September 2026 Spam Update Signal: Second Wave Shakes Rankings | Week of October 4 2026

September 2026 Spam Update Signal: Second Wave Shakes Rankings | Week of October 4 2026

Yes, there is a confirmed algorithm update active this week. Google’s September 2026 spam update, announced on September 24, moved into a second wave of volatility between September 30 and this week, with SEOs reporting renewed ranking movement. The most significant development alongside it is Google quietly testing payments to roughly 100 publishers for AI content contribution, with payouts described as tiny for most sites.

September 2026 Spam Update Hits a Second Wave

Google announced the spam update on September 24, describing it as a single global rollout covering all languages that could take up to two weeks to complete. The first major wave of ranking changes hit sites around September 25, 26, and into September 27, then cooled before heating back up again on September 30. SEOs are reporting renewed movement as the rollout continues, and Google still lists one active spam update on its status dashboard. Sites that saw drops in late September should expect further shifts through early-to-mid October as the rollout finishes.

Google’s AI Contribution Payments Are Real But Tiny

Google is testing a program paying around 100 publishers based on how much their content contributes to AI-powered search features. One publisher reportedly earned over $1 million over a year, but for some small sites, the payments amount to under 0.1% of ad revenue. Larger publishers are reportedly staying out of the program. Publishers who join the “AI contribution pilot” get an extra AI earnings widget in Search Console, but they cannot see which pages earned money, how often their content contributed, or how Google calculated the payment. Barry Schwartz’s monthly Search Engine Roundtable recap confirms the program covers AI Mode, AI Overviews, and Gemini.

AI Overviews Now Cover Most Brand-Name Searches

Google is showing AI Overviews far more broadly, appearing for almost every large brand name except Google’s own. Independent tracking found AI Overviews appearing on most brand-name searches tracked in September, though they typically sit below the brand’s own website listing rather than at the top. This changes how branded search results look even for companies with strong direct-navigation traffic. Site owners who assumed brand searches were immune to AI Overviews should check their own brand name in Google now to see what summary appears above or alongside their listing.

Google’s Nick Fox Calls DMA Compliance a Quality Reduction

In a fresh interview, Google’s Nick Fox said the DMA-mandated changes make him sad and are terrible for searchers, and confirmed Google officially appealed the DMA requirements. Separate reporting characterizes Fox’s comments as calling the European compliance changes “the biggest reduction in search quality” in Google’s history, though this phrasing is a paraphrase from reporting rather than a confirmed direct quote. European-market site owners should watch for continued instability in SERP features and result formatting tied to DMA compliance changes rather than assume the current setup is final.

Courts Split on Google Antitrust Claims Over AI Overviews

On September 30, Judge Amit P. Mehta of the US District Court for the District of Columbia dismissed antitrust suits brought by Chegg and Penske Media Corporation over AI Overviews. Mehta ruled the publishers had not plausibly shown reciprocal dealing or established antitrust standing. The same day, in a separate ad-tech case, a federal judge allowed core antitrust claims by Gannett, Daily Mail, and a class of digital publishers to proceed against Google over its advertising technology practices. The split outcome means publishers have no current legal path to force changes to AI Overviews specifically, but ad-tech claims against Google remain alive.

Gemini 3.8 Flash Launches in AI Mode Without Citations

Google released Gemini 3.8 Flash inside AI Mode this week, according to Search Engine Roundtable’s October webmaster report. The release reportedly launched missing links and citations initially. For publishers tracking referral traffic from AI Mode, this is worth monitoring directly rather than assuming citation behavior is stable, since a model update that strips links changes how much traffic AI Mode sends to source sites even temporarily.

What to do this week

Check Google Search Console’s performance report for your site’s clicks and impressions trend specifically on September 25-27 and September 30 onward, to see whether the spam update’s two waves affected your rankings. For a deeper look than Search Console alone provides, a tool like Screpy can connect to GSC and surface pages with sudden impression or click drops tied to these specific dates, helping you confirm whether the spam update’s waves actually hit your rankings.

Search your own brand name in Google and record whether an AI Overview appears above or below your website listing, then repeat the search weekly to track whether placement changes.

If you have access to Search Console’s AI contribution report, open the AI earnings widget and compare the reported figure against your total ad revenue for the same period to judge whether the program is worth tracking further.

If you operate in the EU, document any SERP feature changes you notice this week tied to DMA compliance, since Nick Fox’s comments suggest more changes are likely as Google’s appeal proceeds.