Fake Google reviews: how dental practices spot and report them
A run of one-star reviews from people you have never seen, or a rival whose review count jumps overnight. Here is how to tell what is fake, what Google will act on, and what the law says.
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Fake Google reviews reach dental practices in two ways. Fake negative reviews appear on your own profile, sometimes as part of an extortion attempt. Fake positive reviews inflate a rival's rating and push them above you in the map pack. This guide explains how to spot fake Google reviews, how to report them and check the status of a report, what to do about extortion, what UK law now says, and the mistakes that can get your own profile restricted.
Are fake reviews illegal in the UK?
Yes. Since April 2025, under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, submitting or commissioning fake reviews, and concealed incentivised reviews, has been a banned practice. The CMA's guidance on fake reviews (CMA208) sets out what that means:
- A fake review is one that "purports to be, but is not, based on a person's genuine experience".
- The ban covers both fake positive and fake negative reviews.
- It covers commissioning as well as writing, which includes incentivising someone "by any means".
- Hiding that a reviewer has a financial interest in the business, such as being an employee, can be misleading.
- Suppressing genuine negative reviews, or only inviting satisfied customers to review, can also break the law.
The CMA has new enforcement powers, and the government says it can fine a company up to 10% of its global turnover for breaking it. For dental professionals there is a second layer. The GDC's guidance on advertising says publicity must be honest and that misleading advertising may lead to a fitness to practise investigation.
The CMA also makes an important point in the other direction: a review is not fake just because the business dislikes or disagrees with it, as long as it reflects the reviewer's genuine experience.
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How can you tell if a Google review is fake?
No single sign proves a review is fake, but several together are a strong hint. Look for:
- No match in your records. The reviewer's name does not correspond to any patient or anyone who contacted you. Check, but never say publicly whether someone is or is not a patient.
- A sudden burst. Several one-star reviews within a day or two, often with no text. Google's own policy treats "unusual volumes or patterns of review contributions" as a sign of rating manipulation.
- Details that do not fit. Treatments you do not offer, clinicians who do not work for you, or opening times you have never had.
- Copy-paste wording. The same phrases appearing in reviews of several businesses.
- A demand that follows. An email or message offering to remove the reviews for money. That is extortion, covered below.
The same signs work in reverse when you look at a rival: a large number of five-star reviews in a short period after years of slow growth, many from profiles with no other reviews, written in very similar language.
Can Google detect fake reviews?
Often, yes. Google says it uses automated spam detection to remove reviews identified as spam, and admits the system occasionally removes legitimate reviews too. In April 2026 Google reported that its systems and analysts blocked or removed over 292 million policy-violating reviews in 2025. Plenty still gets through, which is why reporting matters.
What counts as a Google review policy violation?
Google will only remove reviews that break its policies, not ones that are simply unfair. Its fake engagement policy covers content "not based on a real experience", reviews paid for "directly or in kind", content posted from multiple accounts by one person, and content posted on a competitor's profile to undermine it. Its rating manipulation rules cover incentivised reviews and reviews based on a conflict of interest, which Google says may include current or former employment, family relationships or industry competitors.
So a review from a former employee, a rival practice or someone who was never a patient may qualify. A genuine patient's harsh opinion of their treatment usually will not.
How to report a fake Google review
Google sets out two routes for business owners.
From your Business Profile
- Go to your Business Profile and select Read reviews.
- Next to the review, select Report.
- Choose the reason that fits. Google gives "Spam" and "Profanity" as examples.
- Select Send report.
From the Reviews Management Tool
- Open the Reviews Management Tool and confirm the account that manages your profile.
- Select your business, then Report a new review for removal.
- Select Report next to the review, choose the reason and submit.
Pick the reason that matches what is actually wrong with the review, and keep a note of what you reported and when, so you know what to appeal later.
How to check the status of a Google review report
Google says review evaluation typically takes several days. You can check progress in the Reviews Management Tool, which shows one of three statuses:
| Status | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Decision pending | Flagged but not yet evaluated | Wait |
| Report reviewed, no policy violation | Google found no breach | Consider the one-time appeal |
| Escalated, check your email for updates | Your appeal is being assessed | Watch for the email with the final decision |
If a report is rejected, Google allows a one-time appeal. You can select up to 10 reviews in a single appeal. Use it for the clearest cases, with a short, factual explanation of why each review breaks a specific policy.
Review extortion: do not pay
Google describes a scam that involves a sudden increase in one-star and two-star reviews followed by someone demanding money, goods or services to remove them. Its extortion guidance is direct: do not engage with or pay, do not try to resolve it yourself, and gather evidence immediately. Then use Google's merchant extortion report form, with:
- screenshots of every demand, showing the date, time and sender's contact details
- direct links to each suspicious review
- any names, usernames, email addresses or phone numbers used
- when you first noticed the reviews and when the demand arrived
Google says this route is only for genuine extortion attempts. Ordinary spam reviews go through the normal reporting process.
When a competitor has fake reviews
You cannot report a rival's reviews through your own Reviews Management Tool, but Google Maps lets anyone report a business incentivising reviews through Suggest an edit on the business's listing. Google states that reviews posted in exchange for a payment, deal or discount are prohibited. Report what you can evidence, such as a public post offering a discount for a five-star review, rather than suspicion alone.
Google also says it may place restrictions on businesses that break its fake engagement policy, such as blocking new reviews for a period, unpublishing existing ones, or showing a warning to tell people fake reviews were removed.
How to deal with a fake Google review while you wait
A report can take days and may fail, so reply in the meantime. Your reply is for future patients reading it, not for the reviewer. Keep it short, calm and free of any detail that confirms or denies the person was a patient. For example:
"Thank you for your feedback. We take every concern seriously, but we never discuss anyone's care in public. Please call the practice manager on [practice phone number] so we can look into it."
Do not accuse the reviewer of lying, do not mention other patients, and do not threaten legal action in public. Our guide on how to reply to Google reviews covers more examples.
What not to do
- Do not ask staff or their families to review the practice. Google's examples of a conflict of interest include current or former employment and family relationships, and the CMA says hiding such a connection can be misleading.
- Do not offer anything in return for a review, or for changing or removing a negative one. The CMA lists offering a refund or gift card to change a negative review as an example of commissioning a fake review.
- Do not ask only happy patients. Google's policy prohibits selectively soliciting positive reviews, and the CMA says encouraging only satisfied customers to review can be cherry-picking.
- Do not buy reviews or use a service that promises them. It breaks Google's policy and the law.
The best defence is a steady flow of genuine reviews
A fake one-star review does far less damage to a practice with 200 recent genuine reviews than to one with 20. Google says more reviews and positive ratings can help your local ranking. In our study of 1,489 UK places, the median practice in the local pack had 113 reviews and a 4.8 rating. Ask every suitable patient, reply to every review, and see our guide to working out your review target.
Watch the reviews race, not just your own
Practice Radar's reviews race dashboard tracks your review count and rating against nearby practices, and on Growth it drafts replies in your voice and posts them only when you approve.
Run on our own practice first: ninth of the 14 practices measured in its town in May, first of 18 in September, on UK-wide search value. Page-one keywords: 6 in May, 194 in September.
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