Google concludes spam update, issues new crawl guidelines

Image credit: Search Engine Journal

BARCELONA — Google concluded its September 2026 spam update on October 8, nearly 14 days after its initiation, simultaneously releasing new guidelines for site owners on crawl timings, multi-country traffic analysis and content quality.

The update’s duration exceeded that of previous spam updates, marking a significant period of adjustment for webmasters and search engine optimization professionals.

Gary Illyes, a Google Search Relations analyst, presented new timing ranges for various search engine processes during a recent event. He indicated that typical site moves could take one to three months, with the slowest cases extending beyond six months. Recovery from core updates typically spans three to six months, but could take six to 12 months in less common scenarios, according to Illyes.

Google Search Console‘s Performance report has also been updated to allow users to combine Google Search traffic data from multiple countries for more comprehensive analysis.

New guidance on helpful content now specifically warns against the use of fabricated creator profiles. This includes AI-generated headshots and false credentials, which Google identifies as signals of low-quality pages, according to the company.

John Mueller, another Google Search Relations analyst, provided insights into AI training crawlers. He stated that these crawlers frequently access sitemaps and RSS feeds, suggesting that site owners use default names like sitemap.xml to enhance discoverability.

Mueller also attributed ‘Couldn’t fetch’ sitemap errors to factors such as host load and crawl demand, advising webmasters to monitor server performance and ensure sitemaps are accessible.

The series of announcements provides webmasters with updated parameters for managing their sites and understanding Google’s content quality standards.

Source: Search Engine Journal