Several draw in unwitting customers like Talbot through Google ads that outrank the legitimate SAM.gov page, illustrating the ease of buying visibility on the world’s largest search engine. Google removed the ads for a number of these sites in response to an inquiry for this article but subsequently reversed its decision. “We have strict ads policies that govern the types of ads and advertisers we allow on our platforms,” Google spokesperson Davis Thompson said in a statement. But the Small Business Administration urges people not to spend their precious resources on these services when so many free alternatives exist. She expects new, prominently displayed Google ads to play a part in the problem.

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