Top restaurant owners blackmailed over fake reviews

A small chain of independent restaurants is being blackmailed by criminals who have said unless they are paid thousands of pounds they will flood the restaurants' online listings with fake one-star reviews.

Chef Andy Sheridan and his business partner Sam Morgan own and run five restaurants across the North West and Midlands, with a sixth preparing to open in North Wales.

The criminals threatened the business through its WhatsApp booking service demanding payment of £2,000 or they would share fake reviews.

The pair initially ignored the demands before the individuals shared a one-star review to prove they could do it.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4's You and Yours, Mr Morgan said: "This is just classic fraudster tricks.

"The weapon is fear - ultimately we are a small independent business - yes we have got six or seven restaurants but actually underneath it all we are just two lads trying hard to make a living, we are not a multi-million organisation, we don't have the resources that tackle these things."

Each of the restaurants in the group being targeted were high profile and well-known in their areas. Restaurant 8 in Liverpool has 3 AA Rosettes, The Bracebridge in Birmingham, Black and Green in Worcestershire, Restaurant OXA in Wirral which has two AA Rosettes, and the soon to open Dishes in Prestatyn, north Wales.

Mr Morgan decided to try and find out as much as he could about who was targeting them.

He said he began to "play along" and over the course of a few days had back and to messages with the individuals, asking how he would make the payments, the criminals said at first through an international money agent, until they settled on using a PayPal account.

"After I played the game a little bit, he got frustrated by that and said 'well now the figure is £2,500'.

"How do I know even if we were to pay that sum of money that this is going to stop? The truth is, it's not going to stop, he's going to come back a week later and say 'pay another £2,000 or I am going to post online that you paid me previously' and it's just going to go on."

They stopped the contact and then five days later, the fake one-star reviews began to roll in and they were accompanied by damaging comments which would put off potential customers.

Seen by the BBC, one read: "Disappoints with its lacklustre service and mediocre food quality, ambience was dull and prices did not justify the experience. Not recommended for deserning [sic] diners seeking quality dining."

Mr Morgan said they tried to report the fake reviews to Google but hit a dead end.

"You can't actually say anything, Google gives you four categories to report it.

"You report it and it just says thank you for reporting. You get nothing else back."

He said he then typed out the complaint to Google but it was a chatbot who responded with some self-help guides after saying they did not understand the query.

A Google spokesperson said: "Our policies clearly state that reviews must be based on real experiences and information.

"We've looked into this case and are removing the policy-violating content."

• Listen to the report on BBC Radio 4's You and Yours

Then a review appeared on TripAdvisor, and was clearly fake as the reviewer mentioned items not on the menu at Liverpool's 8 Restaurant.

It said: "Wine list was very poor and very overpriced. Our chef Jake was fantastic but the lack of drinks choice and excessive price really lets this venue down, how can anyone warrant £90 for prosecco?"

The pair said they do not serve prosecco at that venue nor do they employ a chef named Jake.

One of the fake Google reviews was using a genuine person's profile photo who actually lives in Kentucky.

The criminals had stolen her name and pictures, pretending to be her to post the fake reviews on Google.

Mr Morgan said of the scam: "I think this happens more, we are not just isolated.

"Unless we speak up about it, other people will bury their head in the sand, their businesses are going to get destroyed.

"The public gives so much credence to online review platforms and you have got these people trying to destroy businesses that are operating in a lifeblood of employment.

"I was thinking when is this going to stop?"

Liverpool-born Mr Sheridan, who has appeared on the Great British Menu and Come Dine with Me The Professionals, added: "There will be some people who will pay out of fear.

"We have got a lot going on, the stress levels are already high, on top of it we have got some plonker trying it out, you take it personally."

The businessmen reported the scam to Google, Action Fraud and TripAdvisor.

Their flagship restaurant in Liverpool is in the Michelin Guide and was named Best Restaurant in the UK at the British Restaurant Awards in September.

Fake reviews became such a big problem in June 2021 that the Competition and Markets Authority launched a formal investigation into Amazon and Google over concerns that they have not been doing enough to combat fake reviews on their sites.

There are new laws on the way under the Digital Markets and Competition and Consumer Act, which includes the banning of submitting and commissioning fake reviews.