Developing
Third-party tools may be struggling to track the volatility, forum reports conflict and Google has not confirmed anything.
In 60 seconds
- Barry Schwartz thinks an unconfirmed update is underway, possibly a test before a core update.
- Forum posters report conflicting results: some describe Discover and search traffic crashing, others traffic gains or higher rankings with lower clicks.
- Glenn Gabe says two sites in one niche dropped out of results, including for brand queries, then recovered on Friday, October 16, around 8:15 PM.
- The article lists about 15 rank trackers but gives no readings; third-party tools "may still be struggling to track the volatility".
Impact Layer
- What changed
- Practitioners are reporting a new period of unusual volatility.
- Why it matters
- If an update is rolling out, traffic changes may not reflect your site's changes.
- Who is affected
- SEOs, publishers and agencies.
- Martech stack area
- SEO & Search
- Stack impact
- Do not change your site in reaction to a drop yet. Compare Search Console data over several days and wait for Google confirmation.
- Business impact
- Low Based on Search Engine Roundtable's report of forum chatter. No tool readings, Google statement, affected sectors or cause are given, and Gabe's "security algorithm" idea is speculation. Rank trackers themselves have reported interference.
- Related vendors
- What to watch
- A Google confirmation and the expected core update.
Barry Schwartz reported on Search Engine Roundtable on October 21, 2026 on volatility and chatter on October 20 and 21, calling it an “unconfirmed Google search ranking update”.
What is being reported
- Schwartz says rankings look highly volatile alongside unusual industry chatter. He thinks an unconfirmed update is underway, possibly a test before a core update.
- Forum posters’ reports conflict: some describe Discover and search traffic crashing, others report traffic gains, or higher rankings with lower clicks.
- Glenn Gabe says two sites in one niche dropped out of search results, including for brand queries, then recovered on Friday, October 16, around 8:15 PM; he says tracking tools miss parts of this.
Tools
Schwartz says third-party tools “may still be struggling to track the volatility”. The article lists about 15 trackers, including AccuRanker, Mozcast, Semrush and Sistrix, but gives no readings; the charts are embedded images.
Not stated
Whether Google will confirm an update, the size of the volatility, causes (Gabe’s “security algorithm” idea is speculation), affected sectors beyond one niche, when the expected core update will arrive and why Discover traffic changed. The article includes no Google statement.
Our read
Wait for several days of Search Console data before drawing conclusions, especially as rank-tracker accuracy has itself been in question.
Sources
- Search Engine Roundtable: Google Search Ranking Volatility & Chatter Heats Up October 20 & 21 (opens in a new tab)
Source for the reported volatility, comments and what is not stated.