South Australian Buisness Targeted by Fake Google Review Scam

The owner of a South Australian business says she has been targeted in an online scam requesting payment for the removal of fake negative Google reviews.

Theresa Ferretti, the owner of ISPS Innovations in Lonsdale, a kitchen manufacturer and restoration business, told ABC Radio Adelaide she noticed the fake reviews when one mentioned a product the business does not sell.

“I noticed the first review that went up and it was talking about tiles and we don’t sell tiles,” she said.

“I started looking at these reviews as they were popping up and they just made no sense so I reported them.”

!ISPS Innovations started being inundated wiht fake reviews after refusing to pay $200 US.

Ms Ferretti said the situation took another sinister turn when she received a call from an unknown number.

“They were trying to sell me Google ad work and remove reviews and I said ‘I’m not interested’,” she said.

“That person was upset and said ‘I’ll show you’.

“Within a matter of hours I started getting all these one-star reviews posted up.”

The business owner said she and her husband, Daniel, found a number for the fake reviewer through their account.

!Neon