 to increase her chances of getting roles, Hoang said that her date of birth had been added to her public profile; she is older than she looks, and received less acting work and earnings. According to Hoang, IMDb refused her request to remove the information in question.[https://news.yahoo.com/actress-sues-amazon-revealing-age-film-database-195731388.html "Actress sues Amazon for revealing age on film database"]. Yahoo! News. October 17, 2011 {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111022053950/http://news.yahoo.com/actress-sues-amazon-revealing-age-film-database-195731388.html |date=October 22, 2011 }} All claims against Amazon, and most claims against IMDb, were dismissed by Judge Marsha J. Pechman; the jury found for IMDb on the sole remaining claim. In February 2015, the case against IMDb was under appeal.{{Update inline|date=November 2023}}{{cite web |title=Calendar for Seattle, Washington |url=http://www.ca9.uscourts.gov/calendar/view.php?caseno=13-35390 |publisher=United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit |access-date=November 24, 2014 |archive-date=March 14, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220314221513/https://www.ca9.uscourts.gov/calendar/view/?caseno=13-35390 |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last1=Gardner |first1=Eriq |title=Appeals Court Hears the Scary Things That Can Happen to Actors Who Lie to IMDb |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/appeals-court-hears-scary-things-770835 |access-date=February 10, 2015 |agency=Hollywood Reporter |date=February 6, 2015 |archive-date=February 8, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150208131709/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/appeals-court-hears-scary-things-770835 |url-status=live }}

After Nova Scotian actor Elliot Page and American actress Laverne Cox came out as transgender in 2020, IMDb changed its legal policy about proper names on actor biographies; exceptions were made for people who had changed their names, so their birth name would not appear on IMDb profiles. The change was made after an outcry from LGBTQ+ support groups and organizations; GLAAD director of transgender representation Nick Adams told The New York Times, "To reveal a transgender person’s birth name without their explicit permission is an invasion of privacy that only serves to undermine the trans person's true authentic identity, and can put them at risk for discrimination, even violence." GLAAD agreed to support a SAG-AFTRA legal challenge which sought to restrict the personal information that IMDb can publish.{{cite web |last1=Nakamura |first1=Reid |title=GLAAD Calls Out IMDb for 'Deadnaming' Trans Actors |url=https://www.thewrap.com/glaad-calls-out-imdb-for-deadnaming-trans-actors/ |website=www.thewrap.com |date=June 27, 2019 |publisher=The Wrap |access-date=8 August 2022}}{{cite web |last1=Shoard |first1=Catherine |title=IMDb changes names policy after transgender protest |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2019/aug/13/imdb-names-policy-transgender-protest-dead-naming-lgbtq |website=The Guardian |date=August 13, 2019 |access-date=8 August 2022}}{{cite web |last1=Dry |first1=Jude |title=IMDb Changes Birth Name Policy Following Outcry From Transgender Community |url=https://www.indiewire.com/2019/08/imdb-changes-policy-transgender-birth-name-deadnaming-1202165442/ |website=IndieWire |date=August 13, 2019 |publisher=Indie Wire |access-date=8 August 2022}}

{{Main|Criticism of Amazon's environmental impact}}

File:Eyes on Amazon shareholders day of action, Boston, Massachusetts, May 24, 2021-003.jpg

Amazon has been criticized for a number of negative effects on the environment including, but not limited to, high carbon footprint, high plastic pollution, anti-environmental lobbying, and greenwashing.{{Cite web |last1=Boylan |first1=Lynn |last2=Dufour |first2=Alma |date=2023-11-24 |title=Amazon's Climate Pledge Was a Lie |url=https://jacobin.com/2023/11/black-friday-amazon-climate-footprint-worker-organizing |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231201074531/https://jacobin.com/2023/11/black-friday-amazon-climate-footprint-worker-organizing/ |archive-date=2023-12-01 |access-date=2024-08-04 |website=Jacobin |language=en-US}}{{Cite news |last=Rannard |first=Georgina |date=2022-02-07 |title=Climate change: Top companies exaggerating their progress - study |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-60248830 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207012110/https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-60248830 |archive-date=2022-02-07 |access-date=2024-08-04 |work=BBC |language=en-GB}}

