Free Fake Review Checklist

See how your competitors are getting reviews and whether they are likely fake or authentic.

Fake Review Audit

Are Your Competitor's 5-Star Reviews Too Good to Be True?

Use this 2-minute audit to manually spot the red flags. We'll walk you through exactly what to look for.

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How it works

It's simple and free to check how your competitors are getting reviews.

Step 1.

Open your competitor's Google Business Profile or Facebook Profile in a new browser tab. You'll need to look at their reviews to answer the questions in the audit.

a business profile with fake reviews
Step 2.

Follow the simple on-screen prompts. We'll guide you through five key checkpoints to instantly calculate their "Suspicion Score" and see how they stack up.

fake review checklist
Frequently asked questions
How can you tell when a review is fake?
The Reviewer: Click their name. See their location. If they have only 1 review (or 5 reviews for random businesses across the country or multiple countries), it's highly suspicious.
‍The Timing: Did the business get 100+ reviews with poor reviewers in one week after months of silence? This is a classic "review spike" from a paid campaign. If reviewers match what we mentioned before and haven't left a review anywhere else, they are likely dishonest.
‍The Language: The review is generic ("Great service!") or stuffed with keywords ("This was the best plumber in Houston for Houston plumbing"). Real reviews are specific.

Consumers on average tend to have a good grasp on when a business has fake reviews. If they hover or click on two or three customers and they have no local history or long history, those are red flags.
How do I get a fake negative review removed from my Google profile?
You can't delete it. You can only "flag" it. Google will only remove reviews that are obvious spam, hate speech, or a conflict of interest - not just because they are "untrue." You can learn more about how to deal with negative reviews here.
What is the best way to get more authentic customer reviews (and beat the cheaters)?
Stop manually asking and build a system. The best method is to text every customer a direct review link immediately after the job is done. You can do it automatically with Reputigo.
Should I just buy fake reviews to level the playing field?
No. It's one of the highest-risk, lowest-reward things you can do. You're not just "leveling the field," you're setting a time bomb. It's FAFO. Google's algorithm and many others are built to find and punish this. They are trillion dollar organizations investing multi-billion dollars to establish trust across the internet.
What are the penalties for getting caught buying reviews?
It's not a slap on the wrist.
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‍Best Case: Google finds and deletes all the fake reviews, and your rating instantly tanks.
‍Worse Case: Google penalizes your profile, making you invisible in search results.
‍Worst Case: Google suspends your entire Business Profile, and you lose everything.

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