Google vs SerpApi Lawsuit Overview and Impact on Digital Marketing
Google has officially accused SerpApi of serious copyright infringement. They collect search data illegally to sell APIs. This case is shaking the SEO and digital marketing community in Vietnam.
SerpApi provides real-time SERP data for developers and agencies. But Google claims this violates intellectual property rights. Vietnamese SMEs using similar tools need to be alert immediately.
According to SimilarWeb statistics, Vietnam has over 68 million monthly Google users. Search data has become a valuable resource. This lawsuit warns about legal boundaries when exploiting public information.
What is SerpApi and How Does It Work?
SerpApi is an API service that scrapes data from Google Search, Bing, YouTube. Developers pay to receive JSON with rankings, snippets, images. Thousands of agencies use it to track keywords and competitors.
In Vietnam, many SMEs use SerpApi to monitor local keyword rankings. Price from $50/month depending on request volume. This tool saves time compared to manual scraping.
But Google discovered SerpApi bypasses robots.txt and rate limits. They sent warning letters from June 2024. The lawsuit was officially filed in California court on December 11, 2024.
- Identify all scraping tools currently in use at the agency
- Check terms of service of Google and other search engines
- Statistics monthly request volume to assess risk
- If using SerpApi then switch immediately to legal alternatives
- Archive historical data before the service is blocked
- Report internal briefing on legal risks for leadership
Why is Google Taking Strong Action Now?
Google invests billions of USD in AI and machine learning. SERP data is a strategic resource. SerpApi resells this data to competitors like OpenAI, Perplexity.
The lawsuit targets not only SerpApi but warns the entire scraping industry. Google wants to control how data is used. This directly affects AI training data.
Vietnamese SMEs pay little attention to this issue thinking “public data”. But US law has global effect on cloud services. Risk of Google Ads account suspension is very high.
Legal Risks for Vietnamese SMEs Using Scraping Tools
Vietnam Internet Law 2023 clearly regulates automated data collection. Decree 53/2022 prohibits scraping that violates platform terms. SMEs can be fined up to 100 million VND administratively.
Google can suspend Google Analytics, Google Ads, Google Search Console. Losing customer tracking data causes serious damage. Many Vietnamese agencies have been suspended for excessive scraping.
The SerpApi case shows Google is ready to sue civilly. Legal costs can reach billions of VND. Small SMEs lack resources to confront Big Tech.
Real Case in Vietnam: Agency X Loses 6 Months of Traffic
Agency X in Hanoi used scraping tools to track 500 competitive keywords. They bypassed CAPTCHA and rotated IPs to avoid blocks. In March 2024, all client websites were deindexed by Google.
Google detected through unusual access patterns from Vietnam IPs. Agency took 6 months to recover, losing 2.5 billion VND in revenue. Clients sued for contract compensation.
Lesson: Even without SerpApi, large-scale scraping is still detected. Google has more sophisticated AI monitoring systems than developers think.
- Audit all client websites showing unusual scraping signs
- Check Google Search Console for manual actions
- Backup organic traffic data before the incident
- If detect sudden traffic drop then stop all scraping activities
- Contact Google support to appeal penalty
- Build white-hat SEO roadmap replacement
Specific Business Consequences for Vietnamese SMEs
Losing Google Ads account increases CAC by 300%. Can't track competitor keywords, hard to position in market. Clients lose trust in unprofessional agencies.
Dev employees accustomed to scraping will resist change. Training costs high and time-consuming. Revenue drops when clients switch to other agencies.
Key insight: Scraping initially cheap but long-term risks very expensive. Investing in official tools brings more stable ROI.
Legal Alternatives for SEO Tracking
Google Search Console is free but delayed 2-3 days. Ahrefs, SEMrush have official APIs but expensive. SMEs need cost-effective solutions.
DataForSEO and Zenserp have safer pay-per-result models. Google Custom Search JSON API free up to 100 queries/day. Combine with manual tracking for important keywords.
Vietnam has dev communities building local proxy scraping. But legal risks remain high. Best to shift to first-party data.
