Amazon's AI now scans brand websites for compliance violations

Amazon has quietly implemented sophisticated AI technology that monitors sellers' external websites for compliance issues. This system, deployed approximately one year ago, is now actively flagging product claims made on brand websites that violate Amazon's policies, even when those claims don't appear on Amazon listings themselves.

Seven days ago, on May 9, 2025, an Amazon seller received a compliance warning that has sent ripples through the e-commerce community. The notification, shared publicly on LinkedIn by Demian Lazurko, CEO at My Real Profit, revealed that Amazon's AI systems had automatically flagged content on the seller's own brand website—not on their Amazon listing.

"In review, I found that our system implemented a process about a year ago, which extracts internal data on products from their brand's or manufacturer's website," stated the Amazon support representative in the communication. "In doing this, our system gathers some of the information about your product if validated from a brand website and stores this internally."

The representative further explained that because the packaging on the brand website included a claim prohibited by Amazon's policies, along with bullets, key features, and description, the seller was receiving recurring claim issues on their ASIN (Amazon Standard Identification Number).

This notification represents a significant expansion of Amazon's compliance monitoring capabilities. Previously, sellers needed only to ensure their Amazon listings adhered to marketplace guidelines. Now, Amazon's AI can detect and enforce compliance violations from external websites, creating a new layer of complexity for brands selling across multiple channels.

How Amazon's AI compliance system works

The automated system, which has been operating for approximately 12 months, uses advanced AI to scan and analyze content across various digital touchpoints. According to the information shared on LinkedIn, the system actively monitors:

• Brand website content
• Other marketplaces where products are listed
• Product images (using AI-based text recognition)
• Compliance with restricted content policies
• Pricing information

This surveillance extends beyond simple text matching. The AI employs sophisticated text recognition capabilities to analyze product images, detecting claims made in packaging visuals and promotional materials. When a violation is detected, the system automatically flags the issue and can potentially impact the seller's listing status on Amazon.

The support representative noted that even after updating a listing's backend information, "it's possible that the brand website details will be gathered again in the future if prompted by the system." This indicates an ongoing monitoring process rather than a one-time scan.

For brands and merchants operating across multiple platforms—such as direct-to-consumer websites, Amazon, Walmart, and other marketplaces—this development requires a fundamental shift in compliance strategy. No longer can sellers maintain different messaging for different channels; Amazon's AI now demands consistency across all platforms.

This creates particular challenges for brands that market products with health, wellness, or functional benefits. Such products often face stringent restrictions on Amazon regarding what claims can be made, while websites and other marketplaces may permit more flexible messaging. The AI monitoring system effectively extends Amazon's restrictive policies to a brand's entire digital footprint.

Marketing professionals must now consider Amazon's compliance requirements when creating content for any platform, not just for Amazon listings. The days of platform-specific messaging strategies may be coming to an end, replaced by the need for unified, Amazon-compliant communication across all channels.

And what makes this development particularly noteworthy is the technical sophistication required to implement such wide-ranging surveillance. Amazon's AI must not only crawl and index external websites but also understand context, identify specific products across different platforms, and analyze both text and visual content for compliance issues.

The system appears to create associations between brand websites and specific ASINs, storing this information for ongoing compliance monitoring. This suggests an advanced linking mechanism that can identify when a product on an external website corresponds to a specific Amazon listing, even when the presentation differs.

Strategic responses for sellers and brands

Brands selling on Amazon now face a critical strategic decision: align all external marketing with Amazon's policies or risk compliance issues that could jeopardize their presence on the world's largest e-commerce platform. Several approaches have emerged:

1. Universal compliance adoption: Some brands are choosing to make all marketing materials Amazon-compliant across all channels, sacrificing more aggressive claims in favor of marketplace stability.
2. Platform separation: Other sellers are creating distinct brand identities and websites for Amazon-sold products versus those sold through other channels, though this approach may not be foolproof if Amazon's AI can detect brand associations.
3. Policy monitoring and adaptation: Many sellers are investing in compliance monitoring tools that can proactively identify potential issues before Amazon's AI flags them.
4. Legal consultation: Some brands are seeking legal advice to determine if Amazon's cross-platform enforcement exceeds reasonable boundaries for a marketplace provider.

Broader implications for digital commerce

Amazon's implementation of AI-powered cross-platform compliance monitoring signals a potential shift in how marketplaces govern seller behavior. If successful, other platforms may adopt similar approaches, creating a more uniform but potentially more restrictive environment for digital commerce.

For consumers, this development could lead to more consistent product messaging across platforms, potentially reducing confusion or disappointment when product claims vary between a brand's website and marketplace listings. However, it may also result in more sanitized marketing communications as brands conform to the most restrictive platform's guidelines.

The technology also raises questions about the boundaries between different digital spaces and a marketplace's authority to enforce policies beyond its own domain. As AI systems become more sophisticated, the lines between platform-specific content and a brand's broader digital presence become increasingly blurred.

Amazon's evolving compliance landscape

This cross-platform monitoring system aligns with Amazon's broader efforts to enhance compliance across its marketplace. The company has invested heavily in automated systems to enforce its policies, from counterfeit detection to restricted product identification.

For Amazon, these investments reflect the challenges of managing a marketplace with millions of products and hundreds of thousands of sellers. Manual review of all listings would be impractical, making AI-powered systems essential for maintaining marketplace standards.

However, the expansion of these systems to monitor external websites represents a significant escalation in Amazon's compliance approach. It effectively extends Amazon's governance beyond its platform boundaries, creating what some sellers describe as an "ecosystem-wide" compliance regime.

AI-powered enforcement continues to evolve

Amazon's implementation of this AI monitoring system appears to be part of a phased approach to marketplace governance. The notification indicates the system was deployed "about a year ago," suggesting it has been operating quietly before becoming widely known to sellers.

As more sellers become aware of this monitoring, Amazon will likely refine and expand the system's capabilities. The current focus appears to be on product claims, but similar technology could potentially be applied to other compliance areas such as pricing policies, intellectual property usage, or customer service standards.

For the marketing community, this development underscores the growing importance of maintaining regulatory compliance across all channels. It also highlights how AI is transforming not just consumer-facing aspects of e-commerce but also the underlying governance mechanisms that shape marketplace behavior.

Why this matters

For marketing teams and agencies supporting brands that sell on Amazon, this technological development creates new challenges and responsibilities:

1. Cross-channel consistency: Marketing professionals must ensure messaging consistency across all platforms, with Amazon's restrictions effectively becoming the baseline for all channels.
2. Compliance expertise: Understanding Amazon's content policies becomes essential not just for marketplace specialists but for all digital marketing professionals involved with the brand.
3. Content monitoring: Regular audits of all digital touchpoints become necessary to identify potential compliance issues before Amazon's AI does.
4. Strategic planning: Long-term marketing strategies must now account for the limitations imposed by Amazon's cross-platform enforcement.

The LinkedIn post revealing this development has already prompted many marketers to begin auditing their clients' or companies' websites for potential compliance issues. This proactive approach reflects the significant stakes involved—Amazon listings represent a crucial revenue stream for many brands, making compliance violations a material business risk.

Timeline of events

• May 2024: Amazon implements an AI system that extracts data from brand and manufacturer websites to monitor compliance
• May 9, 2025: Amazon sends a compliance warning to a seller about content on their brand website
• May 16, 2025: Information about Amazon's cross-platform monitoring is widely shared on LinkedIn, alerting the broader e-commerce community