Google’s Slow Spam Update Rollout Could Still Hit You

Who Is Getting Hit by the Spam Update Rollout So Far?

Search Engine Roundtable’s report on the weekend impact of the September 2026 spam update said the movement was strongest from Friday, September 25 through Sunday, September 27, and that volatility showed up in tools including Semrush Sensor, Mozcast, Sistrix and AccuRanker. The site’s Barry Schwartz wrote that these spam updates seem to have more impact than the older spam updates from years ago.

Glenn Gabe, an SEO consultant who tracks these updates closely, reported big drops across a number of sites, and said AI generated and programmatic sites lost visibility. Programmatic simply means pages produced by a template at scale, such as one page per city with only the city name changed.

Two honest caveats. First, the spam update rollout was only five days old when this was reported, so the picture will change. Second, Google has not said what share of searches are affected or which tactics were targeted, so anyone claiming to know the exact trigger is guessing. If you want to compare with what happened in the last round, we broke down the numbers in our post on how the August spam update erased rankings in just days.

What Should You Do This Week While the Rollout Is Still Running?

The worst move is a panicked rebuild mid rollout. You cannot measure the effect of a change while rankings are still shifting. Follow this sequence instead. At FOG Digital Marketing we run these same steps for San Antonio clients every time Google confirms a spam update rollout.

Step four is the one owners skip. A neglected site can carry spam that only Google sees, and cleaning it is standard website maintenance services work rather than a marketing project. Step two is where a spam update rollout most often catches local service companies, because an earlier agency built dozens of near identical city pages. A proper crawl and page audit falls under technical SEO services.

How Do You Know Whether the Spam Update Rollout Hit You?

Open Google Search Console, set the range to the last 28 days compared with the previous period, and look for a sharp drop starting on or after September 24. Then read the pattern.

• A steep drop on one date: likely the spam update rollout. Move to the audit steps above.
• Impressions steady, clicks falling: probably AI answers absorbing clicks, not spam. Our guide to fixing zero click search losses covers that.
• Only map pack results dropped: a Business Profile issue, since local pack rankings use different signals.
• A message in the Manual Actions report: a human review penalty, which is separate and does have a reconsideration request.
• Nothing changed yet: keep watching until Google marks the spam update rollout finished.

Because Google’s Search Central documentation on spam updates says a site may improve only after automated systems learn over a period of months that it complies, patience is part of the plan. If your rankings have been bouncing for longer than this one update, see our explainer on what to do during Google ranking volatility.

How Do You Stay Visible While Rankings Settle?

Traditional rankings are only one way customers find you. While a spam update rollout runs, protect the other channels. Keep your Google Business Profile accurate, keep publishing pages a real person wrote from real experience, and make sure AI assistants can find and cite you. That last piece is the focus of our AI search optimization service, and it matters more each month, as we explained in how Google AI search changed the way customers find you.

A steady, honest strategy from a San Antonio SEO company beats a reaction to every update. The businesses that come through a spam update rollout well are the ones that never depended on shortcuts in the first place.

Common Mistakes During a Spam Update Rollout

• Changing everything mid rollout. You cannot tell what worked while rankings are still moving. Fix real violations, then wait.
• Deleting pages at random. Removing pages that were never the problem costs you rankings you still had.
• Filing a reconsideration request. An algorithmic spam update has no appeal. That form only applies to manual actions.
• Publishing more AI content to catch up. If scaled content is the trigger, more volume makes the signal stronger.
• Trusting the vendor who caused it. An agency that built the mass produced pages is unlikely to name its own work as the cause.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. When does the September spam update rollout end?
   Google said the spam update rollout may take up to two weeks from September 24, 2026, so it should finish by about October 8. Google will post the completion on its Search Status Dashboard, and that is the point to start comparing your data.

2. Is my website safe if my rankings did not change?
   Not necessarily yet. Because this spam update rollout is staggered over up to two weeks, some sites move days after others. Check again once Google marks the rollout complete before concluding you were unaffected.

3. Can I appeal if a spam update hurts my rankings?
   No. A spam update rollout is algorithmic, so there is no appeal or reconsideration request. That form only applies to manual actions shown in Search Console. Fix the violation and wait for Google’s systems to reassess.

4. How long does recovery take after a spam update?
   Recovery can take many months. Google’s documentation says a site may improve if its automated systems learn over a period of months that the site follows the spam policies, so cleanup is a long game rather than a quick fix.

5. Does AI written content cause a spam update penalty?
   Not by itself. Google’s concern is scaled content made mainly to manipulate rankings, and reports from this spam update rollout say AI generated and programmatic sites lost visibility. Content that a real expert reviewed and improved is a different situation.

A slow spam update rollout gives you something rare: time to look honestly at your site before the final results land. Use it to audit, fix what is truly wrong, and keep your customers finding you through every channel while rankings settle.