Google Algorithm 2017 Timeline (Updated)

Google Algorithm 2017
“Fred” (Unconfirmed) — March 8, 2017

Google rolled out what appeared to be a major update, with reports of widespread impacts across the SEO community. Gary Illyes jokingly referred to it as “Fred”, and the name stuck, but he later made it clear that this was not an official confirmation.

New, unconfirmed Google ranking update ‘Fred’ shakes the SEO world (SEL)

Did Google’s Fred update hit low-value content sites that focus on revenue, not users? (SEL)

Unnamed Major Update — February 6, 2017

Algorithm changes beginning on February 1st continued for a full week, peaking around February 6th (some reported the 7th). Webmaster chatter and industry case studies suggest these were separate events.

The February 7, 2017 Google Algorithm Update – Analysis and Findings From A Significant Core Ranking Update (GSQi)

February 7th Google Algorithm Update Was Big (SER)

Unnamed Major Update — February 1, 2017

There was a period of heavy algorithm flux starting around February 1st and peaking around February 6th. It is unclear whether this was multiple algorithm updates or a single update with an extended roll-out, but anecdotal evidence suggests at least two updates.

Unconfirmed Google algorithm update may be better at discounting links and spam (SEL)

Intrusive Interstitial Penalty — January 10, 2017

Google started rolling out a penalty to punish aggressive interstitials and pop-ups that might damage the mobile user experience. Google also provided a rare warning of this update five months in advance. MozCast showed high temperatures from January 10-11, but many SEOs reported minimal impact on sites that should have been affected.

Google warns it will crack down on “intrusive interstitials” in January (SEL)

Official: Google Intrusive Interstitials Mobile Penalty Now Rolling Out (SER)

Footnote: this reference page was compiled, totally from this source and no claim of authorship is intended.
https://moz.com/google-algorithm-change