Does google use chrome to check if a link is used by humans or just there for the bots?

Question

Does clicking a link in chrome tell google the link is used by humans and therefore not just automated backlink spam?

It sounds weird but I read it today on a slightly obscure seo blog, they mentioned clicking the backlinks they make in a version of chrome where they have the "send data anonymously to google" feature turned on.

It sounded a bit far-fetched but then I thought it could have a truth to it as with google now looking harder at "spammy" links it would mean at least some humans are using them.

Has any one else heard anything else about this?

Answer 1

This is a good article going over what information Google collects using Chrome, though out dated i'm sure the same tests can be tried today to see if any information is being collected when clicking on links

http://blog.nektra.com/main/2008/10/15/the-truth-about-google-chrome-using-spy-studio/

You may want to try the test yourself using Wire Shark and monitor all the data packets being sent once you click on a link. Though you'll want to disable every plugin and close other programs to minimize network traffic.

Answer 2

Do you have a link to said blog? The situation you described seems very unlikely, since if a company with the size and influence of Google did something against its privacy policy that wouldn't go unnoticed for long (it's fairly easy to detect if your computer is making requests for a specific domain if you're actively searching for it).

I don't know the exact mechanism Google uses to flag a site as dangerous, but if the site you're currently visiting is not already in the blacklist, the privacy policy says no URL will be sent to Google after a link click, even with "send data anonymously" on (they might be sent for AutoFill purposes or such).