Scammers Are Threatening NYC Restaurants With 1-Star Reviews in Exchange for Online Gift Cards | Eater NY

"At the East Village vegan spot Avant Garden, I learned that one-star reviews began appearing around July 2—two at first, then rising to six by the next morning—after which scammers emailed on July 5 threatening to post one one-star review a day unless the restaurant provided a $75 Google Play gift-card code. Drew Brady, director of operations for Overthrow Hospitality, flagged the reviews to Google but none had been removed by the time of publication; he noted that Google’s star ratings carry an implied legitimacy and said the team is monitoring Avant Garden’s overall rating (still about 4.5 stars, anchored by roughly 500 reviews) with urgency set to increase if it starts to drop." - Luke Fortney