How Does Google Detect Fake Reviews?

If you’re wondering, “How does Google detect fake reviews?” you’re in the right place. In this article, we’ll also go over best practices for review management to help your brand succeed online.

Google Maps is full of so much helpful information for individuals who are checking out local businesses. From addresses and phone numbers to photos and customer reviews, Google is often the first stop for people who are considering going to a new restaurant, booking a service or heading out for a day of shopping.

However, reviews lose their power when they become untrustworthy. When fake or misleading reviews appear on Google, they can influence a customer’s perception of the business and cause damage to the company’s reputation.

Maintaining the integrity of reviews is crucial for Google Maps to continue to be a reliable place to go when researching businesses. In this article, we’ll explain how they find and remove fake reviews.

Do you need help with your digital presence? Call us at (844) 458-6735 for an in-depth audit and valuable insights from an expert.

What Are Fake Google Reviews?

The term “fake reviews” can refer to a few different types of online reviews:

• Reviews written by the business owner to inflate their reputation, improve ratings and counteract negative comments.
• Biased feedback left by friends and family members of the business owner, even if they’ve never been real customers.
• Positive reviews that were paid for or incentivized in some way, such as offering a discount for a 5-star review.
• Feedback left by bots or review farms, which are large-scale review networks that generate a high volume of positive feedback using fake accounts.
• Purposely malicious reviews with the intent to ruin the business’ reputation and drive customers away.
• Spammy reviews with information that doesn’t relate to the business, such as nonsensical ramblings or political commentary.

According to Google, “Posts or edits [on Google Maps] must be based on real experiences and information.” The following types of content violate Google policies:

• Copied or stolen photos
• Defamatory language
• Fake content
• Incorrect content
• Off-topic reviews
• Personal attacks
• Unnecessary content

You can go more in-depth with the type of content that Google prohibits here. Also, note that Google will remove an entire post even if only a portion of it violates policies.

What Are Telltale Signs of Fake and Suspicious Reviews?

Reviewers that use extreme language or only ever rate a business with either a 1 or a 5 may signal to Google that the review is fake.

Phrasing that’s identicial or very similar to muliple other reviews may also be a sign that those reviews are fake. According to Google, it can “now revisit reviews more frequently to identify new abuse patterns even months after they were originally posted.”

Reviews that lack specific details are also red flags, as are reviewers that leave a high number of reviews for unrelated businesses in different geographic areas. Google may even check that the user’s location data is reasonable considering where the businesses they’ve reviewed are located.

Don’t wait — get started today with online reputation management or repair. Give us a call at (844) 458-6735 to learn more.

Google’s Combined Approach To Fight Fake Reviews

Google detects fake reviews by using both automated systems and human review teams. Additionally, Google analyzes patterns using machine learning to quickly identify fake reviews. Patterns may include:

• Suspicious activity in a user’s review history
• Inconsistency across review content
• Repetitive language in reviews
• Sudden bursts of multiple online reviews

Even location data and network connection are considered when verifying the legitimacy of a review.

Once an automated system flags a review as possibly being fake, either it’s removed automatically or human review teams step in to further analyze the information.

Removing Fake Online Reviews Before They’re Public

Google is also able to remove fake reviews before they’re ever posted publicly. In 2024, Google removed over 240 million reviews that violated policies, and a majority of them were removed before they were ever seen by the public.

From 24-hour monitoring to upscale content creation and promotion, our team of ORM experts can help you create the online presence you deserve. Contact us at (844) 458-6735 for more information.

Why Do Fake Reviews Matter for Businesses?

Fake reviews have a big impact on businesses. Beyond impacting the reliability of Google’s platforms, fake reviews can affect a brand’s real-world reputation and even its revenue.

Phony positive reviews create unrealistic expectations. These can ultimately backfire if customers don’t have the type of experience they expected.

Fake negative reviews can lower customer trust in a business. They can also limit a brand’s visibility and lower click-throught rates (CTRs).

Authenticity is necessary for a brand to have long-term credibility. Every business gets a bad review from time to time, but trustworthy businesses have a balance of positive and negative reviews. Too many of either kind is a signal that something’s wrong.

Whether you’re responsible for the fake reviews, such as hiring review farms to boost your reputation, or you’re dealing with a scorned ex-customer who’s trying to take your business down, responsible review management is in your hands.

What To Do If You Spot a Fake Review

Have you spotted a potentially fake review on your Google Business Profile? Here’s what to do and how to get fake Google reviews removed:

• Document everything about the review. Take screenshots and note the reviewer’s name, the content of the feedback, the timestamp, etc.
• Report the review to Google through this link.
• Respond to the review in a professional way. Even if you believe the review will be taken down, this is an important step for managing your business reputation in the meantime.

It’s also smart to work with an ORM team that can handle review management for you or guide you in the right direction. Review monitoring and responding is an ongoing process that’s an important part of running a business.

How To Prevent Fake Business Reviews and Generate Genuine Reviews

There are a few ways to discourage fake reviews moving forward:

• Ask for authentic reviews from real customers. Don’t specificaly ask for positive or 5-star reviews. Instead, request honest reviews to get reliable feedback.
• Monitor your online reviews so you can quickly respond when feedback is left. This will also help you to monitor trends and spot fake reviews before they can do damage.
• Educate your staff members about Google’s review policies. Make sure that they don’t try to leave reviews for your business in order to boost your rating.

Keeping your business compliant with Google’s review policies is a solid step forward to getting more positive and trustworthy reviews online.

Wrapping Up

AI and machine learning are rapidly evolving, and these systems are getting better at spotting spammy reviews. This means that fake reviews will be caught more easily as time goes on. Whether you have misleading reviews because of purposeful actions or just by chance, get on top of them now before they negatively impact your online reputation — and your standing with Google.

The way you’re perceived online matters, and a poor online reputation can damage your personal life and your professional opportunities. Find out how to create the online reputation you deserve by calling (844) 458-6735 today.