--- title: "Scraper filter (2011): Google's change against copied content" url: https://seomadman.com/updates/scraper-filter-2011 section: updates language: en published: 2026-09-26T00:00:00.000Z modified: 2026-09-26T00:00:00.000Z author: Adam Hafez topics: ["Content strategy"] --- # Scraper filter (2011): Google's change against copied content ## The short answer In the week of 24 January 2011 Google launched an algorithm change aimed at sites that copy others' content or have little original content. Matt Cutts, head of Google's webspam team, confirmed it on his blog on 28 January 2011, saying slightly over 2% of queries changed in some way. ## Key takeaways - Matt Cutts confirmed on 28 January 2011 that the change had launched earlier that week. - It targeted sites that copy others' content and sites with low levels of original content. - Cutts said slightly over 2% of queries changed, and under half a percent noticeably. - Google had flagged the planned change on its official blog a week earlier, on 21 January 2011. - Google never named it; scraper filter is a label the SEO industry adopted. ## What Google changed On 21 January 2011, Matt Cutts wrote on the [Official Google Blog](https://googleblog.blogspot.com/2011/01/google-search-and-search-engine-spam.html) that Google was evaluating several anti-spam changes, "including one change that primarily affects sites that copy others' content and sites with low levels of original content." A week later, on his personal blog, Cutts confirmed that the change had launched. The intended result, he wrote, was that "searchers are more likely to see the sites that wrote the original content rather than a site that scraped or copied the original site's content." He thanked Jeff Atwood and the Stack Overflow team for feedback on the problem. Google never named the change. Scraper filter is a label the SEO industry adopted. Moz's [algorithm update history](https://moz.com/google-algorithm-change) lists the same change as the Attribution update. ## When it rolled out Cutts's post of Friday 28 January 2011 said the change "was approved at our weekly quality launch meeting last Thursday and launched earlier this week." Google did not give the exact day, so this page dates it to 28 January 2011, the first confirmed date; the real launch was a few days earlier. [The Next Web](https://thenextweb.com/news/google-takes-action-against-spam-content-with-code-tweak) reported the confirmation the same day. No completion date was stated. ## What is known about its impact Google's only figures came from Cutts: "slightly over 2% of queries change in some way, but less than half a percent of search results change enough that someone might really notice." He called it "a pretty targeted launch." Google published no site-level figures. ## What site owners should do Google still acts against copied content, though not under this name. Its [spam policies](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/essentials/spam-policies) define scraping as taking content from other sites, often through automated means, to manipulate rankings. Its ranking systems guide describes original content systems that aim to show original content prominently, ahead of pages that merely cite it. - Publish original content and add value when you draw on other sources. - Do not republish feeds or copied pages with only light changes, such as swapped synonyms. - Use canonical markup when your content is legitimately syndicated, so Google can identify the primary page. ## How to check whether it affected you This is historical. Search Console keeps 16 months of data, so January 2011 can only be checked in archived analytics, by comparing Google organic traffic for the weeks either side of 24 January 2011. The [Google Algorithm Updates timeline](/updates) lists every update with its dates. ## Related updates - The [merchant reviews update](/updates/merchant-reviews-update-2010) was the previous announced change, in December 2010. - The [Panda update](/updates/panda-update-2011) followed on 24 February 2011 with a broader attack on low-quality sites. ## Frequently asked questions ### When did the 2011 scraper filter launch? Matt Cutts wrote on 28 January 2011 that the change was approved at Google's weekly quality launch meeting the previous Thursday and launched earlier that week. Google gave no exact day, so 28 January 2011 is the first confirmed date. ### How many searches did the scraper filter affect? Cutts said slightly over 2% of queries changed in some way, but less than half a percent of search results changed enough that someone might really notice. ### Was the scraper filter part of Panda? No. It was a separate, earlier change. Google announced Panda about a month later, on 24 February 2011, as a broader algorithm aimed at low-quality sites. ### Does Google still act against scraped content? Yes. Google's spam policies list scraping as a violation, and its ranking systems guide describes original content systems that aim to show original content ahead of those who merely cite it. ## Sources 1. [Algorithm change launched](https://www.mattcutts.com/blog/algorithm-change-launched/) - Matt Cutts (Google) (primary) 2. [Google search and search engine spam](https://googleblog.blogspot.com/2011/01/google-search-and-search-engine-spam.html) - Official Google Blog (primary) 3. [Google takes action against spam content with code tweak](https://thenextweb.com/news/google-takes-action-against-spam-content-with-code-tweak) - The Next Web 4. [Google algorithm update history](https://moz.com/google-algorithm-change) - Moz 5. [Spam policies for Google web search](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/essentials/spam-policies) - Google Search Central (primary) 6. [A guide to Google Search ranking systems](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/ranking-systems-guide) - Google Search Central (primary)