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Issue #124 · important

Issue 124

What is this issue?

The article:modified_time meta tag specifies when an article or blog post was last updated or modified. This helps social platforms and search engines understand that content has been refreshed or improved.

This issue checks whether your page has the article:modified_time tag implemented (for article-type content that has been updated). A passing implementation must include:

  • article:modified_time - The ISO 8601 datetime when the article was last modified

Example of passing implementation:

<meta property="og:type" content="article" />
<meta property="article:published_time" content="2024-01-15T10:30:00+00:00" />
<meta property="article:modified_time" content="2024-03-20T14:45:00+00:00" />

Why does it matter?

The article:modified_time tag is valuable for content updates and social sharing:

  • Content freshness: Signals to users and platforms that content has been updated
  • Update visibility: Social platforms may display "Updated" timestamps
  • Search relevance: Search engines use modification dates for freshness signals
  • User trust: Users can see if they're viewing the most recent version
  • AI Search / AEO: AI systems use modification dates to understand content currency

Without the article:modified_time tag:

  • Updates to content are not visible to social platforms
  • Users may not know if they're seeing the latest version
  • Missed opportunity to signal content improvements

Resolving this issue improves content update signaling in social sharing and contributes to a higher overall SEO health score by providing freshness metadata.

How to fix it

  1. Add the article:modified_time tag to your HTML <head> section (for updated articles):

    • Use ISO 8601 datetime format: YYYY-MM-DDThh:mm:ss±hh:mm
    • Only add if the article has been substantially updated after publication
    • Update this value each time you make significant changes

  2. Only use for article-type content:

    • Set og:type to "article" on pages with this tag
    • Don't add to homepage, product pages, or non-article content

  3. Maintain accuracy:

    • Update the timestamp only for meaningful content changes
    • Don't change for minor typo fixes or formatting adjustments
    • Keep article:published_time as the original publication date

  4. Test your implementation:

    • Use Facebook Sharing Debugger to verify the date is detected
    • Check that modification dates display correctly on social platforms

Examples

Example 1: Missing Article Modified Time

Problematic state (what fails):

<meta property="og:type" content="article" />
<meta property="article:published_time" content="2024-01-15T10:30:00+00:00" />
<!-- Missing article:modified_time for updated article -->

Corrected state (what passes):

<meta property="og:type" content="article" />
<meta property="article:published_time" content="2024-01-15T10:30:00+00:00" />
<meta property="article:modified_time" content="2024-03-20T14:45:00+00:00" />

Example 2: Modified Time Before Published Time

Problematic state (what fails):

<meta property="article:published_time" content="2024-03-20T14:45:00+00:00" />
<meta property="article:modified_time" content="2024-01-15T10:30:00+00:00" />
<!-- Modified time is before published time -->

Corrected state (what passes):

<meta property="article:published_time" content="2024-01-15T10:30:00+00:00" />
<meta property="article:modified_time" content="2024-03-20T14:45:00+00:00" />
<!-- Modified time is after published time -->

Example 3: Non-Updated Article with Modified Time

Problematic state (what fails):

<!-- Article has never been updated -->
<meta property="article:modified_time" content="2024-01-15T10:30:00+00:00" />
<!-- Same as published time, unnecessary -->

Corrected state (what passes):

<!-- Only add modified_time if article has been substantially updated -->
<!-- Otherwise, omit the tag -->

How PixyScan detects this

PixyScan checks for the article:modified_time tag by:

  1. Fetching the page HTML after following all redirects
  2. Identifying article pages: Checking if og:type is "article" or page appears to be article-like
  3. Parsing the <head> section to extract the meta tag with property="article:modified_time"
  4. Validating presence: Checks that the tag exists on article pages that appear to be updated
  5. Validating format: Ensures the value is a parseable datetime in ISO 8601 format
  6. Flagging the issue if the tag is missing on updated article pages or contains an invalid format

The detection is performed on the raw HTML response without JavaScript execution, matching how social media crawlers see your pages.

References