US Media Stories
The New York Times
September 11, 2025 report by Stuart Thompson. Fraudsters are extorting businesses by posting fake negative Google reviews and demanding payment to remove them, according to business owners and Kay Dean of Fake Review Watch. Google doesn't seem to be on top of the problem, either.
CBS News New York
November 6, 2025 report by Tim McNicholas. New York small business owners are complaining of extortion by scammers who post 1-star Google reviews and then want payment to remove them. The problem is so widespread that Google's created a new "merchant extortion report form". Kay Dean of Fake Review Watch has documented the problem and says the culprits are overseas.
WPTV West Palm Beach
November 24, 2025 report by Dave Bohman. A West Palm Beach moving company and an Orlando facial spa were hit with a flurry of 1-star Google reviews, then told that they could be removed for $200. Kay Dean of Fake Review Watch says they're the latest victims of fake 1-star review extortion being perpetrated on a global scale and blames Google for facilitating the problem.
International Media Stories
Australia--A Current Affair
November 26, 2025 story by Sam Cucchiara. Fake 1-star Google reviews hit Australia, and A Current Affair interviews a Bangladeshi scammer who is part of the extortion scheme. While Google explains what it does to stop review fraud on its platform, Kay Dean of FRW says it's not enough. "If I can see this fraud using my eyes and spreadsheets, certainly a company like Google should before I do."
France 24
November 6, 2025 report by Peter O'Brien. Small businesses in France and Spain are being targeted with fake 1-star Google reviews by scammers to extort money. The extortionists post the reviews, often AI-generated, and then demand payment to take them down. The scammers appear to be based in Bangladesh, according to Kay Dean of FRW.
VRT NWS Belgium
October 3, 2025 report by Tobias Santens. Scammers post fake negative Google reviews for small businesses around the world, such as Laurens' moving company in Belgium. The scammers then try to extort money from the businesses who want the fake reviews removed. Research by Kay Dean of Fake Review Watch formed the basis of this story.
NOS (Netherlands)
September 24, 2025 report by Stan Hulsen for NOS (Dutch Broadcasting Foundation). Entrepreneurs are hit with fake 1-star reviews on Google, and then contacted for payment to have them removed. Many say it is extremely difficult to reach Google to fix the problem. Research by Kay Dean of FRW is the foundation for the story.
More US Media Stories
The Philadelphia Inquirer
November 4, 2025 report by Michael Klein. The Google rating for a restaurant in Philadelphia's Society Hill dropped from 4.8 to 3.9 overnight, the result of 39 one-star reviews. The restaurant is just another victim of an extortion industry based in Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh, according to Kay Dean of Fake Review Watch.
The Philadelphia Inquirer
November 5, 2025 report by Michael Klein. Google removed dozens of fake one-star reviews for eight Philadelphia restaurants hours after The Inquirer report detailing how a scammer had placed the reviews and demanded payment to remove them. Kay Dean of FRW says Google has not solved the problem; the extortionists will just move on.
News 6 Orlando
August 26, 2025 report by Mike DeForest. Several businesses in Central Florida have been targeted with fake 1-star Google reviews. They are then extorted by individuals with Pakistani phone numbers who want payment to remove the reviews. Kay Dean's research formed the basis of this story.