The back button on your browser is supposed to be an exit ramp, but some sites are abusing a tactic to trap users on their domains and manipulate traffic, according to Google. The tactic is called ...

PCWorld reports that Google will penalize websites that hijack the browser’s back button, a manipulative practice that redirects users to unwanted pages or ads. This new spam policy violation, ...

Tyler is a writer for CNET covering laptops and video games. He's previously covered mobile devices, home energy products and broadband. He came to CNET straight out of college, where he graduated ...

Something to look forward to: Google has announced that it will begin penalizing websites that interfere with the normal functioning of a web browser's back button. Known as back button hijacking, ...

Websites that engage in “back button hijacking” might soon appear less prominently in Google Search results as part of a new spam policy. Back button hijacking occurs when a site prevents users from ...

In short: Google is classifying “back button hijacking” as spam, targeting sites that abuse the browser History API to trap users when they try to navigate away. Enforcement begins 15 June 2026, with ...

Back button hijacking, a practice that interferes with normal web browser back button functioning, is now against Google Search’s guidelines. Sites that engage in back button hijacking will be subject ...

On June 15, Google will implement a new spam policy that will allow it to punish sites that interfere with your browser's back button. So-called “back button hijacking" is any behavior that interferes ...

Jake Peterson is Lifehacker’s Tech Editor, and has been covering tech news and how-tos for nearly a decade. His team covers all things technology, including AI, smartphones, computers, game consoles, ...

So you thought you’d just read that webpage and then go back to the previous page? A bold assumption. All too often, clicking the back button in your browser doesn’t actually take you back. It’s ...

Google announced a new spam policy targeting sites that interfere with browser back button navigation. Back button hijacking is now an explicit violation under Google's malicious practices spam policy ...