Table with 14 rows and 4 columns. Column names are those of the file; the button copies the full CSV.
| period | family | date_basis | mechanism |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-10 | botguard-searchguard | first-observation | BotGuard already uses version 41. That version number remains in use in October 2026 despite rotation of scripts and their cipher parameters. |
| 2025-01 | botguard-searchguard | first-observation; confirmed-by-google | Results code handles the sg_ss parameter and provides a redirect to /httpservice/retry/enablejs when JavaScript is disabled. |
| 2025-05 | botguard-searchguard | first-observation | An intermediate page embeds knitsail, produces the SG_SS cookie and restarts navigation. This mechanism is established by May 2025 at the latest. |
| 2025-09 | serp-collection | press-report | Google stops supporting num=100. Collecting the top 100 positions can now require about ten results pages instead of one. Stopped working late on September 11, 2025 (Search Engine Land, September 15, 2025); on September 18, Google said it does not formally support this parameter. |
| 2025-10 | botguard-searchguard | first-observation | The /sgasync channel, associated with code BMW, delivers the script, its hash and its program together. It complements an existing protection flow. |
| 2025-11 | botguard-searchguard | first-observation | The sg_ck=QyE channel serves background checks, with a program distinct from the BMW program. |
| 2026-01 | botguard-searchguard | first-observation | The sg_ck=ON4 mode can compute a token and retry a request with X-Sg-Ss. This flow is distinct from the intermediate page. |
| 2026-03 | botguard-searchguard | first-observation | Engines gain functions handling sandbox, srcdoc and script loading. Knitsail also receives these functions. |
| 2026-07-08 | botguard-searchguard | first-observation | A share of requests receives the QyE background-check program extended with a module of about 6 KB, which stores data in the browser (localStorage) and reads it back on the next visit. Both versions are served at the same time for the same request URL. In July, 10.5% of captures contain this module, all between July 8 and 16; afterwards, around 1%, up to October 17, 2026. The data is only read back by the program copy that wrote it. |
| 2026-08-22 | botguard-searchguard | first-observation | The QyE check program adds four families of tests: settings declared by the browser (platform, doNotTrack), text rendering with and without hyphenation, pointer precision (any-pointer), graphics card via WebGPU. The decoded program grows by about 13% (+2.6 KB); the engine does not grow. Appeared between August 20 12:06 and August 22 20:58 UTC. |
| 2026-08-26 | serp-collection | confirmed-by-google | Google rolls out /goto redirect links in its results pages. The final URL sometimes has to be resolved separately. An ordinary HTTP request is still enough in documented cases. Rollout confirmed by Google to Search Engine Land on August 26, 2026. |
| 2026-09 | botguard-searchguard | first-observation | The /sgasync channel associates sg_ck=QyE with sg_fe=flights. |
| 2026-10-05 | botguard-searchguard | first-observation | The QyE background check stops querying the graphics card via WebGPU, between 06:53 and 14:07 UTC, together with a new JavaScript engine version. The other three tests added in August remain. Confirmed by the live session of October 17, 2026. |
| 2026-10-18 | experimental-evidence | study-experiments-not-rollout | VPS pilot: X-Sg-Cs s then a; controlled 21-navigation series: retained/deleted NID contrast; 96 VM replays and 48 synthetic cases. SERP quality not certified. |