Google Search appears to be implementing a new feature involving the URL “google.com/goto” as a pass-through link within search results, a test that began around July 2026. The purpose seems to be an effort to prevent third-party tools and AI systems from scraping search results, although Google has not officially commented on the change.
A spokesperson from Google confirmed to Digital Phablet that this rollout is happening, stating, “We have a long history of deploying technical measures against evolving forms of abuse, and we regularly take steps to protect our services and users.”
When examining search results, hovering over a link reveals that Google now uses a “goto” URL parameter to redirect users to the target site instead of linking directly to the webpage. This URL appears as a passthrough, directing users via Google’s servers before reaching the destination.
This shift is visually noticeable: instead of a straightforward link, the search result points to a “goto” URL that embeds the target webpage. Previously, URLs in search results were direct links to the sites, as shown in typical search result screenshots that display standard URLs.
According to Derek Perkins from Nozzle, this change has been widely adopted. He observed that nearly all search result pages he checked—including those from residential IP providers—show this pattern. He shared a graph illustrating a significant increase in the use of these “goto” passthrough URLs over recent months, indicating a near-complete rollout.
Perkins explained that Google appears to be testing anti-bot measures that replace client-side links with server-side redirects via “google.com/goto.” Since these redirects cannot be decoded directly, third-party tools would need to follow each redirect to reach the original URL. With hundreds of links on a typical results page, this can pose a challenge for scraping efforts.
This new redirect mechanism is now visible across multiple browsers he tested, suggesting the rollout is ongoing. Digital Phablet reached out to Google for confirmation and is awaiting a response.
A discussion about this development continues among industry experts, indicating that Google’s move is part of ongoing efforts to enhance search result protection against automated scraping and abuse.