1. Start a case
Choose Start a case from the current page in the panel. Capture saves supported observations from the selected browser window and Amazon marketplace.
PUBLIC TRACES INVESTIGATOR · CHROME EXTENSION
Follow the evidence.
Keep your own case.
Start with the reviews a profile exposes, follow product lists newest first, and keep the metadata as your case grows. The investigator runs in your browser.
Start with a public Amazon page.
You do not need a Public Traces account or an Amazon account to start on supported, publicly visible pages. Amazon may request sign-in on particular pages; continue with the pages you can access.
SET UP ONCE
Install in Chrome on your computer.
Download the investigator and unzip the file.
Open
chrome://extensionsin Chrome. Turn on Developer mode, choose Load unpacked, and select the unzipped investigator folder.Open a supported Amazon product or reviewer page. In Chrome’s toolbar Extensions menu, choose Public Traces Investigator to open the side panel.
This download is a Chrome extension for desktop computers. The worked example is available here on any screen.
YOUR FIRST INVESTIGATION
Start, follow, and pause.
2. Follow the public records
Open all review links exposed by a profile, often up to 20, across all star ratings. Each captured review links to its product list. Use Show 10 more reviews on Amazon to collect more dated metadata, newest first. No fixed day cutoff is applied.
3. Check what is missing
Open Coverage still needed to see the gaps. Unavailable pages, shorter histories, and unfinished product windows remain part of the record. An incomplete case can still be inspected and exported.
Pause capture when you want to stop saving pages. Use the panel’s resume control when you are ready to continue. Profiles provide partial histories. Product lists add observations beyond those profile limits, while the method uses the five-star reviews and their ±28-day windows. Coverage across some products does not establish a reviewer’s full history.
Corroboration counts describe repeated overlap in the observations available. They do not establish payment, fraud, or complete coverage of an account.
KEEP A RECORD
Export before you leave.
Open Export in the side panel. Choose Download case file (JSON) to keep the structured observations and collection record, or Download ranked reviewers (CSV) to inspect the ranking in a spreadsheet.
New cases keep their metadata in this browser without expiry; this website does not receive it. Existing cases retain their settings: choose Keep saved metadata in the panel to turn off expiry. Export a copy before clearing browser data, removing the extension, or closing a temporary session.
Exported files can contain raw public reviewer and product identifiers. Keep them private unless you intentionally choose to share them.
WHAT COMES NEXT
Shared contributions are coming later.
This release provides the research, worked examples, and a tool for local investigations. Online uploads, private submission receipts, and reviewed community datasets are not open yet.