GOOGLE

Google Search Quality: Hacking the Most Problematic Spam

Published

3 years ago

July 7, 2021

Google Search Quality: Hacking the Most Problematic Spam

A member of Google’s Search Quality team, Duy Nguyen, was interviewed on Google’s Search Off the Record podcast where he described the most problematic kind of spam facing the Internet today.

[00:13:05] John Mueller:

“Yeah. So what kind of things do you still find problematic on the web? Like where does our impact come to its limits or… I don’t know how to frame it.

[00:13:16] Duy Nguyen:

“I would say hack spam is still a problem for the ecosystem. Many sites still run on older versions of CMS or they use outdated plug-ins or templates.

If you think about it… Well, personally, I don’t know anyone that still runs Windows Vista.

And if you have friends that still run Windows Vista, you’d probably judge them, right? So can we do that as the web ecosystem if people still run really outdated CMS? Can we help them to get on a version that is extremely more secure?

A lot of the hack spam that took place today is barely any hacking. A lot of the tools and scripts that people discover like five, six years ago sometimes is still being used today to exploit websites, especially like older websites.

I think at the very least, we should make it a lot more difficult for these spammers to hack into sites and spread spammy or malware content.

Because when users visit your website, like if they visit Martin’s tech blog, they don’t expect to walk away with ransomware or malware.

I think we have enough resources and cooperation in the ecosystem to make that happen. I really look forward to that.”

[00:14:31] John Mueller:

“…there are a lot of small companies that just have their site running like that where it’s like, “Oh, people can’t find my phone number and that’s good enough.”

And they don’t realize that they’re potentially causing a problem for the bigger web just by keeping things running on something that is essentially outdated.”

[00:15:22] Duy Nguyen:

“I would also say that the very least they can do in those situations is to sign up for Search Console. Because then they would have more data where they would realize that, oh, yeah, running this very old version of CMS really hinders the site’s potential.”

Maybe it’s just a whole lot slower if you have a bunch of improvements that Search Console say you should do, it’s just extremely difficult. So now, suddenly they realize there’s a
lot more incentive to keep the sites up to date.

And obviously, if you’re signed up with Search Console, we find hack or any problems, we would notify you immediately. Now we’re pretty fast and we’re pretty effective at
detecting hacks, so, yeah, that’s the least you can do.

And hopefully by signing up for Search Console, you’ll find more incentives to keep your sites up to date, do all these improvements that, in the end, would benefit users a lot.”

John Mueller Suggests Not Using a CMS

Google’s John Mueller suggested that for some sites where content isn’t updated it might be better to have a static HTML site and not use a CMS (like WordPress).

He then asked if a hosted solution outside of a CMS might be a good way to have an up to date site that is resistant to hackers.

Duy Nguyen answered:

[00:18:38] Duy Nguyen:

“Yeah, I think that would be a good solution.

Actually, we just published a number that in 2020, we sent over 140 million messages to site owners in the Search Console. That’s a lot more messages than previous years, right. And the bulk of that was from sites that were coming onto Search Console for the first time.

So a lot of businesses, because of the pandemic or whatnot, realized that they need better online presence.

So suddenly they invest a lot more into building the website. Even simple things like menus were suddenly updated a lot more frequently or now you can order online to pick up or get delivered.

And I notice they also work with a lot more hosted platforms.

So I think that’s a good solution if you don’t have your dedicated team to manage your websites or social media presence. You can go with the hosted platform and that’d probably take care a lot of the overhead.”

Spam that is Problematic for the Web

Duy Nguyen’s answer about hack spam being problematic for the web is a good answer. The damage to site visitors, to other websites and to the rankings of the hacked site cannot be overstated.

Hacking events seem to be becoming more aggressive and widespread and as Duy said it doesn’t have to be that way. Keeping a website fully updated can go a long way to preventing a site from getting hacked.

Citation

Tackling Web Spam, Search Quality, and More!

Searchenginejournal.com

GOOGLE

This Week in Search News: Simple and Easy-to-Read Update

Published

2 months ago

June 30, 2024

Entireweb News Bot

This Week in Search News: Simple and Easy-to-Read Update

Here’s what happened in the world of Google and search engines this week:

1. Google’s June 2024 Spam Update

Google finished rolling out its June 2024 spam update over a period of seven days. This update aims to reduce spammy content in search results.

2. Changes to Google Search Interface

Google has removed the continuous scroll feature for search results. Instead, it’s back to the old system of pages.

3. New Features and Tests

Link Cards: Google is testing link cards at the top of AI-generated overviews.
Health Overviews: There are more AI-generated health overviews showing up in search results.
Local Panels: Google is testing AI overviews in local information panels.

4. Search Rankings and Quality

Improving Rankings: Google said it can improve its search ranking system but will only do so on a large scale.
Measuring Quality: Google’s Elizabeth Tucker shared how they measure search quality.

5. Advice for Content Creators

Brand Names in Reviews: Google advises not to avoid mentioning brand names in review content.
Fixing 404 Pages: Google explained when it’s important to fix 404 error pages.

6. New Search Features in Google Chrome

Google Chrome for mobile devices has added several new search features to enhance user experience.

7. New Tests and Features in Google Search

Credit Card Widget: Google is testing a new widget for credit card information in search results.
Sliding Search Results: When making a new search query, the results might slide to the right.

8. Bing’s New Feature

Bing is now using AI to write “People Also Ask” questions in search results.

9. Local Search Ranking Factors

Menu items and popular times might be factors that influence local search rankings on Google.

10. Google Ads Updates

Query Matching and Brand Controls: Google Ads updated its query matching and brand controls, and advertisers are happy with these changes.
Lead Credits: Google will automate lead credits for Local Service Ads. Google says this is a good change, but some advertisers are worried.
tROAS Insights Box: Google Ads is testing a new insights box for tROAS (Target Return on Ad Spend) in Performance Max and Standard Shopping campaigns.
WordPress Tag Code: There is a new conversion code for Google Ads on WordPress sites.

