The alleged leak of 2,500 pages of internal Google documents sheds light on how Search, the Internet’s most powerful algorithm, works. Published documents show that the company hid the truth about some aspects of its search algorithm. Experts found contradictions with the company’s public statements.

A few days ago, there was a massive leak of Google’s internal documents regarding the workings of the company’s search algorithm. According to search engine optimization (SEO) expert Rand Fishkin (Rand Fishkin), who first reported the leak, this consists of approximately 2,500 pages of confidential documents.

The documents are said to contain unprecedented details about how Google analyzes and ranks web pages in search results. However, they also have information that contradicts some of the statements Google representatives have made publicly about how their search algorithms work.

In particular, the documents state that data from the Google Chrome browser is used to analyze and rank web pages. But in the past, Google representatives have repeatedly denied that Chrome data affects the ranking of sites in search in any way.

Another possible example of word-for-word inconsistency relates to the EEAT (Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) metric that Google uses to evaluate the trustworthiness of information sources. According to the leak, Google is actively monitoring content authorship features on pages, which may affect EEAT rankings. However, company representatives have previously stated that EAT is not a ranking factor.

The documents also include technical details about exactly what data Google collects from web pages and sites, how requests for politically sensitive topics are handled, what signals are used to analyze small, low-traffic sites, and much more.

Rand Fishkin and other SEO experts who have seen the information say it shows that Google is not being completely honest and transparent about how its search algorithm works. According to them, the company deliberately concealed certain aspects in order to mislead rival sites.

Many experts agree that Google’s secrecy on search algorithm matters has contributed to the growth of an SEO industry based on guesses and theories. Fishkin urges journalists and experts to be more critical of Google’s public statements and not take everything at face value. In his opinion, this leak should be a reason for closer analysis of the actual working of Google’s search algorithm, contrary to the company’s official position.

Google representatives have not yet commented on the authenticity of the published documents and accusations of deception. The company is expected to make an official statement on this issue soon. Source