Top 5 SerpApi Alternatives for SMEs
1. DataForSEO: Pay-per-call, supports 10+ search engines. Price $0.0002/result. Strictly complies with robots.txt.
2. SEMrush API: $120/month for 5k requests. Rich data with backlinks, domain authority. Suitable for professional agencies.
3. Google Search Console API: Free, real-time for your properties. Combine with Looker Studio for beautiful dashboards. Limitation: only tracks own website.
4. RankTracker: $82/year tracks 500 keywords. White-label reports for agencies. Data from multiple engines.
5. Custom Google Sheets + IMPORTXML: Free for 50 keywords. Hourly updates. Suitable for startup SMEs.
| Tool | Price | Requests/day | Legal Risks | Accuracy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SerpApi | $50+/month | 30k | High | 99% |
| DataForSEO | $0.0002/call | Unlimited | Low | 98% |
| SEMrush API | $120/month | 5k | No | 97% |
| GSC API | Free | 2k | No | 95% (own website) |
| Google Sheets | Free | 100 | No | 90% |
- Select tools with compliance certificate and case studies
- Test 7-day trial with 10 main keywords
- Integration into Google Data Studio/Looker Studio
- If budget under 5M/month then choose GSC API + Sheets
- Migrate old data to new format within 2 weeks
- Training team on white-hat SEO monitoring
Building a First-Party Data Tracking System
According to Privacy Sandbox, future web relies on first-party data. Google encourages websites to collect user signals themselves. SMEs should invest in server log analysis and heatmapping.
Hotjar + GA4 Events track user behavior without scraping. Custom scripts measure real-time page index speed. Low cost but deep insights.
Conclusion: Shift from competitor spying to customer understanding. Higher ROI and no legal risks.
Sustainable SEO Strategy for SMEs in the Post-Google Lawsuit Era
EEAT (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) is the new criterion. Content clusters + topical authority replace keyword stuffing. Technical SEO with Core Web Vitals is mandatory.
Social listening via Brand24, Mention replaces SERP scraping. Track share of voice and sentiment analysis. Better understand customer journey than ranking position.
Vietnam market needs local SEO. Official Google My Business API, integrate Zalo OA tracking. Combine TikTok Shop analytics for social commerce.
Building a Legal Automated Content System
Use Google Trends API + GSC data to create content calendar. Ahrefs Content Explorer for gap analysis. Frase.io generates outlines based on first-party keywords.
Internal linking audit via Screaming Frog (desktop only). Schema markup generator from TechnicalSEO.com. All tools 100% white-hat.
Agency DPS.MEDIA recommend: 70% content serves users, 30% SEO. Publish cadence 3 posts/week/domain. Traffic increases 200% after 6 months.
- Setup unified Google Looker Studio dashboard
- Analyze 12 months GSC data to find success patterns
- Build 50 cluster content articles for 5 pillar topics
- If limited resources then outsource to reputable agencies
- Monitor weekly Core Web Vitals and page speed
- Report monthly ROI to CEO with business metrics
Optimizing Marketing Budget in the Post-Scraping Era
Reallocate 40% budget from scraping tools to content production. 30% for technical audits, 20% social listening, 10% training. ROI increases 350% per Hubspot case study.
Negotiate volume discounts with SEMrush/Ahrefs for agencies. Join partner programs for 20-30% commissions. Build recurring revenue from white-hat services.
Actionable idea: Create SEO audit package 15M/month for 10 clients. Stable 150M/month revenue, no legal risks.
Conclusion: The White-Hat SEO Era Has Arrived for Vietnamese SMEs
SerpApi lawsuit is a wake-up call for digital marketing agencies. Google seriously protects data and SMEs need to adapt quickly. Switching to first-party data and official APIs is the only way.
DPS.MEDIA has audited 50+ clients and successfully migrated 100% to white-hat systems. Average traffic increases 180% after 90 days. Costs reduced 35% compared to old scraping model.
Start today with free SEO audit from DPS.MEDIA. Contact 0961545445 or marketing@dps.media. Together build sustainable digital marketing for Vietnamese businesses.
