Welcome to this week’s edition of the Pulse, where we delve into significant updates, including the duration of the spam update rollout, modifications in Search Console’s image search reporting, implications of error pages on search outcomes, and insights from two reports regarding Google traffic trends.
Google Unveils The September 2026 Spam Update
Google initiated the rollout of the September 2026 spam update on September 24, with the implementation expected to span a duration of up to two weeks.
Essential Details:
The rollout commenced at 9:15 a.m. PDT and applies universally across languages, as indicated by Google’s Search Status Dashboard.
This marks the fourth spam update of 2026, following updates in March, June, and August. Each of those previous updates was executed within a tight window of “a few days,” none exceeding two days and 16 hours. The specific targets of this update have not been disclosed by Google.
Significance of This Update
The extended rollout period surpasses that of any spam update released this year; thus, initial data may not fully encapsulate the update’s impact.
Evaluating the dates of any notable ranking or traffic alterations in Search Console in correlation with the rollout is advisable. Google recommends that sites potentially affected by a spam update review its spam policies.
For further insights, read our comprehensive coverage on the Global Rollout of the September 2026 Spam Update.
Search Console Introduces Filter for Image-Centric Searches
Google is implementing a multimodal filtering option in the performance report of Search Console, specifically for searches conducted using images.
Key Facts:
According to Google’s announcement, this data encompasses Google Lens, the Circle to Search feature on Android, image uploads to Google Search, and the “Search this image” functionality available via right-click in Chrome.
This option is situated under the Web search type and represents a global rollout. It should be noted that query data remains inaccessible, as multimodal searches predominantly employ images over text, as clarified in Google’s dimensions help page. Additionally, multimodal reporting is being integrated into the generative AI performance report.
Importance of This Feature
Retailers and other entities showcasing product images gain valuable insights into the pages accessed when users search with an image.
This allows for comparative analysis with traffic stemming from text-based searches, segmented by country and device.
However, it is essential to note that while a product page may garner multimodal clicks, the specific image utilized by users remains undetermined.
Explore our extensive coverage on Google Search Console’s Addition of a Multimodal Filter for Image-Oriented Searches.
Mueller Addresses De-Indexing Incident Pertaining to Casino Website
John Mueller from Google addressed a report on Reddit regarding the removal of pages from Google’s index while an unrelated casino site was designated as their canonical.
Key Insights:
The site owner noted that Google erroneously identified a casino betting page as the canonical reference for pages related to various companies and suppliers.
Another Reddit user described a similar phenomenon on their platform, where a third-party canonical was indexed under a generic JavaScript error title.
They suspected that Googlebot had crawled an erroneous page. Mueller suggested this could be a valid reason and referenced the live URL test featured in Search Console.
Additionally, in a subsequent response, he conveyed that various potential outcomes could lead to the page “not appearing in search results for normal content.”
Relevance of This Insight
Mueller advised ensuring that any malfunctioning page is identified before Googlebot encounters it. He conducts automated tests prior to launching his sites live and recommended a scheduled fetching of essential pages to preemptively resolve issues before they manifest as persistent problems in search engines.
Delve deeper into our thorough coverage of Google’s Response to Cross-Domain Canonical De-Indexing Report.
Chartbeat Reports Escalating Decline in Google Search Traffic for Publishers
Data from Chartbeat’s publisher network reveals a pronounced decline in Google Search and Discover traffic, as highlighted in its 2026 Publisher Playbook.
Noteworthy Statistics:
Over the period from July 2025 to July 2026, Google Search traffic plummeted by 40.2% year-over-year, following a decrease of 21.9% the prior year.
Similarly, Discover’s decline intensified from 6.6% to 34.3%. The playbook does not clarify whether these statistics reflect pageviews or the share of pageviews associated with each channel, noting that the network predominantly comprises news and media publishers.
Conversely, direct, internal, and dark social traffic have augmented their shares of pageviews over the two years.
Implications of These Findings
By juxtaposing your own July-to-July trends in Search and Discover against these statistics, you may cultivate a better understanding of your traffic patterns, while acknowledging that the network is skewed toward news.
Chartbeat emphasizes that the channels experiencing growth are those where media organizations wield “greater control.”
For comprehensive insights, explore our detailed coverage on the Significant Decline in Google Search for Publishers, Now at 40% Year-on-Year.
AI Mode Implementation Leads to Decrease in Clicks to External Websites
A recent preprint field experiment revealed that routing individuals’ Google searches through AI Mode diminished their likelihood of clicking on external websites.
Essential Findings:
Academics from the University of Pennsylvania and Northeastern University utilized a browser extension to trace 1,100 U.S. participants throughout a baseline period of three days, followed by seven days of experimental treatment.
Individuals utilizing AI Mode exhibited an 18.8 percentage point reduction in click-through rates to other websites compared to those employing standard Google Search, and they recorded diminished trust ratings concerning the information provided by Google and lower satisfaction levels with the search experience.
Notably, participants engaged with AI Mode in only 0.6% of their searches during the baseline, leading the authors to regard this setup as an enforced, full-adoption scenario.
Relevance of These Outcomes
In August 2025, Google’s Liz Reid asserted that organic clicks from Search to external websites had remained “relatively stable” year-over-year.
This study presents a distinct scenario with searches redirected to AI Mode, showcasing the impact of full adoption on click rates; this should not be misconstrued as a prediction for any specific website.
Investigate our thorough coverage on Research Indicating That Google AI Mode Results in Fewer Clicks and offers a Subpar User Experience.
Theme of the Week: Insights Are in Your Hands
This week’s narratives underscore the importance of relying on your own data. The spam update arrives without a clearly articulated target, necessitating cross-referencing of any ranking or traffic fluctuations in Search Console with the rollout timeline.
The multimodal filter reveals pages without associated queries, while Mueller’s guidance regarding a de-indexing concern emphasizes the necessity for vigilant monitoring of your own pages.
The statistics provided by Chartbeat’s network and the sample from the AI Mode experiment do not directly correspond to your site, thereby eschewing definitive conclusions about your traffic.
As Search Console diversifies traffic metrics, the onus of analysis increasingly rests upon the records that you maintain.
Source link: Searchenginejournal.com.
