Google has introduced AI-generated summaries in its search results—known as AI Overviews—which often pull your content into a snippet that may generate traffic away from your site. While it seems like a "feature," these summaries force site owners into a no-win choice between giving up control or visibility—arguably a dark pattern tactic by Google.
To make matters worse, while there are regulatory investigations underway in the EU and UK striving to hold Google accountable, there’s still no good workaround for publishers.
1. Set Snippet Length to Zero with max-snippet:0 (Recommended… If You Have No Other Choice)
This prevents all snippets—regular and AI—from appearing under your search result. You're left with a listing showing only the title and URL, which can significantly decrease click-through rate (CTR). It's a blunt instrument, but until there's a better option, it's the most effective.
2. Block All Summaries with nosnippet
Identical in effect to max-snippet:0: completely strips your search listing of any description or summary. It prevents AI summaries, but again, it leaves your listing bare and unappealing.
3. Exclude Specific Sections with data-nosnippet
This part won’t appear in snippets or AI summaries.
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