Google releases August 2026 spam update after weeks of SERP volatility
Google says it’s rolling out the August 2026 spam update, and it expects the rollout to complete in a few days. “Released the August 2026 spam update, which applies globally and to all languages. The rollout may take a few days to complete,” Google noted in a status update. A search algorithm update was expected […]
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Google August 2026 Spam Update Has Been Unleashed
Google has just announced the release of the August 2026 spam update and said it should only take a few days to roll out. This is a global update and is expected to impact all languages. This only impacts sites that spam, but with any update, there m…
You Can Now Edit Your Handle On Google Search Profiles
As expected, Google is now enabling those with Google Search Profiles to edit their handle, their short name. This is available by going to your Google Search Profile, click Edit profile and then next to your @handle, click Edit.
Google Related Searches For With Underline Hyperlink
Google is testing underlining and maybe hyperlinking the word in the related searches for section of the search results. Normally, that section is not underlined, but for some reason, Google is testing underlining the query.
ChatGPT Ads Switching Advertisers On Load
Sometimes when you look at the ads within OpenAI’s ChatGPT, you might notice an ad from one advertiser first loads and then it quickly blinks and loads a different advertiser. I suspect this is a bit of a deficiency with the ad server, but I am not cer…
Google AdSense Will Stop Euro-Denominated Check Payments August 7
Google is dropping support for Euro-denominated check payments for AdSense publishers after August 7, 2026. Google wrote this as a note in this document saying, “Effective August 7, 2026, Google will no longer support Euro-denominated check payments. I…
Google Search Will Eventually Support HTTP QUERY Method
Gary Illyes from Google said Google Search will eventually support the new HTTP QUERY method. He said as the “ecosystem catches up” Google will then support the HTTP QUERY method.
Bing tests Short video tab in header on desktop
Bing is testing a short video header tab on desktop. We saw Google do something similar nov 2025, adding a short video option to its header, since short video has become so popular across social media. Now it looks like Bing is following the same approach. This appears to be a recent test. I was […]
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Google pauses AI-generated images test in search results
Last week, Google tested AI-generated images within search results. we covered previously this, Inspired Taste shared their frustration on X after seeing AI-generated images replace their own recipe content in an AI Overview. He wrote “replace creators who buy groceries for testing, photography, and filming recipe videos” It looks like Google has now paused this […]
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Announcing the Final Batch of Speakers for MozCon London
We’ve dropped the final speaker lineup for MozCon London on November 13th, 2026! If you’re looking to future-proof your search strategy, this speaker drop gives you a preview of the high-signal, tactical sessions coming your way.
Google lets users remove watermarks from AI generations
Google announced last Friday that users can now remove watermarks from its AI-generated content. This was confirmed by Josh Woodward, the company’s VP for Gemini, who posted on X. Woodward wrote: “Papercut fixed: You can now toggle visible watermarks on or off in Gemini and Flow, with Search coming next. This applies to watermarks on […]
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Google Search Console performance report shows decline
Site owners have been reporting a drop in Google Search data since August 15th, with many complaints circulating on social media. I noticed this myself this morning as well. John Mueller confirmed the issue and wrote: “Hi Juan, we’re aware of this issue and working on resolving it. This is just a logging issue and […]
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Google Performance Reports Drop In Impressions/Clicks ~August 12
There are a number of reports that the performance reports, both for Google Search and the Generative AI features reports, are showing a decline in impressions and clicks (AI report does not show clicks) starting around August 12th and 13th. This seem…
Google Search Using Gemini 3.7 Flash In AI Mode
Late on Friday, Google’s Robby Stein and Rajan Patel announced on X and X that Google Search is now using its latest AI model named Gemini 3.7 Flash. This model was first announced on Thursday, but Google made no mention of Search, it only said it is i…
Google Ads Tests New Review Layout With Supersized Star
Google Ads is testing a new layout for review stars for a product in the mobile sponsored results within Google Search. I am pretty sure I’ve seen this layout before, but it is not common and I don’t think I covered it before.
Apple Adds Thousands Of New IP Addresses For Applebot To Crawl From
Apple has added over 4,000 new IP addresses for Applebot, Apple’s Siri and Apple Intelligence crawler, to crawl from. Specifically, there are now 18 of /24 CIDR ranges and 3 of /28, which totals 4,656 new IP addresses.
Bing tests showing full URLs in Copilot search
Bing is testing a change in Copilot search that shows the entire URL for a result. this is different from how Google handles links within AI Overviews. Instead of showing the full URL, Google displays anchor text. clicking on it takes the user directly to that website. Here is a screenshot of how Bing Copilot […]
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Bing Testing Large Images In Sponsored Results
Microsoft Advertising is testing displaying larger images in the Bing sponsored results. These images are full block size images that take up a lot of space in the search results.
Google Ads Tests Blue Hyperlinks In Ad Descriptions
Google is testing blue hyperlinks in the ad descriptions within the sponsored results. These are clickable, keyword rich, links in the ads, similar to what we saw last week with the keyword rich anchor text links but those were black links, not blue.
Google Hiring A Product Manager For Content Automation
Google has posted a job listing for a Product Manager for Content Automation, I kid you not. The job posting was posted about two weeks ago and is available for two Google locations, Boulder, CO, USA and Pittsburgh, PA, USA.