"On February 10th, we reported the beginning of yet another unconfirmed Google Search ranking update. The volatility has not cooled yet and it seems it may have even heated up through the weekend. Again, this does not seem related to the February 2026 Google Discover core update, which started on February 5th and is still not officially completed. Previously we had volatilioty during February 10th and then February 2nd,"
"And as I said before, Google is not commenting on these unconfirmed updates, but we did see some evidence of Google going after self-serving listicles with those previously unconfirmed updates. And Glenn Gabe believes it was beyond listicles and was a Google reviews system, formerly product reviews system, of sorts. This one seems really big. Google Tracking Tools Just look at how heated most of these tracking tools are. Note, I updated some of these charts the next day to show more of the volatility."
Search rankings showed intense, ongoing volatility beginning February 10 and intensifying through the weekend. The activity appears separate from the February 5 Discover core update, which remains incomplete. Previous volatility occurred on February 2, January 29, January 26–27, January 21, January 15, January 12, and January 6. The December 2025 core update ran December 11–29 with spikes on December 13 and 20. Google provided no comment on the recent unconfirmed fluctuations. Evidence suggests targeting of self-serving listicles and potential changes in the Google reviews system. Multiple tracking tools reported heated movement, while webmaster reports described dramatic traffic losses and gains.
Read at Search Engine Roundtable
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