In 2019, we published a blog about 15 useful operators for conducting targeted searches on Google. For seven years, little changed — until now, in May 2026. For the first time, updates have been introduced that drastically changed the way Google search works and, as a result, the search results themselves. In this blog, we will walk you through what has changed.
Advanced Search form
We begin with Google’s Advanced Search form. This form can be accessed directly via https://www.google.com/advanced_search or by performing a search on Google and then clicking on “Tools” followed by “Advanced Search.”
When we examine the form, the first thing we notice is that it now looks visually different. In the image on the lower left, the old form is shown, while the image on the lower right displays the new version. A second noticeable change is that the option to search for “one or more of these words” and the option to search for numbers have disappeared.
If we scroll further down in the new form, we see that only a limited number of options remain. It is still possible to search by file type and date, and users can also continue searching by language and region.
Google Operators
Even without Google’s Advanced Search form, it is still possible to perform targeted searches using so-called Google Operators. In our 2019 blog, we discussed 15 operators, but things have now changed. Below, we focus exclusively on the changes.
1. OR
Previously, the “OR” operator allowed users to search for results containing either one word or another. However, this search functionality no longer appears to return accurate results. This aligns with the removal of the corresponding option from the Advanced Search form described earlier. One apparent workaround is to enable Google’s “Verbatim” search mode. This option forces the search engine to use the exact search terms entered, without applying synonyms or spelling corrections.
2. inurl:
Previously, the “inurl:” operator allowed users to search for results containing a specific word in the URL itself. Below, you can see how we would normally search for the words “osint” and “aware” on the website x.com. However, when hovering over the search results, the displayed URLs do not match the intended search terms (see arrow 2). Even when using Google’s Verbatim search mode, this operator no longer functions as it did previously.
The impact on our search results
The change to the “OR” function may seem minor, but it can have significant practical consequences for investigations. This function is frequently used to search for one or multiple keywords in combination with other terms. For example, if we were conducting a pre-employment investigation, we might want to check whether candidate Bram is associated with irregularities, fraud, corruption, and similar issues. Using the OR operator, this used to be relatively straightforward. We could simply search for: “bram” fraud OR corruption OR irregularities, and so on. This change also directly impacts Google Alerts configured using the OR operator.
The “inurl:” function also served an important purpose in practice. Certain types of information, such as usernames, are often included in URLs. By searching for inurl:aware_online, we could easily use Google to identify various accounts using the same username. Searching only for “aware_online” is, of course, still possible, but it is less precise because it also returns results where “aware_online” appears in the title or body text of a webpage.
More information?
We hope that the changes described above are temporary. However, we fear that Google’s search functionality will continue to evolve alongside the growth of AI. Would you like to stay informed about tips and tricks for conducting safe and effective investigations using publicly available online sources? Then subscribe to our newsletter at the bottom of this page.