Hey Local Guides,
I have noticed that many of my reviews aren’t public (by checking from another account).
One of places I recently visited was an apartment and the owner still didn’t verified the business (Don’t have a GBP), I left a 5 star rating and a review for the place.
The listing already had 5 reviews, after leaving my review total count stayed 5 and the review is only shown in my profile.
Any tips to fix this issue?
I didn’t violated any terms, tried from my another account also, the number reminded 5.
Hi @shinutrk
Of course a review can be removed by mistake, and in this case it is possible to appeal.
However I normally prefer to check the account to give a more appropriate reply.
You said
but this is in fact a double violation of the policies.
So I’m not sure that you are completely aware of the rules.
Can you kindly share your Local Guide profile with us?
Connect is an international community, @shinutrk , and @Mohdmohdaljaman is welcome to use his own language.
This is why we have a translator available for every single reply.
I am asking because every problem is individuals, and there is an ongoing issue about reviews.
In any case you can find the appeal form at the end of this topic: An update on how we moderate Google Maps reviews
Be aware that the check may take up to 8 weeks.
You will not receive any notification from Google about the results of the checks.
Everything that is not against the policies will be released.
Sure, @new.user .
I counted your reviews one by one, and there are 20 visible reviews on your profile, even if the counter on the top is showing 18.
I’ve already escalated to the team this error too, because I’ve been able to identify this issue on other profiles just today.
I am sure it is all part of the same issue, so we will have just to wait for the fix
Please get to know our Community guidelines. Our community is diverse, and we aim to create a welcoming environment. Inappropriate and insensitive remarks are not allowed and may lead to a removal. Thank you.
Hey @ErmesT
This issue has been happening for a long time now, it’s called “Shadow Banning”.
The AI created to hide fake reviews is targeting honest reviews… Many of the genuine reviews aren’t shown publicly.
Any tips to avoid this?
Already submitted the appeal.
This question is not easy to answer. All platforms that host reviews (not just Google Maps) are increasingly constrained by requests to remove reviews deemed false, as they can harm businesses or consumers. In many countries, this has led to the creation of laws that provide for legal action against those who host reviews that may be deemed false, unless the platforms adopt tools to remove such reviews. In addition, in some countries the author of the review can also be called to court to answer for defamation.
There are therefore two concomitant elements: ethical and legal.
The ethical one could have been resolved with greater flexibility by the platforms. The legal one leads to only one solution: when in doubt, remove the review.
This is the main reason why I asked to see your profile. Each of us writes differently, and sometimes the review is not “personal” enough, it goes into generic descriptions of the place in Wikipedia style. Other times it is extremely short.
Writing reviews that are not too long but that still help to understand that I have actually visited the place can help.
Sometimes the image attached to the review is blocked, and consequently the review is not visible until the image is removed.
In the European Community, Local Guides receive a notification when a review is hidden, as a European law requires it, while in the rest of the world this does not happen. In which country are your reviews?
As you can see it is not easy to answer in the dark, because even the logic is always the same, each problem must be analyzed and understood separately, and there is no one-size-fits-all answer
