Blog / Insights
The Google Maps Pin Scam and How to Fix It Safely
How malicious pin moves affect local rankings and the safest way to restore a business location without triggering a suspension.
Learn how this deceptive tactic can damage your rankings and the safest way to restore your business location.
A new scam is circulating in the world of Google Maps and Google Business Profile.
Competitors can move the Google Maps pin to a new location, which negatively affects rankings. This has been happening for months and has already impacted many Google business profiles. It is easy for bad actors to do this using the “Suggest an edit” function and then changing the map location.
When the map pin is moved to a new location, Google starts to believe the business is no longer where it originally operated, which can cause rankings to drop.
Why is this a problem?
Google does not notify owners or managers when the map pin has been moved. Unless you are actively checking for this issue, you may not understand why calls and customers suddenly stop. If you are tracking rankings, you may also fail to understand why visibility dropped so quickly. Worse still, if you try to move the pin back directly from the business profile, Google can suspend the listing.
How to fix the problem
At the moment, the safest fix is to log into Google with an email address that is not connected to any Google Business Profile. Then search for your business in Google Maps and follow these steps:
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Click the “Suggest an edit” button on the listing.
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Click “Change name or other details”.
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Click “Edit map location”.
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Drag the pin back to the correct location.
Then click “Save”.
Remember: it is always important to review your Google business profile regularly to catch changes made by others.
Contact us today and learn how SearchMAS can help protect and optimise your presence in Google Maps and Google Business Profile.
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