---
title: "An unconfirmed September update hit big sites, then fully reversed"
url: https://surfil.com/news/september-update-reversed-days-later
section: news
language: en
published: 2026-09-16T00:00:00.000Z
modified: 2026-09-16T00:00:00.000Z
author: Adam Hafez
topics: ["Core updates"]
---

# An unconfirmed September update hit big sites, then fully reversed

## The short answer

Analyst Glenn Gabe tracked a number of large sites losing significant Search traffic, some also in Discover, starting around September 3 into September 4, 2026. By September 13, the impact on a number of those sites had fully reversed, with traffic surging back. Google confirmed neither the drop nor the reversal.

## Key takeaways

- Glenn Gabe tracked a number of large sites hit hard starting around September 3 into September 4, 2026.
- Search Engine Roundtable's aggregate volatility chart showed September 4 as more volatile than the rest of the period charted.
- Gabe wrote that the affected sites dropped heavily in Search and some in Discover as well.
- On September 13, 2026, the impact on a number of those sites completely reversed and traffic surged back.
- Google confirmed nothing about this event at any point, neither the drop nor the reversal.

A number of large sites lost significant Search and Discover traffic starting around September 3
into September 4, 2026, according to independent tracking by analyst Glenn Gabe. Nine days later,
on September 13, the impact on a number of those same sites reversed completely and traffic surged
back. Google confirmed nothing about either move, so what follows is what outside monitoring found,
not what Google has said.

## What did Glenn Gabe actually track

Gabe, who monitors ranking volatility across a large set of sites, reported a number of large sites
seeing a big impact starting around September 3 into September 4, 2026. Search Engine Roundtable's
aggregate volatility chart showed September 4 as more volatile than the rest of the period charted.
Gabe wrote that the sites dropped heavily in Search and some in Discover as well, which is notable
on its own: Search and Discover run on different surfaces and do not always move together. Search
Engine Roundtable says the example site in Gabe's post showed a real drop and a real reversal in
its first-party analytics, not just in a third-party visibility tool.

## What happened on September 13

On September 13, 2026, the impact on a number of the affected sites reversed completely, with
traffic surging back. Gabe's own post, dated September 13, says the sites surged back
"yesterday", so the exact day may be September 12 or 13. That is the detail that separates this event from an ordinary update:
a full reversal, on a specific date, days after the drop, rather than a slow partial recovery
spread over weeks the way a core update rollout typically resolves.

## Why Google's silence matters here

Google did not confirm the drop when it happened, and it did not confirm the reversal either. That
leaves the cause of both moves unknown. It could have been an unannounced ranking change that
Google rolled back, a bug that was fixed, or something else entirely. Nothing here should be read
as more certain than the tracking data allows: this is an unconfirmed event, described in hedged
terms because that is what the evidence supports.

## What to do if traffic moved

Check whether any drop in Search or Discover traffic on your own properties lines up with the
window described here, roughly September 3 into September 4, 2026, and whether it recovered around
September 13. A match does not prove cause, since Google never confirmed the update existed, but it
narrows the search for an explanation before you look elsewhere. A move that does not fit this
window is more likely a separate issue on the site itself.

## Common questions

### Did Google confirm the September update or its reversal?

No. Google made no statement about either the drop that began around September 3 into September 4, 2026, or the reversal that followed on September 13. Everything known about this event comes from independent tracking.

### What kind of traffic did the affected sites lose?

Analyst Glenn Gabe reported that affected sites dropped heavily in Google Search and some in Google Discover as well, then saw that impact reverse by September 13.

## Sources

1. [Google Search Ranking Update September 4th, Fully Reversed](https://www.seroundtable.com/google-search-ranking-update-94-42079.html) - Search Engine Roundtable (primary)