Report inappropriate content

The Places API returns information about a place in a response. Along with factual content, such as an address and phone number, the response can also contain content that users have contributed on Google Maps, such as reviews and photos. In addition, when you use Gemini model capabilities for Places API, the response can include generative data aggregated and summarized from a LLM.

Although Google has implemented a series of measures to identify problematic content before it is returned by the Places API, we also provide a way for users to flag inappropriate content so that Google can remove it. With this release, the Places API includes the new flagContentUri field in all reviews, photos, and generative summaries included in a Places API response. This field contains a link, including a unique content identifier, that lets users notify Google of inappropriate content.

For example, you make a request that returns five individual reviews for a place. Each individual review includes the new flagContentUri field with a unique identifier for that review so that a user can report an issue with any or all of the reviews.

The API Explorer lets you make live requests so that you can get familiar with these new options:

Try it!

The URL contained in the flagContentUri field includes a unique identifier for the content. Browsing to this link opens a Google-hosted web page in the form:

The report an issue web page.

From this dialog, your users can file a report with Google for the appropriate issue type. For example, they can report profanity, bullying, or a legal issue with the content.

Pricing

This feature is in the pre-GA Preview stage and there is no charge, meaning billing is $0, for usage during Preview. For details on the proposed pricing, see Places API Usage and Billing.

Display the content reporting link

This Preview release adds the new flagContentUri field to the following objects that are already part of the Places API response:

  • Review
  • Photo

  • GenerativeSummary For GenerativeSummary only, there are two new fields:

    • overviewFlagContentUri: The link to notify Google of inappropriate content in the overview.
    • descriptionFlagContentUri: The link to notify Google of inappropriate content in the description.

  • AreaSummary

  • ContextualContent

During the Preview period, there is no requirement that you display the content reporting link when you display these objects to your customers.

However, when this feature goes to General Availability (GA) you must display the content reporting link when you display these objects so that your customers can report any content issues.

Access the content reporting link in the response

The following Place Details request includes place reviews in the response:

curl -X GET -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
-H "X-Goog-Api-Key: API_KEY" \
-H "X-Goog-FieldMask: id,displayName,reviews" \
https://places.googleapis.com/v1/places/ChIJj61dQgK6j4AR4GeTYWZsKWw

The response is in the form:

{
  "id": "ChIJj61dQgK6j4AR4GeTYWZsKWw",
  "displayName": {
    "text": "Googleplex",
    "languageCode": "en"
  },
  "reviews": [
    {
      "name": "places/ChIJj61dQgK6j4AR4GeTYWZsKWw/reviews/ChdDjNnRRAB",
      "relativePublishTimeDescription": "7 months ago",
      "rating": 3,
      "text": {
        "text": "Came here for a tour and honestly,...",
        "languageCode": "en"
      },
      "originalText": {
        "text": "Came here for a tour and honestly,...",
        "languageCode": "en"
      },
      "authorAttribution": {
        "displayName": "John Smith",
        "uri": "https://www.google.com/maps/contrib/10198693/reviews",
        "photoUri": "https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/a-/A-c00-cc-rp-mo-ba6"
      },
      "publishTime": "2024-02-24T19:26:18.091264Z",
      "flagContentUri": "https://www.google.com/local/review/rap/report?postId=CJ2&t=1",
      "googleMapsUri": "https://www.google.com/maps/reviews/data=!4m6!14m5"
    },
    …
  ]
}

Each entry in the reviews array contains the flagContentUri field, including a unique identifier for that specific review. Browsing to that link lets your customers report inappropriate content for that specific review.

If you include photos in the field mask:

curl -X GET -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
-H "X-Goog-Api-Key: API_KEY" \
-H "X-Goog-FieldMask: id,displayName,reviews,photos" \
https://places.googleapis.com/v1/places/ChIJj61dQgK6j4AR4GeTYWZsKWw

The response also includes the photos array where each element contains the flagContentUri field:

  ...
  "photos": [
    {
      "name": "places/ChIJj61dQgK6j4AR4GeTYWZsKWw/photos/AdCG2DNmA4zTnu24VKCwSW7ulKkgDA8cTe5sz74Q4Doo",
      "widthPx": 4032,
      "heightPx": 3024,
      "authorAttributions": [
        {
          "displayName": "Jane Smith",
          "uri": "https://maps.google.com/maps/contrib/107007354",
          "photoUri": "https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/a-/ALV-UjXvHp8Kg932h80MpoDSJ_Sl4F-no-mo"
        }
      ],
      "flagContentUri": "https://www.google.com/local/imagery/report/?cb_client=maps_api_places&image_key=!1e10!2XtMU_GKr",
      "googleMapsUri": "https://www.google.com/maps/reviews/data=!4m6!14m5"
    },
    ...
  ]

The content links remain active until the backing content is removed. The links do continue to open the dialog for content that has been removed, but filing a report on content that has already been removed has no effect.

Try it!

The API Explorer lets you make sample requests so that you can get familiar with the API and the API options.

  1. Select the API icon, Expand the API Explorer., on the right side of the page.

  2. Optionally expand Show standard parameters and set the fields parameter to the field mask.

  3. Optionally edit the Request body.

  4. Select Execute button. In the dialog, choose the account that you want to use to make the request.

  5. In the API Explorer panel, select the expand icon, Expand the API Explorer., to expand the API Explorer window.