The company founded The Climate Pledge in 2019, a commitment to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2040, for itself and other signatories. Critics have called this greenwashing due to the disconnect between stated goals and on-the-ground impact.{{Cite web |last1=Trattner |first1=Sydney |last2=Taddonio |first2=Patrice |date=2020-02-18 |title=Bezos' $10 Billion Climate Pledge Makes No Mention of Amazon's Climate Impact |url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/bezos-10-billion-climate-pledge-amazon-climate-impact/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200219193307/https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/bezos-10-billion-climate-pledge-amazon-climate-impact/ |archive-date=2020-02-19 |access-date=2024-08-04 |website=FRONTLINE |publisher=PBS |language=en-US}} Amazon has also been criticized for refusing to disclose their emissions aligned with the Greenhouse Gas Protocol standards, and has consistently been given a rating of F by the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP).{{Cite web |last=Higgins-Dunn |first=Noah |date=2019-03-08 |title=Jeff Bezos is finally ending secrecy over Amazon's role in carbon emissions |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2019/03/08/jeff-bezos-to-end-secrecy-over-amazons-role-in-carbon-emissions.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190309011416/https://www.cnbc.com/2019/03/08/jeff-bezos-to-end-secrecy-over-amazons-role-in-carbon-emissions.html |archive-date=2019-03-09 |access-date=2024-08-04 |website=CNBC |language=en}}

Amazon has been persecuted for violating environmental and labor laws on multiple occasions. They have often settled out of court.{{Cite web |last=Palmer |first=Annie |date=2021-04-05 |title=Labor board finds Amazon illegally fired activist workers |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2021/04/05/labor-board-reportedly-finds-amazon-illegally-fired-activist-workers.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210405133758/https://www.cnbc.com/2021/04/05/labor-board-reportedly-finds-amazon-illegally-fired-activist-workers.html |archive-date=2021-04-05 |access-date=2024-08-04 |website=CNBC |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=2018-02-15 |title=Amazon to pay $1.2 million in settlement over pesticide sales |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-amazon-com-usa-pesticides/amazon-to-pay-1-2-million-in-settlement-over-pesticide-sales-u-s-says-idUSKCN1FZ2LN/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180215213551/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-amazon-com-usa-pesticides/amazon-to-pay-1-2-million-in-settlement-over-pesticide-sales-u-s-says-idUSKCN1FZ2LN |archive-date=2018-02-15 |access-date=2024-08-03 |website=Reuters}}

File:Amazon truck illegally parked in a DC bicycle lane.jpg

Amazon Prime has been criticized for its vehicles systemically double parking, blocking bike lanes, and otherwise violating traffic laws while dropping off packages, contributing to traffic congestion and endangering other road users.{{cite news |last1=Haag |first1=Matthew |last2=Hu |first2=Winnie |title=1.5 Million Packages a Day: The Internet Brings Chaos to N.Y. Streets |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/27/nyregion/nyc-amazon-delivery.html |access-date=13 December 2024 |work=The New York Times|date=October 27, 2019 }}{{cite news |last1=Dungca |first1=Nicole |title=Seeing Red: Ride-hailing, deliveries add traffic to Boston's crowded streets |url=https://apps.bostonglobe.com/metro/investigations/spotlight/2019/11/21/seeing-red/convenience-culture-makes-traffic-worse/ |access-date=13 December 2024 |work=The Boston Globe |date=November 21, 2019 |language=en}}{{cite news |last1=Bergmann |first1=Joy |title=Locals Decry 'Total Madness' of Delivery Truck Parking; Proposed City Council Bill May Help |url=https://www.westsiderag.com/2019/01/28/locals-decry-total-madness-of-delivery-truck-parking-proposed-city-council-bill-may-help |access-date=13 December 2024 |work=West Side Rag |date=28 January 2019}}{{cite news |last1=Caldwell |first1=Christopher |title=Something Has Changed on City Streets, and Amazon Is to Blame |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/17/opinion/amazon-delivery-trucks-urban-planning.html |access-date=13 December 2024 |work=The New York Times |date=17 August 2023 |language=en}}

One of the first books critical of Amazon was a Canadian collection of essays, Against Amazon: Seven Arguments. The book was originally hand-bound and printed in a limited run by author Jorge Carrión before it was picked up by the independent Canadian publisher Biblioasis, when it sold well and began appearing in university bookstores.{{cite web |last1=Carrión |first1=Jorge |title=Against Amazon: The Story Behind A Canadian Publishing Phenomenon |url=https://www.chatelaine.com/living/books/against-amazon/ |website=www.chatelaine.com |date=November 18, 2020 |publisher=Chatelaine |access-date=2 September 2022}} Another such book was How to Resist Amazon and Why by Danny Caine, published by Raven Books and widely distributed in North America. The book referred to Amazon as "Scamazon" (a portmanteau of "Amazon" and "scam"), and contained information about shopping locally and avoiding Amazon.{{cite web |title=How to Resist Amazon and Why: The Fight for Local Economics, Data Privacy, Fair Labor, Independent Bookstores, and a People-Powered Future! |url=https://microcosmpublishing.com/catalog/books/12043 |website=microcosmpublishing.com |publisher=Microcosm Publishing |access-date=2 September 2022}}{{cite web |title=How to Resist Amazon and Why: The Fight for Local Economics, Data Privacy, Fair Labor, Independent Bookstores, and a People-Powered Future! |url=https://www.harvard.com/book/how_to_resist_amazon_and_why/ |website=www.harvard.com |publisher=Harvard University |access-date=2 September 2022}}{{cite web |last1=Berens |first1=Kathi Inman |last2=Noorda |first2=Rachel |last3=op de Beeck |first3=Nathalie |title=PLA & Pacific Northwest Spotlight: Publishing in the Pacific Northwest |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/libraries/article/88679-pla-pacific-northwest-spotlight-publishing-in-the-pacific-northwest.html |website=www.publishersweekly.com |publisher=Publishers Weekly |access-date=2 September 2022}}{{cite web |last1=Kirch |first1=Claire |title=The Raven Book Store Owner Sells Large Stake in Store to Seven Employees |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/bookselling/article/88208-the-raven-book-store-owner-sells-half-of-store-to-seven-employees.html |website=www.publishersweekly.com |publisher=Publishers Weekly |access-date=2 September 2022}}

