When people want to look up contact information for local businesses, one of the most commonly used tools is Google Maps. Simply by entering the business name, the system usually displays the address, business hours, user reviews, and phone number, and users can even contact the business directly through the “Call” feature. Beyond navigation services, Google Maps has long been an important platform for many people looking for business information.
Looking for a business on Google Maps? Watch out for this new scam.
Although Google Maps is not without its flaws—issues such as business hours not being updated in a timely manner and incorrect address listings still occur occasionally—most users still place a high degree of trust in the information on the platform. In particular, when a business page includes complete details, customer reviews, and professional photos, it becomes even easier for people to believe that the content is authentic. As a result, many people, when searching for business information, often do not further verify the source of the data, but instead act directly based on the information on the map.
However, this trust-based usage habit may now become a weakness that scam groups can exploit. According to an SEO expertA case shared on LinkedInCriminals are suspected of using artificial intelligence to generate images, embedding fake phone numbers into the photos, and then uploading them to legitimate businesses’ Google Maps pages. Because these images look quite professional and credible, many users may mistakenly believe that the contact information in the images is the business’s official phone number.
In this case, if consumers call the number shown in the photo, they may end up contacting scammers directly instead of the actual business. Scammers exploit people’s trust in Google Maps to lead users to ignore official information and instead call the wrong contact number, allowing them to carry out scams or steal personal data.
In fact, such incidents may not be isolated cases. Related searches reveal that,Google Maps Help ForumSimilar warnings have been raised by users in the past, pointing out that multiple accounts appeared to be using unauthorized images and incorrect phone numbers to alter business information or mislead consumers. These actions were most likely intended to divert potential customers from legitimate businesses to other parties. The situation closely matches a case mentioned on LinkedIn, where the SEO expert even noted that a suspicious account had uploaded more than 150 images suspected of containing fake phone numbers to multiple business pages in the United States.
Of course, as with many online scam cases, when facing related allegations, one should still remain rational and cautious, avoiding jumping to conclusions before the information has been fully verified. However, according to subsequent reports, Google has already taken action in response to the relevant complaints, removing accounts involving fake photos and incorrect phone information, which also shows that the platform itself has noticed such issues and is actively addressing them.
Even so, users should remain vigilant. In the future, when looking up a business’s contact information through Google Maps, they should prioritize official information in the business profile fields rather than relying entirely on user-uploaded images. If they need to contact a company or store, they should ideally go a step further and verify the phone number on the official website to reduce the risk of being scammed. In addition, it is advisable to follow anti-scam information released by government agencies or law enforcement, understand how AI technology may be misused, and improve their ability to identify such scams. Only by maintaining a habit of verification and information security awareness can they enjoy the convenience of digital tools while avoiding increasingly complex online scam traps.
Source: KOCPC Chinese