Google has committed to taking stronger measures against fake reviews in the UK, including imposing sanctions on businesses and individuals involved in manipulating star ratings.

This announcement follows a lengthy investigation by Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which began in 2021 due to concerns over inadequate action against fraudulent reviews on major platforms.

As part of its new strategy, Google will place warning alerts on the profiles of British businesses found to be using fake reviews to enhance their ratings. The CMA highlighted that online reviews influence approximately £23 billion ($29 billion) of consumer spending annually, with 89% of consumers relying on these assessments when making purchasing decisions.

CMA chief executive Sarah Cardell stated that the changes secured from Google will establish robust processes to ensure consumer trust in online reviews, promoting fairness for both businesses and consumers. Google will remove all reviews submitted by individuals who repeatedly post fake or misleading content, regardless of whether the reviews are positive or negative.

Additionally, businesses caught inflating their ratings will face consequences, including a ban on receiving new reviews and the removal of all reviews from the past six months if they continue such practices.

The CMA noted that a separate investigation into Amazon regarding similar issues is still ongoing. With the introduction of new powers in April that allow the CMA to determine breaches of consumer law without court intervention, scrutiny of big tech companies is set to increase.

In response to these developments, a Google spokesperson emphasized the company’s ongoing efforts to combat fake content globally, asserting that it blocks millions of fake reviews annually before they are published.