Google Bans Back Button Hijacking, Agentic Search Grows – SEO Pulse

Welcome to the week’s Pulse: updates affect what Google considers spam, what happens when you report it, and what agentic search looks like in practice.

Here’s what matters for you and your work.

Google’s New Spam Policy Targets Back Button Hijacking

Google added back button hijacking to its spam policies, with enforcement beginning June 15. The behavior is now an explicit violation under the malicious practices category.

Key facts: Back button hijacking occurs when a site interferes with browser navigation and prevents users from returning to the previous page. Pages engaging in the behavior face manual spam actions or automated demotions.

Why This Matters

Google called out that some back button hijacking originates from included libraries or advertising platforms, which means the liability sits with the publisher even when the behavior comes from a vendor.

You have two months to audit every script running on your site, including ad libraries and recommendation widgets you…