We know that being at the top of the search results on Amazon is prime real estate for sellers. Good sales and good reviews help get you there, but some sellers are gaming the algorithm themselves with fake reviews.. But how big of a problem is it - and have you been duped? In this Which? Investigation Greg Foot speaks to Which? experts about their recent investigations: setting up a fake company on Facebook Business to find out how much fake reviews cost, discovering that an ‘Amazon Choice’ bad...
Nov 12, 2021•35 min•Season 2Ep. 4
With tales of contactless cards being ‘skimmed’ by hackers, and occasions where online bank services drop out for hours on end, where should we be keeping our money? As the use of cash continues to decline, will it soon be a thing of the past? And how safe really is cryptocurrency? In this Which? Investigation Greg Foot is joined by Lucia Ariano and the Which? Money team to find out more about how to protect our digital money. We find out who controls it, what our use of it tells them abou...
Nov 05, 2021•42 min•Season 2Ep. 3
It’s not just the smart tech inside your home that could be at risk from hackers. With modern technology making new cars often more computer than combustion engine, we look at whether someone could take control of your vehicle… while you’re driving! In this Which? Investigation Greg Foot speaks to experts to find out whether making our cars smarter makes hacking more likely, what digital techniques thieves use to steal connected cars, and what you can do to protect yours. Show notes and referenc...
Oct 28, 2021•30 min•Season 2Ep. 2
We start our new ‘tech & security’ season with a look at whether the smart devices more and more of us are installing in our homes could give hackers easy access to our lives and data. In this Which? Investigation Greg Foot speaks to experts and fellow Which? journalists to discover how vulnerable we really are, and quickly learns that any connected device could leave your home open to cyber attack - from your TV, to your doorbell, your printer, and even a baby monitor. Greg asks, if a casin...
Oct 21, 2021•38 min•Season 2Ep. 1
A chance to hear more from three of the conversations we had whilst recording the second half of season one: 02.35 - 16.12 Justin Francis, CEO of Responsible Travel, discusses whether a trip abroad can ever be truly ‘sustainable’. 17.58 - 34.02 Mike Berners-Lee, climate impact expert, explains how to work out a carbon footprint and the impact working from home has on the planet. 36.20 - 47.33 Olivia Bowen, partner and financial advisor at Castlefield, chats about ‘ethical’ investing and what a ‘...
Aug 05, 2021•50 min
There’s a shocking claim that if you eat less meat to cut your food footprint, drive an EV to reduce your travel emissions, or choose products that don’t contribute to deforestation, the eco-benefits of all of those could be completely undone by something else, something you may not have considered: your money. In this Which? investigation, Greg Foot finds out how our bank accounts, pensions and investments may be causing climate change without our knowledge. He teams up with the Which? Money te...
Jul 29, 2021•43 min•Season 1Ep. 8
After a year of Zoom calls, countless hours sat in a makeshift home office, and less time stuck in commuter traffic, what does the future of work look like? Will ‘hybrid working’ reign supreme? And would WFH actually be better for the planet? In this Which? investigation Greg Foot suggests that with some offices down-sizing and fewer of us travelling to work the eco-benefits could be huge, but soon learns that it’s much more complex than he thought. Read more about this and all our e...
Jul 22, 2021•36 min•Season 1Ep. 7
We’ve all heard that flying is terrible for the planet, but is it getting cleaner? Can ‘carbon-offsets’ soak up and neutralise your flight’s emissions? And will ‘bio-fuel’ decarbonise the aviation industry? In this Which? investigation Greg Foot asks if he could ever justify taking a flight, he learns about the benefits and wider impacts of travelling abroad, and uncovers how ‘eco-friendly’ an ‘eco-holiday’ really is. Read more about this and all our episodes here & check out the...
Jul 15, 2021•40 min•Season 1Ep. 6
With homes and heating responsible for around a fifth of UK’s carbon emissions, talk of our boilers potentially being upgraded to hydrogen, and increased government interest in heat-pumps as a possible way to reach the net zero target, what is the future of your home heating system? In this Which? Investigation Greg Foot asks if these are indeed viable options for your home or whether their green credentials are being exaggerated. He also looks to Norway to learn about ‘district heating’ and fin...
Jul 09, 2021•38 min•Season 1Ep. 5
A chance to hear more from three of the conversations we had whilst recording the first half of season one: 02.22 - 19.14 Materials Scientist, Engineer and Broadcaster Mark Miodovnik reveals more about how your mobile phone is made, how repairable it is (or not), and the shocking reality of what happens if you recycle it 20.45 - 32.31 Journalist and Author of ‘Sex Robots and Vegan Meat’, Jenny Kleeman, shares stories of her unique research trips looking at the alternative meat industry 34.11 - 4...
Jul 01, 2021•51 min
With more and more plant-based burgers, alt-milks and other meat-free options filling our shopping aisles, it’s never been easier to cut meat and dairy products from your diet. But as advocates make claims for the health-promoting and planet-saving power of going plant-based, what does the evidence say? In this Which? Investigation Greg Foot asks if cattle farming can ever be sustainable, uncovers how ‘plant-based’ doesn’t always mean ‘planet-friendly’, and learns how healthy, or not, these meat...
Jun 24, 2021•44 min•Season 1Ep. 4
With the UK set to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030, more of us are considering the switch to electric. But, with the environmental impact of making the batteries, and the need to generate the electricity to charge them, what is truly the greenest option - go electric or stick with a petrol or diesel car? In this Which? investigation Greg Foot reveals how these ‘zero emission’ cars don’t come with zero footprint, he asks whether the UK is ready for such a dramatic change ...
Jun 17, 2021•45 min•Season 1Ep. 3
Does your new phone have a shelf-life that’s shorter than your contract? Is its lack of repairability driven by manufacturers or by us constantly clamouring for the latest feature-packed model? In this Which? investigation Greg Foot asks who’s to blame for the mountain of ‘old’ mobiles hidden away in drawers up and down the country. He learns the shocking reality of what it takes to make a phone, is surprised to find out what happens if you recycle one, and hears how phone companies may be putti...
Jun 10, 2021•33 min•Season 1Ep. 2
Supermarkets & brands are often criticised for how much plastic packaging they use, but could removing that from some food products actually increase their environmental impact? In this first episode of Which? Investigates, Greg Foot uncovers quite how much unrecyclable plastic there is, checks out whether refillables and ‘compostables’ really do help the planet, and unwraps the surprising facts around what plastic could - or perhaps should - stay on the shelves. Read more in our show ...
Jun 03, 2021•40 min•Season 1Ep. 1
Which? Investigates is a new podcast from the UK’s consumer champion. Our mission for this podcast is simple: find out the facts and see who’s actually delivering on the promises we see. Hosted by Science Journalist & Producer Greg Foot, our first season focuses on putting claims of ‘sustainability’ under the spotlight... from ‘plant-based’ to ‘plastic-free’, ‘eco-travel’ to electric cars, he'll be figuring out what genuinely reduces our environmental footprint, and what’s simply green-washi...
May 28, 2021•2 min
