Google has sued a Columbus business in federal court, alleging the company has been impersonating Google to target and defraud small businesses.
Google alleges that the company, known as G Verifier in filings in federal court in Columbus, has been trying to charge business owners a fee to verify and set up their business profiles, a service that Google provides for free.
Google is seeking a court order to stop G Verifier from continuing what Google says is fraud.
Google claims it has suffered at least $50,000 in damages and that G Verifier’s actions continue to harm Google and consumers.
“Today, we are filing charges against scammers who attempted to defraud hundreds of small businesses with telemarketing calls impersonating Google,” two Google executives said in a blog post published Tuesday. “They have also created sites promoting the purchase of fake reviews, both positive and negative, to manipulate reviews on business profiles on Google Search and Maps. This practice exploits entrepreneurs and small businesses — it violates our principles of deceptive Content Policy.
“Often, online scams are just old tricks hidden in new tools. This lawsuit is against a group of people who are trying to charge people for their business profiles – a service we provide for free,” the company said.
G Verifier could not be reached for comment. The lawsuit lists the company as having an office on East Guy Street downtown, which showed no signs of being occupied Tuesday.
A Business Profile is a Google tool that business owners can use to control how their business appears on Google Search and Maps. In the past year, Google said it blocked 12 million attempts to create fake business profiles, and nearly 8 million attempts to claim business profiles that didn’t belong to them.
For years, Google has provided various tools to help businesses claim and manage their Google profiles. To claim a profile, the business owner or their authorized representative must verify that they are the owner and have permission to edit the business profile. This service is provided free of charge.
In its lawsuit, Google alleges that G Verifier regularly made unsolicited calls to business profile owners, primarily small businesses, in the United States and Canada, falsely claiming that they had to pay for their profiles.
G Verifier also falsely told business owners it could list them among the top Google results for money searches, the lawsuit said. Google says no service can guarantee such a result.
According to the lawsuit, G Verifier requires a fee (typically $99) to verify business profiles. Payment also ensures that the profile is not deactivated or corrupted in some way.
Agents for G Verifier lied about being Google employees or making calls on Google’s behalf, the lawsuit says.
Google said hundreds of merchants have contacted Google to complain about the G Verifier program. Many people didn’t realize they had been scammed until they paid G Verifier, the complaint said.
mawilliams@dispatch.com
@BizMarkWilliams