September spam update: reading Search Console right

October 21, 2026 3 min read

Google rolled out a spam update from 24 September to 8 October 2026: 13 days and 16 hours, the longest of the year. The three earlier ones of 2026 each finished in under three days. As often, Google said neither what it targeted nor what share of searches it affected.

On the same day, Search Console added a new filter, then another one on 6 October. If a client calls you because their traffic dropped at the end of September, the update is not the only possible explanation. Here is how to sort it out.

What we know about this update

A "spam update" is a notable improvement to Google's automated spam detection systems, including SpamBrain, its AI-based system. The September one applies worldwide, in every language.

For affected sites, Google gives one instruction: review its spam policies and make sure the site follows them. A site that does not may rank lower, or not appear at all. And recovery is not immediate: it can take several months, while the systems learn that the site complies.

One special case: when Google discounts spammy links, the benefit they gave is lost, and Google says it cannot be regained.

Three traps in the numbers

1. The new "multimodal" filter

Since the end of September, the Performance report of Search Console has a filter for searches made from an image: Google Lens, Circle to Search on Android, an image uploaded to Google, or "Search this image" in Chrome. These searches have no text query, so no query is shown for them.

The risk: comparing a period exported before this change with one exported after, with filters that no longer cover exactly the same thing. Export both periods on the same day, with the same search type and the same filters.

2. Rank trackers

From 26 September, several rank trackers saw sudden swings that searchers did not see. According to SEOmonitor, Google returned incomplete or inaccurate data to automated tools. A drop in a rank tracker is therefore no proof: cross-check with the clicks and impressions of Search Console, which come from real searches.

3. The comparison dates

To read the effect of an update, compare three periods: before 24 September, during the rollout, after 8 October. For core updates, Google advises waiting at least a week after the rollout ends before drawing conclusions, and it is a good rule here too.

Good news on the way: since 6 October, Search Console filters accept several countries or several devices at once, with their combined figures. Handy for a client who sells in several countries.

A drop, now what?

Date the drop precisely, to the day, and compare it with the update dates on the Google Search Status Dashboard.
Open the "Manual actions" report of Search Console. A spam update is automatic and does not show there: if a manual action is listed, it is another story, with a reconsideration request to file.
Look at which pages lose, not only the total. A drop on a few pages does not tell the same story as a drop across the whole site.
Rule out technical causes. A page that answered errors, a noindex added by a plugin update, a broken redirect: they draw exactly the same curve as a penalty, and are fixed in minutes.
Only then review Google's spam policies: scaled content, site reputation abuse, expired domains bought back, spammy links.

As for timing, Gary Illyes of Google gave orders of magnitude in October at a conference in Barcelona, reported by an attendee: about three to six months, typically, to recover from a core update. It is not an official publication, but it gives an idea of the patience to plan for.

What Kolteo does

Step 4 is often the quickest to check, provided you have the history. Kolteo checks each page every 5 minutes by default and keeps its dated incidents: you know whether the site was down the week of the drop. Each SEO analysis is compared with the previous one, and you are alerted when a page becomes noindex, answers an error or loses 10 points.

If nothing moved on your side during the period, you can tell your client, with evidence, that the cause is elsewhere.