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4 – 5 Minute Read
The world of search has undergone rapid transformation as a result of artificial intelligence, and now the number-one tool for client reporting is faltering.
Around September, 2026, third-party rank-tracking tools such as Semrush, Ahrefs, and Ubersuggest began reporting false ranking drops and erratic data. Semrush called it ‘an industry-wide issue’, which Google hasn’t commented on publicly yet.
While SEO services often lead to big ROI once your website starts ranking on the first page, that tracking ability has been key to showing clients progress. Because until you’ve hit the first page, you won’t necessarily get a return on your investment. But if you can clearly see that there is a steady increase in rankings, you know you’re headed in the right direction.
That is precisely what is impacted as a result of this disruption. So, let’s look at what exactly is happening and how best to navigate these troubled waters.
When Google removed the &num=100 search parameter in September 2025, it sent shockwaves through the industry that still resonate today. Generally speaking, tracking your rankings got more expensive because tools had to work 10 times as hard to generate the top 100 rankings for any search query. Search impressions visible in Search Console also took a massive dip after bots reduced their tracking activity due to the parameter change.
While the industry still hasn’t quite recovered from it, a year later, Google has caused massive disruption in the rank tracking industry yet again. Ranking data is showing erratic swings and irregularities across most major third-party tracking platforms.
The cause is Google’s aggressive anti-scraping measures and changes to its HTML code, which have likely been implemented to block third-party AI platforms from accessing and benefiting from its search results. The side effect has been the disruption of rank tracking software used by industry professionals for more than a decade.
Google’s own search performance system has had its problems in the past, and it too was affected by data delays towards the end of Google’s September 2026 spam update. That issue seems to have been fixed, and Search Console is currently operating normally.
Realistically, it’s the most reliable source we have at the moment. Under the ‘Performance’ tab, you can see the top queries your website is getting impressions and clicks from. You can track your ranking for any specific keyword through filter settings, and track growth or loss in impressions and clicks over time. You can also see which pages are bringing in the most traffic and which devices most of your visitors or browsers are searching from.
One caveat is that not all click and search term data will be displayed on your Search Console dashboard due to Privacy Filtering. Some queries are not included to protect the privacy of the user making that query. The reasons could be due to low search volume or sensitive information, which will be omitted from your dashboard.
Although not as black and white as the ability to track keyword rankings on third-party platforms, Google Search Console data should be enough for an experienced professional to analyse data over time and make adjustments as necessary.
As an SEO agency, we’ve been in the industry long enough to understand the nuances between high-quality and poor optimisation. Although it does feel as if you’re flying blind with these major disruptions in rank tracking reliability, there are certain principles that will get you through.
Sadly, those who suffer the most will be the self-starters and small businesses who aren’t working with an experienced specialist. Without knowing what it takes to rank, and without the ability to check whether your updates are working or not, this poses a significant barrier.
The best advice I can give at this stage is to look for other signals before making changes to your website. We have already spoken about impressions and clicks tracked through Search Console. You can also check Google Analytics to see whether your organic traffic has grown, decreased, or stagnated over the last few months. Google Ads is still a reliable source to check monthly keyword search volume and collectively be able to decide what you can do next to drive growth through organic search.
Truthfully, your guess is as good as mine. I can see where Google is coming from, in the fact that it wants to protect its business and data from third-party scrapers, particularly AI companies, benefiting at their expense.
On the other hand, it has serious implications for the search optimisation industry that has relied on rank tracking tools to deliver measurable results.
I believe that, although Google has the power here to do anything it wants, there will be some compromise to be made. In the next few months, an update will come that can differentiate between legitimate SERP tools and actors that Google wants to keep out of its search results. SERP tools will do everything in their power to adjust data sources and tracking to save their role in the search ecosystem.
In the meantime, all we can do is adapt to the existing circumstances and be upfront and honest about what’s going on. As long as business revenue is not impacted, the C-suite will back your efforts to continue delivering results through these uncertain times.
IM Creative can either become your full-service marketing arm or work in collaboration with your internal team to deliver outstanding campaigns and results consistently.
Author
Izmir is the founder of IM Creative and is based in Auckland, New Zealand. He is a strong believer in the power of storytelling and marketing to truly transform businesses for the better. A problem solver, an avid reader, a football fan, a tennis enthusiast, and a history buff, he looks forward to bringing a unique perspective to every story written.
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