I don’t know if anyone of you have had a similar experience but I’m sorry this isn’t exactly a how-to guide but rather to share my experience with using this platform. One of the reviews I left for a bike shop a few years ago (5*, positive experience), was flagged about two months ago, and I received an email saying that I have breached some guidelines and will no longer be allowed to leave any more reviews any more. I contacted google support, who assured me that this wasn’t the case. He said that this could be due to some users flagging the review, or someone else had plagiarised it. However, about a month later, I was curious to see how my contributions looked from a public profile as I stopped receiving likes to my reviews and photos. Surprisingly, all of my reviews and photos are hidden. I contacted google support once more, who could not determine the reason for this (edit: during this contact they asked me to fill in an appeal form, to which I did and was approved, but no contributions are visible). I was left there without account restored, and this is still the case weeks later. I’m just so disappointed that my account was maliciously targeted and all of my contributions have been hidden and there is no fix. I think the only choice is to start with a new account completely,
What can I do in this case? Have you had a similar experience?
Is this the same account that was banned or a second one? If it’s a second one, that’s another breach of the rules and regulations of the program. You are allowed to post here on connect through another local guide account to ask for help though.
You can always appeal and wait for response from Google. That’s all you can do.
میں بھی یہاں پر آپ کی طرح نیا ہوں پر گوگل میپس پر اب تک کے میرے جائزوں اور تعاون کو گوگل میپس نے رد نہیں کیا۔ آپ یہاں شائد پہلی بار آئے ہیں تو میں آپ کو
Hi Shola, thanks for your response. This is the same account.
I have asked for an appeal through a form, and it was indeed approved, but my contributions are still all hidden. This is why I’m sort of desperate for some answers.
There has been no fix or response from google after contacting them and them telling me to fill out the form. Hence why I am reaching out to the community.
thanks, I’ve tried that but I have no luck with my account being rectified. It seems like they have an automated system that can flag your account at any moment, and then even if your appeal is successful, your account will still not be restored.
I know you are not aware because you are new here,therefore please learn how to tag the receiver of your response. Kindly use the tagging tool “@” followed by the username of the local guide in question just like yours above in blue prints. Thanks.
Next is please try clearing your cache and cookies of the Google Maps app. Then log in afresh. See if the works. We can tag a more professional local guide on this but let’s try all these other tips first.
Hi @SholaIB thanks for the tip. Nope, clearing the cookie does not work because the problem is on their side and not mine. For instance if I browse in incognito my public URL it shows nothing. Also this is the same on google maps on the phone app if you check the contributions there. Unfortunately I have no help and I really hope this gains some traction and google should fix this. I really like the community and I would just want my account to work again. Thanks
I’ve been having the same issue, I didn’t realize until recently when I went back and checked any reviews left from 2021 haven’t been published.
I have filled in so many forms and no reply. I’m just told to wait but it’s not fair as I worked really hard and got to Level 10.
While we wait for Google to help please kindly read this post of @MortenCopenhagen it’s tittle How-to-Get-In-and-Out-of-Trouble . Maybe he might jump in to advise you as well. He is a professional on this.
You are not suspended. But all your reviews are hidden by the spam filter.
This is a warning sign that you might be violating some of the different guidelines. Not nessesarily related to reviews.
Looking at your public profile suggests that:
Please delete photos that do not belong to a pin
Remove photos of cats as they do not represent places very well.
Photos of your knees could be also removed since they don’t belong to the places.
The video with recognizable faces is also an issue.
Finally you do upload some redundant photos. Please also delete similar photos.
Since I can not see any of your reviews I can not make specific recommendations, but please read about typical review guideline violations here with an open mind.
Please use this form if you believe that your contributions have been wrongfully unpublished.
I’ll go through my photos but I think for example the cat photos were from a cat cafe, if I am not mistaken. I have visited many cat cafes around europe and hence why I believe they are relevant to accompany the reviews. We’re getting really picky regarding the knees and other minor details if we are to compare with pictures of other users, but I get your point.
The only warning I got from google was the email screenshot, which showed that my specific review of a Parisian bike shop was the one that triggered the suspension. As you can imagine this is really unexpected. I have read the guidelines and nothing to my knowledge has violated any of their policies.
Hi @waza28 I’m sad to hear about your problem as well, but at the same time, I’m glad other people are also having the same problem and are pointing this out.
Did you also get an email from Google indicating that your account has been banned? If so, would you mind sharing the screenshot?
I hope our problem gets fixed soon, really sad about gaining all these levels and uploading/reviewing, only for everything to be blocked.
Google engineers, if you’re reading this, please take a look and help!
No I didn’t receive any email that’s why I continued posting pictures and writing reviews.
I am sad because I worked really hard on writing the correct information about each place for example where you can find parking, if the place had high chairs for babies and even showing the wheelchair accessible entrance and parking.
I also found someone else with the similar problem @PattyBlack
@waza28 thanks for tagging me. I see that @MortenCopenhagen has already explained, he is the best to advise on these topics here. Unfortunately we can not do anything, we just have to wait and hope that Google introduces new, more effective control systems and that it improves the profile control system that has increased a lot in recent years
