Fake Google reviews: how to spot and report them

What Google counts as fake or manipulated

Our summary of Google's prohibited and restricted content policy:

• No real experience: content that isn't based on a real experience, or doesn't accurately describe the place
• Paid reviews: reviews or ratings paid for, in cash or in kind
• One person, many accounts: content posted from multiple accounts by, or at the request of, one person
• Competitor attacks: content posted on a competitor's listing to damage its reputation
• Conflict of interest: reviews from current or former employees, contractors, competitors or family
• Incentives: reviews posted, changed or removed in exchange for payment, discounts or free goods or services
• Unusual patterns: unusual volumes or patterns of reviews that suggest an effort to manipulate a rating

The same policy applies to businesses. Google doesn't allow merchants to offer incentives for reviews, to discourage negative reviews, or to ask only happy customers for reviews.

How to spot a review that might be fake

Google doesn't publish how it detects fake reviews. These are things you can check yourself before you report. None of them proves anything on its own:

• No matching customer. No job, booking, invoice or record that fits the name, date or details.
• Details that don't fit your business. A service you don't offer, a location you don't have, staff who don't exist.
• The reviewer's profile. In Google Maps, tap the reviewer's name to see their other reviews. Look for a run of one-star reviews on businesses like yours, or reviews of places far apart on the same day.
• A sudden cluster. Several one- or two-star reviews in a short time, with no matching jobs. If a demand for money follows, it's the extortion pattern Google describes. See below.
• A known connection. A competitor, a former employee, or someone you're in a dispute with. That's a conflict of interest under Google's policy. Gather the evidence of the connection before you report.

Not sure which policy fits? The free removal checker asks what's wrong with the review and names the policy it appears to break, or says plainly that Google won't remove it.

How to report a fake review

1. From your Business Profile: Read reviews, then Report next to the review, choose the reason, and Send report.
2. Or from the Reviews Management Tool, which records a status you can check: Decision pending, Report reviewed – no policy violation, or Escalated. A "no policy violation" result can be appealed once.
3. Report the reviewer's profile too if they post inappropriate content repeatedly. In the Google Maps app, go to Business, then Reviews, tap the reviewer's name, then More, then Report.

Full steps, including the appeal: how to remove a Google review as a business owner. Google says evaluation typically takes several days.

If someone demands money to stop or remove reviews, use Google's separate extortion report form. Google's advice: don't engage or pay, gather screenshots showing the dates, times and the sender's contact details, and link each suspicious review.

Don't answer fake reviews with fake reviews

Posting or buying positive reviews to bury a fake negative one is itself fake engagement. Google's restrictions page says a business that violates the policy can lose the violating reviews and also face restrictions. These include not receiving new reviews for a period, having existing reviews unpublished, or showing customers a warning that fake reviews were removed.

In the US, the FTC announced a final rule in August 2024 banning fake reviews and testimonials, which lets it seek civil penalties against knowing violators. Among other things, it bans:

• Buying or selling fake reviews
• Paying for reviews that express a particular sentiment
• Undisclosed reviews from company insiders
• Using groundless legal threats or intimidation to remove negative reviews

If Google leaves it up

Reply to it, calmly and briefly. Don't accuse the reviewer of lying and don't share any customer's details. Say you can't find a record of them and invite them to contact you directly. Google's guidance on replies asks owners to protect privacy and avoid personal attacks. The free review reply generator drafts a reply in that shape. You paste it into Google yourself.

Questions

Does Google detect fake reviews?

Google says it uses automated spam detection to remove reviews identified as spam. On its extortion help page it says its moderation systems catch most suspicious activity. It also admits the system occasionally removes legitimate reviews. It doesn't publish the signals it uses.

How do I get a fake Google review removed?

Report it from your Business Profile or through the Reviews Management Tool, choosing the reason that matches. If Google finds a policy violation, it removes the review. If not, you get one appeal. No one outside Google can remove it for you.

Are fake Google reviews legal?

In the US, the FTC's rule announced in August 2024 prohibits businesses from creating, buying or selling fake reviews, and lets the FTC seek civil penalties against knowing violators. Other countries have their own laws. They also break Google's policies everywhere, whatever the local law says.

How can I find out who wrote a fake review?

Google's help pages describe no way for a business to get a reviewer's identity. You can see the reviewer's public profile name and their other public reviews in Google Maps.

Can a competitor leave a review on my business?

Not within Google's policy. Google lists industry competitors as a conflict of interest, and posting on a competitor's listing to undermine it is fake engagement.