ReferenceBusiness Profile suspension
Posts with unverified contact information
Google's page says it may remove posts with unverified contact information, to avoid fraud or abuse. Phone numbers, email addresses or social handles typed into a post text can be removed on that basis. Keep the contact details in the profile's own fields, and write posts that point to the profile instead of carrying the details.
At a glance
- Where it shows
- The post on the profile, after it is published.
- What stops
- The post may be removed and stop showing.
- How serious
- The page says Google 'may' remove the post, so removal is not certain in either direction.
What it means
The page explains that Google removes posts with unverified contact details to avoid fraud or abuse. The rule covers the post, and the page does not describe a penalty for the profile.
The check is on what the post carries. Google's page does not say what makes contact information verified, so the safe course is to keep contact details in the profile's own fields.
What actually triggers it
A phone number typed into the post
A number in the body of a post that is not the profile's own verified number. The page refers to unverified contact information in posts.
An email address or social handle in the post text
Google's page does not define contact information. An email address or a social handle typed into the post is contact information as well, and can fall under the same rule.
Fix it in this order
- Read the post and list any phone number, email address or handle in its text.
- Remove those details from the post text.
- If customers need the number, make sure it is set in the profile's own phone field, and point to the profile in the post.
- Publish the corrected post.
Often confused with
A rule about the profile description's content, such as links. A removed post is about contact details in a post, which is checked on its own.