Google spam update, GSC image search data
Google's September spam update could run for up to two weeks, Search Console adds image-based search data, and several reports focus on traffic from Search and AI Mode...
What happened
Google's September spam update could run for up to two weeks, Search Console adds image-based search data, and several reports focus on traffic from Search and AI Mode. The article "Google spam update, GSC image search data – SEO Pulse" first appeared on Search Engine Journal.
JW perspective
As we predicted earlier, once Google has held its ground against threats in the AI space, it will move on to overhauling its existing business based on the strategic moat it has gradually built over the past two years. For what it doesn't yet have, it will build from 0 to 1; for what it already has, it will enrich its features and advantages from 1 to 100. The past two months of moves—configuring AI data in the GSC backend, the imminent addition of image search data to the GSC backend, and considerations around integrating AI into advertising—all point to the ambitions of Google's strategy layer: it doesn't just want to complete the transition from traditional internet search engine to AI-era search ecosystem hegemon; it also wants to position itself as the hegemon of the scarce content ecosystem in the AI-era digital marketing landscape.
Source: Search Engine Journal (2026-09-26) · https://www.searchenginejournal.com/seo-pulse-google-spam-update-image-search-data/590882