By Mzoxolo Mpolase
Google’s influence on how South Africans access information cannot be overstated.
As the default search engine for millions, it serves as a gatekeeper to knowledge, government services, shopping, and more.
Yet, instead of delivering on its promise of organising information and making it useful, Google has become a platform that facilitates exploitation, misinformation, and harm.
In the South African context, the cracks in Google’s system have become glaringly evident. From fake government websites and AI-driven spam to fraudulent shopping sites, the platform is rife with vulnerabilities that disproportionately affect local users.
These issues are not mere oversights—they reflect deeper problems with how Google operates in developing markets like South Africa.
Fake Government Websites: A Threat to Vulnerable Citizens
When South Africans search for terms like “SASSA status check” or “SASSA grant application,” they are met with a flood of fake websites masquerading as official platforms.
Sites such as statuschecksrd.co.za and sassacheck.co.za are designed to deceive users into believing they are interacting with the South African Social Security Agency.
These sites collect sensitive personal information, including ID numbers and cellphone details, in direct violation of South Africa’s Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA).
What’s more troubling is that Google’s search algorithm consistently ranks these fraudulent sites prominently—sometimes above the official SASSA website.
The presence of these websites raises serious questions. How is it that a company with the technological resources of Google cannot effectively detect and demote such fraudulent sites?
For millions of South Africans relying on SASSA grants, the cost of Google’s inaction is far too high.
AI Spam and the Decline of Local Relevance
Google’s recent Helpful Content Update (HCU) was supposed to improve search results by prioritising content that genuinely helps users. In practice, it has done the opposite.
South African search results are increasingly dominated by AI-generated spam from foreign websites, many of which have no relevance to the local context.
Consider pakembassykabul.org or pasteurinstituteindia.com. These sites have nothing to do with South Africa, yet they rank prominently in searches for SASSA-related queries.
Their content is generic and misleading, serving only to capture clicks and ad revenue.
The consequence is a search experience where South Africans must wade through irrelevant or outright false information to find what they need.
Legitimate local publishers—who understand the nuances of South African issues—are pushed further down the rankings, silenced by the noise of content farms.
This raises another critical question: why does Google seem to tolerate such exploitation of its platform, particularly in markets like South Africa?
The Problem With Google’s AI Overviews
In 2024, Google introduced AI Overviews to South African search results. These are supposed to provide quick, summarised answers to user queries, but they come with significant risks.
For years, Google emphasised the importance of expert sources for complex topics like finance, health, and legal matters. Yet now, its AI scrapes content from publishers and repackages it, often without attribution.
The information presented is frequently oversimplified or outright incorrect, leaving users with misleading answers to critical questions.
This is particularly harmful in the South African context, where users may be searching for guidance on issues like tax compliance or SASSA grant eligibility—topics that require nuanced, accurate information.
Instead, they are met with AI-generated summaries that lack the depth and reliability such topics demand.
What’s more, this shift undermines local publishers, who are effectively competing against Google’s AI for visibility while their content is being repurposed without fair compensation.
Social Media Content and the Amplification of Scams
Another concerning trend is Google’s increasing prioritisation of user-generated and social media content. While this might seem like a way to democratise search, in practice, it has created a fertile ground for scams.
For example, South Africans searching for information on trending pyramid schemes or “investment opportunities” often encounter social media posts promoting these scams.
These posts frequently include referral codes and glowing testimonials, drowning out legitimate investigations by local publishers such as ourselves.
Instead of protecting users by surfacing credible warnings, Google’s algorithm amplifies the very content that perpetuates these scams.
This raises yet another uncomfortable question: does Google’s obsession with engagement metrics come at the cost of user safety?
Fraudulent Shopping Sites Are Thriving
Online shopping is another area where Google’s failures are hurting South Africans. Fraudulent websites posing as legitimate retailers dominate search results, tricking users into making purchases they’ll never receive.
Take https://www.uni-qlosouthafrica.co.za/, which now redirects to https://www.unisouthafrica.top/. These sites falsely claim to represent Uniqlo, a global brand with no presence in South Africa, and dupe users into thinking they are buying authentic products.
Also read:
Closer to home, sites like https://tafelberg-boutique.co.za/ and https://nova-capetown.co.za/ exploit the desire to support local businesses. They advertise handmade goods but deliver nothing—or poor-quality imports from China.
Google’s role in legitimising these scams cannot be ignored. By ranking these sites prominently, it enables fraud and undermines trust in online commerce.
The Verdict
Google’s failures in South Africa are systemic and dangerous. From fake government websites to AI spam and shopping scams, the platform’s algorithms prioritise clicks and engagement over accuracy and safety.
The result is a search engine that no longer serves its users but exploits them. For South Africans, this is more than an inconvenience—it’s a threat to their privacy, finances, and access to reliable information.
The question is: will Google take responsibility for the harm it is causing, or will it continue to prioritise profits over the people it claims to serve?
Until there is accountability, South Africans will remain at the mercy of a search engine that increasingly works against them.
