Google’s August 2026 spam update caused sharper ranking movement than recent updates. Here is how to work out whether it affected you, and what to do if it did.
What a spam update is
A spam update is a change to the automated systems Google uses to detect and demote content that breaches its spam policies. It is distinct from a core update, which reassesses overall content quality. A spam update targets specific manipulative practices, so the sites it affects tend to drop sharply rather than drift.
How to check whether you were affected
Do this before assuming anything, because most ranking wobbles have nothing to do with an update.
- In Search Console, look at clicks and impressions by week, not by day. Daily figures are too noisy to read.
- Line up the drop against the update dates. A change that began a week earlier is not caused by the update.
- Check whether the drop is site-wide or confined to certain pages. Spam actions often hit a section rather than everything.
- Check Search Console for a manual action notice. If there is one, that is a person, not an algorithm, and the remedy is different.
What tends to get hit
The practices that repeatedly attract trouble are not subtle:
- Bought links. Paid placements from networks that exist to sell links, which is the most common cause we see in this market.
- Mass-produced pages. Hundreds of near-identical pages generated from a template, most often location pages with the area name swapped.
- Renting out your domain. Letting a third party publish unrelated commercial content on your site, often in a subfolder.
- Expired domain abuse. Buying an old domain purely for its links and repurposing it.
If you were affected
Recovery is slow and there is no shortcut. Remove or disavow the links you paid for. Consolidate or delete thin duplicated pages rather than trying to improve them individually. Stop any arrangement where someone else publishes on your domain. Then wait, because these systems reassess over months, not days.
The uncomfortable part is that recovery usually costs more than the original shortcut saved. That is worth remembering the next time someone offers you a hundred backlinks for a fixed fee.
If you were not affected
Then this is a useful moment to check you are not accumulating the same risk. If an agency is building links for you and cannot tell you exactly where they come from, ask again. Our view on this is set out plainly on the SEO services page.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a spam update and a core update?
A spam update targets specific manipulative practices such as bought links or mass-produced pages, so affected sites tend to drop sharply. A core update reassesses overall content quality more broadly, and movement tends to be gradual.
How do I know if a ranking drop was caused by an update?
Look at weekly rather than daily figures in Search Console, and line the drop up against the announced dates. If it began before the update, something else caused it. Also check for a manual action notice, which is a person rather than an algorithm.
How long does recovery from a spam update take?
Months, not days, and there is no way to speed it up. Remove or disavow paid links, consolidate thin duplicated pages, and end any arrangement where a third party publishes on your domain. Then wait for the systems to reassess.
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