Google's Review Rules and the FTC Fake-Review Rule, Explained for Owners

The rules in one table

Google's review policy and the FTC's new rule on fake reviews both aim at the same goal: stop fake engagement and keep reviews honest. Here's what you need to know.

| What you're doing | Google policy | FTC rule (Oct 2024) | |---|---|---| | Asking all customers the same way to review | Allowed | Allowed | | Asking only happy customers to review | Prohibited (review gating) | Prohibited | | Offering money, discounts, or gifts for a review | Prohibited | Prohibited | | Paying someone to write a positive review | Prohibited | Prohibited and subject to civil penalties | | Employees or family posting reviews | Prohibited | Prohibited if undisclosed | | Threatening or intimidating someone to remove a negative review | Prohibited | Prohibited and subject to civil penalties | | AI-generated reviews that fake a real person's experience | Prohibited | Prohibited and subject to civil penalties |

The overlap is intentional. Google enforces its own policy by removing reviews and suspending listings. The FTC enforces its rule through civil penalties that can exceed $50,000 per violation. Both matter to your business.

Google's policy: what gets reviews removed and listings suspended

Google's Maps user-generated content policy is clear: reviews must reflect a genuine experience at your location. That means the person who wrote the review actually visited and has no financial stake in the outcome.

Reviews get removed when they violate this policy. Common reasons include:

Fake reviews. A review written by you, your staff, or someone you paid. Also reviews posted from multiple accounts by the same person, or reviews that are off-topic, promotional, or contain personal information unrelated to the service.

Conflict of interest. A review from someone with a financial incentive to post it—including employees, unless they disclose the relationship.

Coordinated inauthentic behavior. A pattern of reviews that appear to come from the same source or are posted in an unnatural cluster.

If Google finds repeated violations, it can suspend your entire listing. You lose the ability to respond to reviews, update your business information, or post photos. Getting a suspended listing reinstated means appealing to Google and showing the problem is fixed.

The stakes are high because your Google Business Profile is often the first place potential customers look. A suspended listing signals trouble, even if you've done nothing wrong.

Review gating — the mistake honest businesses make

Review gating sounds reasonable: send happy customers to Google, and ask unhappy ones for private feedback instead. You think you're protecting your reputation.

Google prohibits this. The policy is explicit: you cannot selectively solicit positive reviews from customers or discourage or prevent negative reviews. You must ask everyone the same way.

Why does Google care. Because gating distorts the review pool. It makes your rating artificially high and hides legitimate complaints. Customers reading your reviews can't trust them. Google can remove reviews it judges to be selectively solicited.

The irony is that honest businesses often gate reviews without realizing it. You might send a follow-up email to customers who rated you 5 stars on a survey, asking them to "share their experience on Google." That's gating. Or you might include a Google review link only in thank-you emails sent to satisfied customers. Also gating.

The safe approach: ask all customers the same way, using the same channel, at the same time. Don't condition the request on their satisfaction level.

The FTC rule (October 21, 2024): what changed

In August 2024, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission finalized a new rule on Consumer Reviews and Testimonials (16 CFR Part 465). It took effect on October 21, 2024.

The rule is broader than Google's policy and carries legal teeth. The FTC can seek civil penalties of more than $50,000 per violation.

Here's what the rule prohibits:

Fake reviews, including AI-generated ones. You cannot post a review yourself, pay someone to post a positive review, or use AI to generate a review that misrepresents a real person's experience. This applies even if the review is technically true.

Undisclosed insider reviews. Employees, family members, contractors, and business partners cannot post reviews without clearly disclosing their relationship to you. "I work here" or "my sister owns this place" counts as disclosure. But most people don't do this, so the safest approach is not to ask them at all.

Compensated reviews with strings attached. You cannot pay someone to review your business if the payment is conditioned on the review expressing a particular sentiment—positive or negative.

Review suppression. You cannot threaten or intimidate someone into removing a negative review. You also cannot claim that your displayed reviews are "all reviews" when you've hidden negative ones.

The rule applies to you even if you use a third party to manage reviews. If your marketing agency or reputation firm buys fake reviews on your behalf, you're liable.

Incentives: what's allowed and what isn't

The line between allowed and prohibited incentives is precise, and it's the same under Google policy and the FTC rule.

