Are you getting Google Sorry and ‘We’re Sorry’ automated queries error pages and blocked all search results, as I tried Google search today from a college friend’s computer. They labeled it as an automated search, banned the IP, and only after correctly answering the captcha twice, the normal Google search could be restored... temporarily.
Google We’re Sorry Error Page
Here is what the complete error message looks like
We’re Sorry … but your query looks similar to automated requests from a computer virus or spyware application.
Another similar message is
We’re Sorry … but your computer or network may be sending automated queries. To protect our users, we can’t process your request right now.
Google advises that they error so because they think it is similar to automated queries like those from virus or spywares! They advise that users should run antivirus software or spyware remover, but it the error persists then deleting Google cookies will help
Well it was not over yet, after a few search results, the Google search was blocked again. I was tested again for the captchas twice, and the cycle continued like this over till I was online.
Remembering how Google search had marked the entire web as malware earlier, first I thought maybe it was a new bug affecting Google search. But the We’re Sorry error page is a well identified spam blocking technique from Google Search.
Google Automated Queries and IP ban
This message appears when Google detects automated queries from an IP address, which causes a quick traffic spike on google.com. Google explains some possible ways to fix the issue, remove the IP address ban and restore Google search results as usual.
When a computer in the network runs automated queries, it violates Google Terms of Service. This includes using any software that sends queries to Google to determine how a website or webpage ranks on Google for various queries, ‘Meta-searching’ Google or performing ‘offline’ searches on Google.
Remove Google Sorry Errors
Step I – I tried the first and easiest way of deleting cookies from my browser.
If you use Firefox – Go to Tools > Options > Private Data > Clear Now > Check Cookies > Clear Private Data Now
And behold, all the errors were gone and the issue was fixed for me.
Step 2 – If that does not fix the issue, then download any popular anti-malware software like Lavasoft Adaware, or Spybot Search and Destroy, MacScan (for Mac), and run a full system scan to find and remove spyware and malware which could be triggering those automated queries to Google.
Step 3 – If you tested and your computer and network are secure, but you continue to get the Google errors, then send feedback to Google about the “Unusual traffic from your computer network” and they will investigate your report and fix the issue.