The Virginia-based Alliance for Main Street Fairness ran a number of television ads in 2011 with an anti-Amazon theme, encouraging customers to shop responsibly. This was partly due to a proposed bill which would have forced Amazon to be pay more taxes.{{cite web |title=Retailers launch anti-Amazon TV ad |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/morning_call/2011/05/retailers-launch-anti-amazon-tv-ad.html |website=www.bizjournals.com |publisher=Nashville Business Journal |access-date=2 September 2022}}{{cite web |last1=Sher |first1=Andy |title=Retail coalition launches anti-Amazon television ad |url=https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2011/may/10/retail-coalition-launches-anti-amazon-television-a/?breakingnews |website=www.timesfreepress.com |date=May 10, 2011 |publisher=Chattanooga Times Free Press |access-date=2 September 2022}}

Canadian resident Ali Haberstroh became frustrated with the number of brick-and-mortar business closures in the country in 2020 and created an advertising website called Not Amazon, which promotes businesses and corporations not affiliated with Amazon. The Guardian published an article about the website that year, by which time Not Amazon had received 350,000 visitors. Amazon had no comment about the article.{{cite web |title=Not Amazon |url=https://www.not-amazon.co/ |website=www.not-amazon.co |publisher=Not Amazon |access-date=12 February 2023}}{{cite news |last1=Cecco |first1=Leyland |title=Not Amazon: Canadian website takes on the online giant |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/dec/18/not-amazon-canada-independent-businesses-directory |website=The Guardian |date=December 18, 2020 |access-date=12 February 2023}}

The 2018 browser game You Are Jeff Bezos satirized the extent of Jeff Bezos' wealth, with the player cast as Bezos and tasked with spending his net worth.{{Cite web |last=Whalen |first=Andrew |date=2018-10-22 |title=Redistribute Jeff Bezos's Net Worth in Anti-Billionaire Game |url=https://www.newsweek.com/jeff-bezos-net-worth-charity-game-amazon-founder-giving-pledge-space-company-1181820 |access-date=2023-10-01 |website=Newsweek |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221226090204/http://www.newsweek.com/jeff-bezos-net-worth-charity-game-amazon-founder-giving-pledge-space-company-1181820 |archive-date=2022-12-26 |url-status=live}}{{Cite web |last=Ligman |first=Kris |date=2018-11-18 |title=You Are Jeff Bezos postmortem |url=https://venturebeat.com/pc-gaming/you-are-jeff-bezos-postmortem/ |access-date=2023-10-01 |website=VentureBeat |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221206044129/https://venturebeat.com/pc-gaming/you-are-jeff-bezos-postmortem/ |archive-date=2022-12-06 |url-status=live}}

{{Reflist|group=note}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite episode |title=Amazon Empire: The Rise and Reign of Jeff Bezos |series=FRONTLINE |series-link=Frontline (American TV program) |network=PBS |station=WGBH |date=February 18, 2020 |season=38 |number=13 |url=https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/documentary/amazon-empire/ |access-date=November 21, 2022}}
• {{Cite web |last=Lehane |first=Dennis |date=6 May 2022 |orig-year=4 April 2017 |title=What's Wrong with Amazon? |url=https://socialjusticebooks.org/about/why-boycott-amazon |publisher=Social Justice Books}}
• {{Cite web |last=Shepard |first=Wade |date=13 December 2017 |title=How to Avoid Dangerous Counterfeits on Amazon This Holiday Season |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/wadeshepard/2017/12/13/how-to-protect-your-family-from-dangerous-fakes-on-amazon-this-holiday-season/ |work=Forbes}}
• {{Cite web |last=Stallman |first=Richard |author-link=Richard Stallman |date=n.d. |title=Reasons not to buy from Amazon |url=https://stallman.org/amazon.html |publisher=stallman.org}}

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Category:Tech sector trade unions