Google Negative Review Extortion Scams | A Case Study

I want to flag a disturbing trend that’s currently impacting businesses across industries: a new type of scam we call Google Review Extortion. It’s insidious, it’s devious, and it nearly damaged our own reputation here at Central Coast SEO. In the last two months alone multiple companies globally have reported attackers posting fake negative reviews and then demanding payment to remove them. This isn’t conjecture—it’s real and it’s serious.

One case involved our own Google Business Profile. A fake reviewer left a one-star review full of spurious claims and then followed it up with a message offering “review removal for a fee”. Because the review was live and visible on our profile, it created immediate concern. We submitted evidence via Google’s new extortion-reporting form and the review was removed within seventy-two hours—but the experience highlighted how vulnerable even a well-managed business can be.

How These Review Extortion Scams Work

The scam begins when a fraudulent reviewer deliberately posts a negative or defamatory review on your Google Business Profile. The claim is often dramatic: failed service, rude staff, or unmet expectations. Soon afterwards the scammer contacts your business (or its staff) offering to reverse or remove the review—if you pay up. The unscrupulous aim is to turn your reputation into a hostage asset.

What makes this particularly sinister is the fear it creates. Negative reviews damage trust, affect click-throughs, and may reduce lead generation. The scammer uses that fear as leverage. Usually the request comes through direct messages, email or chat systems, and they often threaten further reviews or spreading the damage if their demands aren’t met.

Google has responded by offering an “extortion review” reporting tool. The tricky part is providing proof of extortion—screenshots, communications asking for payment, or threats of more reviews. But once you submit credible evidence, Google is starting to act, removing fake reviews and preserving reputations for those who play it correctly.

Why Small Business Owners Must Be Particularly Vigilant

Small businesses are especially vulnerable for several reasons. First, your online reputation often forms the majority of what potential customers see before even visiting your premises or initiating contact. A handful of negative reviews can swing decisions and deter leads. Second, many smaller businesses are shorter on resources—there may not be a dedicated online reputation team, and staff may not be trained to recognise extortion tactics.

Moreover, the psychological impact is real. The threat of a negative review alone is enough to cause panic, prompt hasty decisions and compromise judgement—exactly what the scammer hopes to provoke. If you pay once, you invite repeated demands. If you ignore or mishandle the situation, the damage multiplies. That’s why proactive understanding and decisive action matter now more than ever.

How to Protect Your Business from Review Extortion

The first step is establishing visibility and control of your Google Business Profile: verify your listing, monitor reviews daily, set up alerts and maintain accurate business information. Treat the review ecosystem as your digital storefront.

If you receive a negative review that also comes with a demand for payment or threat of more reviews, do not engage or respond emotionally. Instead, capture the communications, report them to Google via the extortion form and request review removal. Acting quickly improves your chances of preserving both reputation and ranking.

Maintain a steady flow of positive reviews from validated customers so that one malicious review has less impact. Encourage genuine feedback and respond professionally to all reviews—good or bad. That strengthens your credibility and gives you a body of evidence showing legitimate customer experiences.

Finally, include your team in your defence strategy. Educate staff about unsolicited messages about “review removal services” and ensure nobody engages with payment requests or informal negotiations. Extortion attempts often start small and escalate. Awareness is your first line of defence.

What Happens If You Don’t Act in Time

When you ignore or mishandle a review-extortion attempt the staying power of damage can be worrying. A fake review left unchecked can remain visible for weeks or months, eroding your rating and harming inbound click-through rates. Worse, if the scammer sends more reviews or coordinates others to post negative feedback, your profile’s standing may be weakened further—impacting local search visibility, trust signals and referral traffic.

Because Google uses review quantity, rating average, and recency as part of its local ranking factors, an unchecked attack can result in slower traffic growth and fewer leads. And even if the review is eventually removed, the period of damage may cost you hard-won customers and momentum.

The Key Takeaway for Business Owners

The lesson here is simple: threats to your online reputation can come from unexpected directions, and review extortion scams are an emerging risk. By acting quickly, maintaining review hygiene and building a flood of legitimate customer feedback, you can protect your business against these attacks.

At Central Coast SEO, we support businesses by auditing reputation channels, implementing alerts and establishing response templates. If this type of scam has hit your listing—or if you simply want to strengthen your defences—let’s talk about how to make your listing resilient, trusted and review-secure.