I recieved an anonymous tip to investigate Circulo de Amigos Child Care Center’s Google reviews. The first thing I noticed is that the name violates Google’s TOS for naming guidelines. They listed the name as: Circulo de Amigos Child Care Center(Montessori inspired, Multicultural Nature Based learning center). This violates the TOS. I discovered several people …
For this project, I looked at 5,734 Google Business Profiles (GBPs) across 35 categories. 31 categories are in the home service industries. The other four categories are known for spam and abuse. 58 GBPs were suspended before I could map out their GBPs. I looked at GBPs in and around Toronto, Ontario. Some of the …
Why did Ashley, aka Rainy Day, ask people to post reviews for Big O Tire in Kearney, NE? Ashley’s FB request generated 11 reviews. Six of the 11 reviews mentioned her and somebody named Ben. While I am unable to see the post on her Facebook page, I found another post mentioning that her name …
Reveler’s Hour has gone viral after Codepink protesters heckled Trump’s Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. The video clip has gone viral on social media and has been picked up by news outlets. Not all of the reviews are negative. Time will tell how long it will take Google to lock down and monitor the profile. Will …
For the last few weeks, I have been tracking a new lead-generation spam network. Spammers have identified a way to make and verify Google Business Profiles (GBPs) for locksmiths. The Locksmith category is known for spam and abuse. Google has locked down the ability for locksmith GBPs to get created or reinstated at least twice …
I was asked to investigate the glowing 5-star Google reviews for Eagle Restoration in Zionsville, IN. As of Wednesday, December 10th, 2025, Eagle Restoration has a 4.9 average rating based on 65 reviews. The question is how many of those reviews are legitimate? As it turns out, several of those reviews appeared to have been …
Keith Edwards is an American Media personality. He has a YouTube channel discussing politics. On December 5th, 2025, he spoke about President Trump receiving the FIFA Peace Prize. He segwayed to discuss how Trump fired the agency building the ballroom and hired a new agency. That new agency is Shalom Baranes Associates (SBA) in Washington, …
Grizzly Research accuses of Trustpilot of helping businesses to increase the review count. Is the study flawed?
The Event Coordinator, Andrea Toliver, for Henderson Castle in Kalamazoo, MI, is being sued for targeting and leaving negative reviews after a guest left a negative Google review. The lawsuit claims that after Mr. Adams left a negative Google review after finding a caterpillar under his broccoli, Andrea looked him up and left negative reviews …
Today, Tuesday, December 2nd, 2025, I came across this thread on Reddit. Apparently, a coffee shop, Coca Smoocha in Vietnam, had 36 Google reviews removed. Google emailed the business advising that the system had identified fake or paid reviews. Google advised the business that if more fake or paid reviews are detected, Google may apply …