On February 11, 2026, Google began restricting reviews on Google Business Profiles with suspicious reviews.
(This applies to all businesses, not just law firms.)
You heard it here first. This has not been published anywhere else on the web yet.
The move was expected. Our June 24, 2025 article informed attorneys reading this blog that this was being tested in the UK and was coming soon to the USA. Google was supposed to roll it out in 2025, but they were late.
How is Google Detecting Reviews?
I suspect there will be false positives here, and also people with fake reviews who slip by Google’s review detection.
As mentioned in the last article., Google is using Gemini AI to detect what they call “abuse patterns”.
Abuse patterns have been detected at Yelp for well over a decade. It’s really not that difficult to spot fake reviews and their commonalities.
The Email Notification:
Below is an actual email sent out to a law firm in the US:
It reads:
“Reviews and ratings on your Business Profile will be restricted.
.. we recently found fake or incentivized reviews associated with your profile. This violates our fake engagement policy and isn’t allowed.
As a result, we’ll soon be placing restrictions on your profile. For 30 days, customers won’t be able to post new ratings and reviews on your Business Profile. They’ll also see a warning that suspicious reviews were removed.
If you think we’ve made a mistake, you can appeal this decision below.”
Screenshot:
How Do You Appeal This?
This remains yet to be determined. We’ll update this article as information becomes available.
For Additional Help:
Historically, Google has removed suspicious reviews. Now they are mimicking Yelp and getting more aggressive.
Please see our page: Google Business Profile Expertise. It’s specifically for GBP management. And contact us if you need help with GBP.
