Google is introducing a major change to stop a new breed of internet scammers. The tech giant has officially updated its search spam policy, stating that any attempt to manipulate its AI-powered search tools, including the popular AI Overviews, will now be treated as a serious spam violation. This move comes as a new industry known as Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) has exploded, with marketers using deceptive techniques to force Google's artificial intelligence to recommend their products or websites.
What is 'Recommendation Poisoning'?
As Google increasingly relies on AI to summarize the internet for users, scammers are tricking algorithms through a technique called recommendation poisoning. This involves hiding specific phrases and instructions within a website's code to make a Large Language Model (LLM) believe that a particular domain is the absolute authority on a topic. According to the updated policy, first reported by Search Engine Land, Google now explicitly defines spam as any technique used to deceive its systems, including AI.
What the Updated Policy Says
The policy states: “In the context of Google Search, spam refers to techniques used to deceive users or manipulate our Search systems into featuring content prominently, such as attempting to manipulate Search systems into ranking content highly or attempting to manipulate generative AI responses in Google Search. Our spam policies help protect users and improve the quality of Search results. To be eligible to appear in Google web search results, content (web pages, images, videos, news content or other material that Google finds from across the web) shouldn't violate Google Search's overall policies or the spam policies listed on this page. These policies apply to all web search results, including those from Google's own properties.”
Google detects policy-violating practices through automated systems and, when necessary, human review, which can result in manual action. Sites that violate these policies may rank lower in results or not appear at all. If users believe a site is violating Google's spam policies, they can file a search quality user report. Google says it is focused on developing scalable and automated solutions and will use these reports to improve its spam detection systems. The policies cover common spam practices, but Google may act against any type of spam it detects.
