Google has had a significant spam problem for several months. Search is also increasingly lacking in diversity. One of the biggest algorithm updates in the company’s history was supposed to remedy the situation. But the reality speaks a different language. Has Google even lost control of its search?
According to a recent study from Germany, Google search is getting worse and worse. The main reason for this is the increasing amount of search engine-optimized but low-quality content. Since the triumph of AI, this spam problem has become increasingly obvious.
This is because cheater are using artificial intelligence to create large amounts of content in order to appear high up in Google searches and generate as many clicks as possible. They also flood their websites with advertisements. Facts play a subordinate role at best.
Google has a massive problem with AI spam
Google regularly makes algorithm adjustments to devalue bad content. However, such measures have recently only had a temporary positive effect and appear to be more of a stopgap solution. This is because spam websites are constantly finding new ways and means to climb back up the rankings and trick Google.
To finally put an end to the problem, Google recently carried out the most extensive algorithm update in its history. The so-called “March 2024 Core Update” ran for a full 45 days. On May 5, 2024, the company declared it finished.
But Google still doesn’t seem to have got to grips with the situation. Numerous SEO experts have found that AI spam continues to occupy top positions in search results. Lily Ray, Vice President of Search Strategy and Research at digital marketing agency Amsive, explains to tech magazine Fast Company:
I’ve never seen so many big companies get away with publishing really low-quality content that appears in the top spots. Every day I probably get 20 to 30 desperate messages because their websites are either being outranked by spam or AI content, or because their content is being cannibalized and plagiarized by AI tools.
Has Google lost control of its search?
Google generates over 75 percent of its revenue from selling ads on its search engine results pages – also known as SERPs. However, this revenue depends on how trustworthy and useful the company’s search results are.
However, if Google searches get worse and worse, not only users but also advertisers could leave. Taking action against AI spam should therefore actually be in the company’s interest. But in a way, Google is shooting itself in the foot.
The reason: it has never been so easy to trick the Google algorithm. If you enter the query “SEO with AI” in a search engine, numerous instructions appear on how to litter the internet with low-quality content in order to profit in the form of clicks and advertising revenue.
Ironically, there are even videos on how to use Gemini, Google’s in-house AI, to achieve top search rankings. To combat AI spam, Google has therefore been favoring content that is likely to be human-generated for some time.
AI spam: Google is tripping itself up
According to a recent analysis, the social news aggregator Reddit and the question-and-answer network Quora have recently dominated the SERP results for “discussions and forums” by a significant margin. The problem with this is that Google searches are increasingly lacking diversity.
According to the analysis, many Reddit threads that appear in the SERP results also contain completely pointless and thematically inappropriate content, which was obviously formulated by an AI. The creators of such posts are only interested in placing affiliate links in the posts.
Google is also currently experimenting with a new function, the so-called Search Generative Experience (SGE). This is brief information based on the Google AI Gemini that occasionally appears at the top of the search results. Although the function is still in the test phase, it is already clear that Google is desperately trying to integrate AI into its search, but seems to be powerless against AI spam.
Although it is commendable that, unlike ChatGPT, the SGE results contain source information, this also ensures that Google reduces data traffic to other websites – at the expense of advertising revenue. Nevertheless, the idea behind it seems to make sense – but only if Google gets its spam problem under control.
Can Google regain control of its search?
With the integration of its in-house Gemini AI, Google wants to secure its position as the leading search engine, as more and more users are now using platforms such as TikTok or tools such as ChatGPT to search for information on the Internet.
This is laudable insofar as this development boosts competition. However, Google is faced with a dilemma. The company must either rely on artificial intelligence or risk losing market power. To be able to play in the AI game, the search engine giant must first and foremost ensure that AI spam is curbed.
However, the question is whether Google is even capable of doing this. Past algorithm updates have been a stopgap solution at best. However, the fact that there are also numerous instructions circulating in Google Search explaining how to trick the company’s own algorithms raises doubts. In other words: Google is either unable to take action against AI spam or has become too dependent on advertising revenue.
