Chef Andrew Sheridan of Liverpool’s Restaurant 8 has revealed that he was subject to a blackmail threat from criminals who demanded payment to stop them posting fake one-star reviews online.

Andrew and his business partner Sam Morgan, who will open their seventh restaurant on August 2, Dishes in Prestatyn, North Wales, revealed the extortion attempt on BBC Radio 4, saying they believed it was not an isolated case. Unlike Harden’s – where reviews and ratings are intensively curated before contributing to any overall mark – standard online reviewing platforms are not edited, and it is difficult to tell if a review is genuine.

The blackmailers targeted Restaurant 8, Dishes and other restaurants in the group –  The Bracebridge in Birmingham, Black and Green in Worcestershire, Restaurant OXA in Wirral – demanding £2,000 through the WhatsApp booking service. When the demands were ignored, fake one-star reviews began to appear.

Sam said: “This is just classic fraudster tricks – the weapon is fear. Ultimately, we are a small independent business. Yes, we have got six or seven restaurants, but underneath it all we are just two lads trying hard to make a living. We are not a multi-million organisation; we don’t have the resources that tackle these things.

“I think this happens more, we are not isolated. Unless we speak up about it, other people will bury their head in the sand, their businesses are going to get destroyed.”

Andrew added: “There will be some people who will pay out of fear. The stress levels are already high, you take it personally.”

A Google spokesperson said reviews must be based on real experiences, and policy-violating content would be removed. As of this week, going public on the issue appears to have paid off for Andrew and Sam – at least in the case of Restaurant 8, whose Google listing gives it a very healthy 4.9 out of 5 stars, with not a single one-star review in sight.