Honestly i think , in 2026 Google is pretty good at ignoring most junk links anyway, so small “spam blasts” usually do not get much traction. Butt at large scale , you can still see some temporary volatility.I have been seeing mixed opinions about negative SEO lately. some say google is much better now at ignoring spammy or toxic backlinks ,while others believe it can still cause ranking drops if done at scale.
what's your experience does negative SEO still pose a real thread today
Most of the real drops I have seen late have had more to do with algorithm + site quality issues than pure negative SEO working long term.