These updates highlight how Google and other search engines are continuously evolving to improve user experience and provide better advertising tools.

AI

Exploring the Evolution of Language Translation: A Comparative Analysis of AI Chatbots and Google Translate

Published

6 months ago

February 26, 2024

Max

A Comparative Analysis of AI Chatbots and Google Translate

According to an article on PCMag, while Google Translate makes translating sentences into over 100 languages easy, regular users acknowledge that there’s still room for improvement.

In theory, large language models (LLMs) such as ChatGPT are expected to bring about a new era in language translation. These models consume vast amounts of text-based training data and real-time feedback from users worldwide, enabling them to quickly learn to generate coherent, human-like sentences in a wide range of languages.

However, despite the anticipation that ChatGPT would revolutionize translation, previous experiences have shown that such expectations are often inaccurate, posing challenges for translation accuracy. To put these claims to the test, PCMag conducted a blind test, asking fluent speakers of eight non-English languages to evaluate the translation results from various AI services.

The test compared ChatGPT (both the free and paid versions) to Google Translate, as well as to other competing chatbots such as Microsoft Copilot and Google Gemini. The evaluation involved comparing the translation quality for two test paragraphs across different languages, including Polish, French, Korean, Spanish, Arabic, Tagalog, and Amharic.

In the first test conducted in June 2023, participants consistently favored AI chatbots over Google Translate. ChatGPT, Google Bard (now Gemini), and Microsoft Bing outperformed Google Translate, with ChatGPT receiving the highest praise. ChatGPT demonstrated superior performance in converting colloquialisms, while Google Translate often provided literal translations that lacked cultural nuance.

For instance, ChatGPT accurately translated colloquial expressions like “blow off steam,” whereas Google Translate produced more literal translations that failed to resonate across cultures. Participants appreciated ChatGPT’s ability to maintain consistent levels of formality and its consideration of gender options in translations.

The success of AI chatbots like ChatGPT can be attributed to reinforcement learning with human feedback (RLHF), which allows these models to learn from human preferences and produce culturally appropriate translations, particularly for non-native speakers. However, it’s essential to note that while AI chatbots outperformed Google Translate, they still had limitations and occasional inaccuracies.

In a subsequent test, PCMag evaluated different versions of ChatGPT, including the free and paid versions, as well as language-specific AI agents from OpenAI’s GPTStore. The paid version of ChatGPT, known as ChatGPT Plus, consistently delivered the best translations across various languages. However, Google Translate also showed improvement, performing surprisingly well compared to previous tests.

Overall, while ChatGPT Plus emerged as the preferred choice for translation, Google Translate demonstrated notable improvement, challenging the notion that AI chatbots are always superior to traditional translation tools.

Source: https://www.pcmag.com/articles/google-translate-vs-chatgpt-which-is-the-best-language-translator

GOOGLE

Google Implements Stricter Guidelines for Mass Email Senders to Gmail Users

Published

7 months ago

February 13, 2024

Entireweb News Bot

Beginning in April, Gmail senders bombarding users with unwanted mass emails will encounter a surge in message rejections unless they comply with the freshly minted Gmail email sender protocols, Google cautions.

Fresh Guidelines for Dispatching Mass Emails to Gmail Inboxes In an elucidative piece featured on Forbes, it was highlighted that novel regulations are being ushered in to shield Gmail users from the deluge of unsolicited mass emails. Initially, there were reports surfacing about certain marketers receiving error notifications pertaining to messages dispatched to Gmail accounts. Nonetheless, a Google representative clarified that these specific errors, denoted as 550-5.7.56, weren’t novel but rather stemmed from existing authentication prerequisites.

Moreover, Google has verified that commencing from April, they will initiate “the rejection of a portion of non-compliant email traffic, progressively escalating the rejection rate over time.” Google elaborates that, for instance, if 75% of the traffic adheres to the new email sender authentication criteria, then a portion of the remaining non-conforming 25% will face rejection. The exact proportion remains undisclosed. Google does assert that the implementation of the new regulations will be executed in a “step-by-step fashion.”

This cautious and methodical strategy seems to have already kicked off, with transient errors affecting a “fraction of their non-compliant email traffic” coming into play this month. Additionally, Google stipulates that bulk senders will be granted until June 1 to integrate “one-click unsubscribe” in all commercial or promotional correspondence.

Exclusively Personal Gmail Accounts Subject to Rejection These alterations exclusively affect bulk emails dispatched to personal Gmail accounts. Entities sending out mass emails, specifically those transmitting a minimum of 5,000 messages daily to Gmail accounts, will be mandated to authenticate outgoing emails and “refrain from dispatching unsolicited emails.” The 5,000 message threshold is tabulated based on emails transmitted from the same principal domain, irrespective of the employment of subdomains. Once the threshold is met, the domain is categorized as a permanent bulk sender.

These guidelines do not extend to communications directed at Google Workspace accounts, although all senders, including those utilizing Google Workspace, are required to adhere to the updated criteria.

Augmented Security and Enhanced Oversight for Gmail Users A Google spokesperson emphasized that these requisites are being rolled out to “fortify sender-side security and augment user control over inbox contents even further.” For the recipient, this translates to heightened trust in the authenticity of the email sender, thus mitigating the risk of falling prey to phishing attempts, a tactic frequently exploited by malevolent entities capitalizing on authentication vulnerabilities. “If anything,” the spokesperson concludes, “meeting these stipulations should facilitate senders in reaching their intended recipients more efficiently, with reduced risks of spoofing and hijacking by malicious actors.”