Google has changed how its Site Reputation Abuse policy is enforced for Search users in the European Economic Area (EEA).
Starting August 30, 2026, manual actions under this policy no longer directly demote affected content in Search results shown to users in the EEA. The policy itself remains in place.
The change comes amid European Commission scrutiny of Google’s Search practices under the Digital Markets Act (DMA), including concerns around how Google’s policies affect publishers and third-party content.
What Is Google’s Site Reputation Abuse Policy?
Google’s Site Reputation Abuse policy targets third-party content published on established websites mainly to benefit from the site’s existing ranking signals.
When Google determines that content violates the policy, it can issue a manual action against the affected section of the site.
What Exactly Is Google Changing?
According to Google’s official Search Central blog, published on 28 August, the enforcement of these manual actions will now differ between the EEA and the rest of the world.
- For searches conducted outside the EEA, the manual action can still demote the affected portion of a website.
- For searches conducted inside the EEA, Google will no longer apply that demotion to Search results.
This means the same website could see different Search visibility depending on where the search is performed.
What Happens to Affected Sections of a Website?
Google says it may separate the affected section from the rest of the website for users in the EEA.
This allows that section to potentially rank independently based on its own signals rather than benefiting from the main site’s ranking signals.
The manual action itself does not simply disappear. Google can still take action against content that violates the Site Reputation Abuse policy.
Why Did Google Change the Policy for the EEA?
Google’s official announcement focuses on changes to the policy enforcement in the EEA.
It does not say that Google has removed the policy or decided that site reputation abuse is acceptable. Reports link the move to DMA pressure and a potential fine of up to 10% of global revenue
Google continues to state that it believes third-party content created primarily to manipulate Search rankings can negatively affect Search quality.
The change is specifically about how manual-action demotions are applied to Search results for users in the EEA.
What Does This Change Mean for SEO?
The biggest impact is the regional difference in enforcement.
A website with a site reputation manual action could see different Search results in the EEA than in markets outside the EEA.
However, SEOs should not interpret this as a green light for parasite SEO or large-scale third-party content publishing.
The underlying policy still exists, and Google can continue taking manual action against violating content.
What Should Website Owners Do Now?
Website owners should not treat the change as permission to publish third-party content for ranking.
- Continue following Google’s Site Reputation Abuse policy.
- Address any manual actions through the normal Search Console process.
- Monitor Search visibility separately across EEA and non-EEA markets.
They should also review third-party content and remove pages that provide little value or exist primarily for ranking purposes. This is where content pruning can help keep a site focused on useful content.
The key change is where the manual-action demotion applies, not whether the policy still exists.
