Google has announced its use of a new AI (artificial intelligence) powered algorithm to block fake online reviews, following a surge of fraudulent ones.
This new technology can detect fake reviews much faster than previous methods, with a 45% higher accuracy. Not only can fake online reviews mislead customers, but they can also harm the reputation of local businesses on search engines.
This new AI-powered algorithm can help protect customers against online scams, removing fraudulent reviews so that customers can have confidence in the accuracy of a business’s reviews. With the use of this new technology, Google was able to block a staggering 170 million fake reviews in 2023, which was a 45% increase compared to 2022. That’s a lot of deceptive information removed from the web!
Google revealed in a recent blog post (about how machine learning keeps contributed content helpful) that its new AI-powered algorithm can detect fraudulent reviews faster by analysing patterns over time. These patterns include duplicate content across business pages or a spike in 1- or 5-star reviews. This feeds the technology with information to identify suspicious online activity much quicker.
Google revealed a trend identified by its new algorithm in which people were being paid to submit fictitious reviews. This could have negative implications on the reputation of companies online, particularly if the content is spammy or malicious.
With this improvement to the algorithm, local businesses will be better protected against false reviews that could negatively impact their online success, and customers will be given truthful and useful feedback.
Want to find out more about how reviews and testimonials can help your business? Contact the friendly team at Engage Web today.
- How to get your website content to appear in Google Discover - May 7, 2025
- Study reveals that 20% of local searches start in Maps - May 6, 2025
- YouTube testing AI Overviews in search results - April 29, 2025
