During a 2024 survey carried out among search engine optimization (SEO) professionals worldwide, ** percent of respondents stated that algorithm changes were one of the most difficult challenges SEO posed. Link building ranked second, named by ** percent of respondents.

As of the fourth quarter of 2021, it was found that mobile devices accounted for 63 percent of organic search engine visits. This value has remained almost the same over the past two quarters. In the first quarter of 2021, though, it decreased to 59 percent.

Only *** percent of the surveyed small and medium-sized enterprises had had SEO projects in the past, according to the findings of the survey conducted in **********. A further ** percent of enterprises was considering the topic.

In 2023, search engine marketing (SEM) spending in Peru amounted to ** million U.S. dollars, down from ** million dollars a year earlier. For comparison, Peru's total online ad spending reached ***** million dollars in 2023.

README These datasets and R script are to generate the visualizations used in "Search Engine Manipulation: SEO to Spread Kremlin-Aligned Disinformation"

DATA

Data were collected from the Ahrefs (ahrefs.com) dashboard on Feb 21, 2022. Any re-use of this data must cite Ahrefs as the source. We provide two data files:
1) ora_backlinks.csv (referring domain network extracted from Ahrefs) 2) ora_keyphrases.csv (keyword network extracted from Ahrefs) ora_rd.csv contains:

'source' : (think tank domain)
'target' : (backlinking domain)
'weight' : (total # of backlinks)
'network' : (ru_tt_rd = Russia, us_tt_rd = US, ds_rd = Pseudo)

ora_keyphrases.csv contains:

source: think tank domain target: top key phrases position: Google's ranking for that domain for that term volume: ahrefs estimated organic daily traffic group: Think tank group

R Script This script generates visuals of top backlinkers and backlink recipients in the think tank network. It also constructs and visualizes the minimum overlap network for referring domains present in the paper. This code was created using R version 4.1.1 (2021-08-10) -- "Kick Things". To run this code, you'll first need to install the libraries at the beginning of the script. Once that is done, open the script and modify the path to the input file (ora_rd.csv): rd_data_el and modify the path to the output file: output_dir. The script can then be run line-by-line in Rstudio or by typing Rscript SEM_visuals.R in the terminal after setting paths.

Citation How to cite (will be updated upon acceptance):

 Williams, E. M. & Carley, M. C., (2023). Search Engine Manipulation to Spread Pro-Kremlin Propaganda. Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) Misinformation Review, Volume #(Issue #). Received: Month Xth, 2022. Accepted: Month Xth, 20XX. Published: Month Xth, 2022.
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This statistic shows the internet search engine advertising market size in Hong Kong from 2012 to 2016 with projections until 2021. In 2016, Hong Kong's search engine ad market amounted to around *** billion Hong Kong dollars and was estimated to grow up to around *** billion Hong Kong dollars by 2021.

Picture this: a local bakery in Austin struggling to attract foot traffic until they claimed and optimized their Google My Business (GMB) profile. Within weeks, walk-ins tripled, phone inquiries surged, and their map listing dominated local results. This isn't an isolated story; it's the everyday reality for thousands of small...

According to a survey conducted in December 2021 in France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States, ** percent of responding senior company decision-makers stated that they used local SEO management in relation to their physical marketing activities and locations. Another ** percent stated that inventory promotion and social media posting were additional digital activities that their companies do in order to achieve hybrid customer experiences.

Retail Sales Nowcast: YoY: Contribution: Search Engine / Operating System / Browser Statistics: Google Search Trends: Unemployment: China data was reported at 0.000 % in 12 May 2025. This stayed constant from the previous number of 0.000 % for 05 May 2025. Retail Sales Nowcast: YoY: Contribution: Search Engine / Operating System / Browser Statistics: Google Search Trends: Unemployment: China data is updated weekly, averaging 0.006 % from Feb 2021 (Median) to 12 May 2025, with 224 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 0.619 % in 31 Mar 2025 and a record low of 0.000 % in 12 May 2025. Retail Sales Nowcast: YoY: Contribution: Search Engine / Operating System / Browser Statistics: Google Search Trends: Unemployment: China data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by CEIC Data. The data is categorized under Global Database’s China – Table CN.CEIC.NC: CEIC Nowcast: Retail Sales.

This statistic shows the internet search engine advertising market size in Taiwan from 2012 to 2016 with projections until 2021. In 2016, Taiwan's search engine ad expenditure reached around *** million U.S. dollars and was estimated to grow up to around *** million U.S. dollars by 2021.