Prohibited:

• Offering a discount, gift, free service, or cash in exchange for a review.
• Offering a discount, gift, or cash in exchange for a positive review (or negative review).
• Entering reviewers into a raffle or contest where the prize is conditioned on leaving a review.

Allowed:

• Asking customers to review you, with no incentive.
• Offering a discount or gift to all customers, regardless of whether they review. (The discount is not conditioned on the review.)
• Thanking customers who leave a review with a small, unsolicited gesture—though this is a gray area and best avoided.

The key word is "conditioned." If the incentive depends on the review happening or on the review being positive, it's prohibited.

Many owners think a raffle is safe: "Leave a review and enter to win a $50 gift card." It's not. The incentive is conditioned on the review. Google will remove those reviews, and the FTC could fine you.

A safer approach: "All customers get 10% off their next visit" is fine. "Leave a review and get 10% off" is not.

Employees, family, and 'review swaps'

Your employees and family members cannot post reviews for your business under Google policy or the FTC rule, unless they disclose the relationship. And even with disclosure, Google's policy is murky—disclosure doesn't guarantee the review will stay.

The safest approach is not to ask them at all.

Why employees are risky. An employee has a financial stake in your business's success. Their review is not independent. Google treats employee reviews as fake engagement, even if the employee had a genuine experience and discloses the relationship.

Why family is risky. Same logic. A family member's incentive to post a positive review is obvious, and Google removes these reviews regularly.

Why review swaps are risky. You and another business owner agree to leave reviews for each other. This is coordinated inauthentic behavior. Google detects patterns of mutual reviews and removes them. Both of you could lose reviews and face listing suspension.

What about disclosed reviews. The FTC rule allows employees and family to post reviews if they disclose the relationship. But Google's policy does not explicitly allow this. Google may remove the review anyway. You're taking a risk.

The safe way to ask

Here's how to ask for reviews without breaking Google's policy or the FTC rule.

Step 1: Ask everyone the same way.

Use one channel—email, text, QR code, or in-person—and send the same message to all customers. Don't segment by satisfaction level or likelihood to review. Don't include a review link only in thank-you emails to 5-star survey respondents.

Step 2: Make the ask simple and neutral.

Don't hint that you want positive reviews. Don't discourage negative ones. A neutral ask sounds like this:

"We'd love to hear about your experience. If you have a few minutes, please leave a review on Google. Here's the link: [your Google review link]."

Or:

"Your feedback helps us improve. Please share your experience on Google."

Avoid language like "share your positive experience" or "tell others how great we are." That's gating.

Step 3: Don't offer incentives.

Don't offer a discount, gift, or entry into a raffle in exchange for a review. Don't offer a discount only to customers who review. If you want to offer a discount, offer it to everyone, with no connection to reviews.

Step 4: Use a tool that enforces the rules.

LinkToReview gives every business a free review page where customers tap a star. Customers who rate 4–5 stars are sent directly to the Google review form. Customers who rate 1–3 stars can send private feedback to you first. everyone is asked the same way at the same moment, and an unhappy customer is never told not to post — the private channel is offered first, not instead. No incentives, and the same ask for every customer.

Step 5: Never ask employees or family to review.

Even with disclosure, it's not worth the risk. Google may remove the review, and you've wasted the ask.

Step 6: Respond to all reviews professionally.

When you get a negative review, respond with empathy and an offer to fix the problem. Don't threaten the reviewer or ask them to remove the review. Don't claim the review is false unless it factually is (e.g., "We were closed that day"). The FTC prohibits review suppression, and Google removes listings that engage in it.

Key takeaways

• Google's review policy and the FTC's October 2024 rule both prohibit fake reviews, review gating, incentivized reviews, and undisclosed insider reviews. Google removes reviews and suspends listings; the FTC can fine you more than $50,000 per violation.
• Review gating—asking only happy customers to review—is a common mistake. Google detects it and may remove gated reviews or suppress your listing. Ask all customers the same way.
• Incentives are prohibited if they're conditioned on a review or on a review being positive. Offering a discount to all customers (unrelated to reviews) is allowed; offering a discount for leaving a review is not.
• Employees and family members should not post reviews, even with disclosure. Google treats these as fake engagement and removes them. The risk is not worth the benefit.
• The safe way to ask is neutral, universal, and incentive-free. Send the same message to all customers, via one channel, with no hint that you want positive reviews.
• Use a tool that enforces these rules. The complete playbook walks you through the full process of building a review habit without breaking the rules.