Google confirms that it has finished rolling out its “November 2021 spam update”, a new search ranking algorithm update targeted at curbing spam. The company confirmed it in a tweet.
Exact details of this update were not provided, though most of us know Google regularly rolls out spam updates to maintain a high quality of search results.
This year, Google has already rolled out three spam updates, and the latest update marks the fourth algorithm update to control spammy websites.
Thanks to these updates, Google has automated systems that keep more than 99% of visits from search results free of spam.
Google’s automated systems blocked almost 25 billion spammy pages last year from being indexed in search results.
Websites following Google’s webmaster guidelines should not much to worry about these updates, but it is a matter of concern for those following substandard SEO practices.
Google has a very clear definition of spam, which primarily includes low-quality websites that deceive users into installing malware or providing personal information. Some other types of spam include websites disguising to be other reputed websites and phishing scams.
Low-quality content could be a definition of spam for some companies, but this is not the case with Google. Be it an e-commerce mobile app or website; Google describes “Spam” as something that has malicious intent behind it.
With that being said, even sites following Google guidelines could be labelled as spam without their knowledge.
If a site is not properly secured, it is always at the risk of being hacked, resulting in the website serving malware or spam to users.
No matter if the website is hacked intentionally or unintentionally, it is all the same for Google. Hacked websites are not treated differently because the onus to keep them secure lies on the owner.
Its impact
It is difficult to assess the full impact of this update. Though website owners may not notice any significant changes, they will surely notice this update while practising spam removal. For apps, it is apt to use the best framework for cross platform mobile development and for websites, use the right SEO practices with high web security.