Retail Sales Nowcast: YoY: Contribution: Search Engine / Operating System / Browser Statistics: Google Search Trends: eBay: China data was reported at 0.000 % in 12 May 2025. This stayed constant from the previous number of 0.000 % for 05 May 2025. Retail Sales Nowcast: YoY: Contribution: Search Engine / Operating System / Browser Statistics: Google Search Trends: eBay: China data is updated weekly, averaging 0.002 % from Feb 2021 (Median) to 12 May 2025, with 224 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 0.171 % in 04 Nov 2024 and a record low of 0.000 % in 12 May 2025. Retail Sales Nowcast: YoY: Contribution: Search Engine / Operating System / Browser Statistics: Google Search Trends: eBay: China data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by CEIC Data. The data is categorized under Global Database’s China – Table CN.CEIC.NC: CEIC Nowcast: Retail Sales.

This statistic shows the market share of search engines on tablets in the Netherlands as of 2021. In this year, Google was the most popular search engine on tablets in the Netherlands, with the highest market share of ** percent. Other domains, such as DuckDuckGo, Yahoo and bing, also attracted traffic. DuckDuckGo, a search engine which aims to protect searchers' privacy, reached a market share of **** percent.

According to a survey conducted in Japan in July 2021, ** percent of the respondents stated that they used search engines to find out more about words or people they do not know. A slightly lower share of respondents used search engines to look for things related to their hobbies.

Canada CA: Pharmaceutical Industry: Total Imports data was reported at 19.392 USD bn in 2021. This records an increase from the previous number of 15.201 USD bn for 2020. Canada CA: Pharmaceutical Industry: Total Imports data is updated yearly, averaging 7.354 USD bn from Dec 1988 (Median) to 2021, with 34 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 19.392 USD bn in 2021 and a record low of 668.087 USD mn in 1988. Canada CA: Pharmaceutical Industry: Total Imports data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Canada – Table CA.OECD.MSTI: Trade Statistics: OECD Member: Annual.

In Canada, new sampling method (weighted sample survey supplemented by administrative tax data) and conceptual changes in the business R&D survey caused a break in series in 2014. From 2012 the coefficients used for estimating R&D expenditure in the Higher Education sector have been revised, as well as the distribution of HERD between funds directly from government for R&D, GUF, and from institutions’ own funds. From 2010, the federal government R&D expenditures are better measured. From 1988, the estimated values for R&D in hospitals not covered by university reports are included in the R&D expenditure of the higher education sector (not previously included).

Beginning 2017, NABS 2007 was used and correlated with the new Canadian Research and Development Classification (CRDC) system of classification at Statistics Canada. With the new methodology, SEO 12 and 13 (General advancement of knowledge) were removed from the survey and departments re-allocated the funds among the other SEOs. From 1989, non-federal sources are no longer excluded from GUF in GBARD.

In 2021, the website boohoo.com comfortably had the highest visibility score for women's fashion websites. Newlook.com followed in second place with riverisland.com third in the rankings. The visibility score is an SEO metric that measures how easily a website can be found online.

Amazon is the most used search engine in France when it comes for shopping inspiration. During a survey carried out in early 2021, ** percent of responding online buyers said they used Amazon for such purposes; among regular online buyers, the share stood at ** percent. Google ranked second, with ** percent and ** percent, respectively.

In April 2023, desktop computer searches represented ***** percent of the search engine market in the UK. Mobile searches followed with ***** percent, with the remaining **** percent for consoles.

The market share of the most used search engines in France in May 2021, ranked by type of device is represented in this statistic. Google dominated the market share on all devices by almost ** percent and was the forerunner on mobile devices by around ** percent. The Microsoft product Bing came in second with **** percent market shares in France, with the most desktop usage of more than **** percent. Yahoo! remained above the **** percent share on desktop usage.

During a 2024 survey carried out among search engine optimization (SEO) professionals worldwide, ** percent of respondents stated that the role of generative AI (gen AI) in search was one of the main disruptors of SEO performance. AI-generated content ranked second, named by ** percent of respondents.

In January 2025, Google remained by far the most popular search engine in the UK, holding a market share of ***** percent across all devices. That month, Bing had a market share of approximately **** percent in second place, followed by Yahoo! with approximately **** percent. The EU vs Google Despite Google’s dominance of the search engine market, maintaining its position at the top has not been a smooth ride. Google’s market share saw a decline in the summer of 2018, plummeting to an all-time-low in July. The search engine experienced a similar dip in June and July 2017. These two low points coincided with the European Commission’s antitrust charges against the company, both of which were unprecedented in the now decade-long duel between both parties. As skepticism towards search engine platforms grows in line with public concern regarding censorship and data privacy, alternative services like Duckduckgo offer users both information protection and unfiltered results. Despite this, it still held less than *** percent of the industry’s market share as of June 2021. Perception of fake news in the UK According to a questionnaire conducted in the United Kingdom in 2018, **** percent of respondents had come across inaccurate news on social media at least once before. Rising concerns over fake news, or information which has been manipulated to influence the public has been a hot topic in recent years. The younger generation however, remains skeptical with nearly **** of Generation Z claiming to be either unconcerned about fake news, or believed that it did not exist altogether.