Google Maps is getting serious about fake reviews. A few days ago, we learned that the application was notifying users when a location had been detected with reviews of this type. Now, we know that this may mean that our account is deleted.
Fake reviews are a fairly widespread problem on Google Maps. Some establishments give gifts or something similar to their customers in exchange for giving them five stars. This may mean that other users go there deceived. There may also be cases in which Internet users leave negative reviews, affecting a business for personal reasons.
To combat this practice, Google Maps moderators have gotten serious about investigating this matter. Now, when reviews are removed from a business, the following message appears: “Reviews suspected of being fake were recently removed from this location.” In addition, they temporarily prevent new opinions from being published and existing ones are hidden.
But how does it affect the user writing the reviews if Google Maps discovers that they are fake? Maybe if it only happens once, they will turn a blind eye. However, this practice is prohibited on the platform and, therefore, your account could end up being deleted.
What does Google Maps consider a “fake review”?
According to the Google Maps Content Policy, false participation on the platform falls within deceptive content and behavior classified as “prohibited and restricted.” The company explains that a review must “reflect genuine experiences in a place or business,” therefore, the following reviews are considered false:
- With content that is not based on real experience and does not accurately represent the location or product in question.
- What is published in exchange for an incentive offered by the company, such as payments, discounts, or free items and services.
- Anything that has been uploaded after receiving requests to review or delete a negative review in exchange for an incentive.
- Reviews posted from multiple accounts to manipulate a place’s ranking.
- Reviews uploaded using an emulator or any other device manipulation service, modified operating system or method to imitate genuine participation, manipulate sensor data or analysis results, or to otherwise thwart or confuse normal operations.
On Google’s support page, the company clarifies that they do not allow merchants to request or encourage a post that does not represent a genuine experience or that offer incentives. They are also against businesses discouraging or banning negative reviews or posting on a competitor’s site to damage reputation. However, they detail that it is allowed for an establishment to request or encourage an opinion from its customers based on their real experience, without offering any benefit in exchange.
Generally, Google Maps will only delete reviews that it considers to be fake. But it is advisable not to do so, since they could end up deleting the account if they detect that it is doing so continuously.
