Google remains at the forefront of other search engines. This is no surprise, considering their dedication to making continual algorithm updates that meet the evolving demands of technology.

In 2022 and 2023 alone, Google has rolled out several confirmed algorithm updates. Whatever the change, marketers and business owners must keep up with these updates to maintain or increase their online visibility.

Still, it can be quite challenging to stay in the know. Hence, the need for this article. Read on to learn about the most recent and significant updates made by Google.

The Unveiling of Google’s October 2023 Core Algorithm Update

In October 2023, Google confirmed the release of its latest core algorithm update. This marks the third core update from Google’s search ranking systems this year, following the March and August core updates.

The primary objective behind this update is to improve the quality of search results while diminishing low-quality and spammy content. This October 2023 Core Algorithm Update was projected to roll out gradually over two weeks.

During this transition period, websites may experience some fluctuations in their search rankings. This is a natural part of the Google algorithm system’s adjustment after every update.

Types of Spam in the Crosshairs

The October 2023 Core Algorithm Update targets several types of spam. It aims to create a cleaner, more reliable online environment.

Knowing the various types of spam targeted can help you understand what features can affect your website ranking/visibility.

Some of the types of spam in the crosshairs are:

#1. Cloaking

This practice involves showing different content to search engines than what is offered to users. The intent is to influence rankings. This technique may include inserting keywords only visible to search engines while displaying different content to users.

#2. Doorways

Doorways spamming involves websites or pages explicitly created to appear at the top of specific search queries. Often, this leads users to pages that aren’t relevant to their searches.

#3. Hacked Content

Hacked content refers to unauthorized content that finds its way onto a site due to security vulnerabilities. Examples include code injection, page injection, content injection, and malicious redirects.

#4. Hidden Text and Links

This includes content deliberately placed on a page to manipulate search engines but concealed from regular users. It may involve using techniques such as white text on a white background or hiding text behind images. It could also apply positioning text off-screen using cascading style sheets (CSS).

#5. Keyword Stuffing

This outdated tactic involves stuffing a page with excessive keywords or numbers to manipulate rankings. Examples include lists of phone numbers lacking additional value or blocks of text listing various things.

#6. Link Spam

Link spamming is manipulating links to or from your site to influence rankings. Specifically, this may involve buying or selling links, engaging in excessive link exchanges, or utilizing automated programs to create links.

#7. Malware and Malicious Behaviors

Malware and malicious behaviors refer to hosting malware or unwanted software that negatively affects the user experience. This includes software designed to harm devices and software that hampers browsing.

#8. Scraped Content

Scraped content is content taken from other websites without adding any original value. In other words, it involves copying and republishing content without a unique perspective or proper citation of sources.

#9. Sneaky Redirects

Redirecting users to a URL different than they initially requested is a type of spam known as sneaky redirects.

#10. Spammy Automatically-generated Content

This is content that a person generates through programming without originality or value. It might include meaningless texts stuffed with search keywords or content generated from scraping various feeds.

#11. Thin Affiliate Pages

Thin affiliate pages try to copy exactly what is on the original merchant page without adding value. Thin affiliate pages often include the link to the product, product description, and reviews.

#12. User-generated Spam

User-generated spam refers to spammy content that a user adds to a site while interacting with the site. In most cases, the website owner might not know of the presence of spammy content. Spammy content can appear as spam accounts, forum posts, blog comment spam, or spammy files on hosting platforms.

Bottom Line

The battle against spammy content and low-quality practices is an ongoing one. As such, Google has been regularly updating its algorithms to maintain the integrity of its search results pages. Ensuring that your page continues to rank high with every update requires following Google’s best practices.