Anyone else getting weird phone calls from people claiming to be from G

[webastronaut]

Is anyone else getting weird phone calls from people you can't hardly understand asking if this is your website or not then asking for your home address? I'm getting about 4 or so a day now from peeps saying they work for Google. I don't know what it's about at all? I can't blame Goog because I don't think they would do that but the calls are coming to my cell number from Mountain View and LA.

[Frost_Angel]

I have not gotten any of these - but I'd I'll be anxious to see where this thread goes and if others have gotten calls like this.

Maybe it's some kind of scammer?

[lucy24]

Did you give them your cell phone number in GWT? They've asked me at least three times to date, more insistently each time. But so far I've held firm.*


* That is, I have not yet gone out and signed up for cell phone service in order to make google happy.

[Staffa]

Sounds like a variation on a theme

[webmasterworld.com...]

[Sgt_Kickaxe]

I just got kicked out of my adsense account and received a surprise 3am phone call from a machine giving me a pin number to enter in a google popup box.

No warning, no care that it woke up my daughter, and all because I cleared my cookies while logging out of my various browser windows.(I will be away tomorrow and it's an old habit).

It was G and you've been warned, if you give them your phone number they WILL be calling it.

[netmeg]

I've been getting robocalls promising me a free listing in Google (on the front page nodoubt); I'm pretty sure it's not actually Google.

[Catalyst]

Do you have a LOCAL business with a Place page?
Do you have a home office or set your Place page up for a service area?

If so then Google IS making calls lately due to a new guideline that says if you are home-based or only travel out to customers and don't see customers at your location...
You MUST select hide your address or they can pull your Place page. It's been happening a lot!

I'm a Google Top Contributor on the Google Places forum and we have gotten several complaints like yours.
Caller with poor English calls from Google (really Google NOT a robo call). They ask address questions and then the Place page disappears.

I blogged about it this week in detail.
It's a BIG deal and has caused lots of controversy!

Let me know if this seems to fit your situation and if you like I can post more info and quote the new guidelines if needed.

Linda Buquet

PS there are lots of scammers pretending to be Google too so you have to figure out who you are talking to, BUT if you blow off a Googler from India by accident and don't answer the question right you could lose your Place page. One easy tip is Google does not do robo calls OR talk about front page ranking or improving your ranking AT ALL, so if you get that type of call you can rule out Google.