Comment Spam, Getting Hacked, And SEO

A couple of weeks ago we shared with you how comment spam hurts SEO…

We also shared with you that our WordPress sites got hacked because we failed to update the site in time to block some vulnerabilities…

Because of both of these problems – comment spam and getting hacked – the #1 keyword on this very site became “levitra”. Scrolling down, #15 is “viagra”. In case you are wondering – this is not good.

This is a huge problem we’ve since cleaned up and we want to pass on some advice to you on dealing with spam and security.

1. Whatever platform you use – make sure you are running the latest version and take security seriously. If you are using WordPress, start here to learn how to take care of it…

2. As much as it completely sucks to deal with comment spam – deal with it and figure out a system to stop it.

3. Sign up for Google Webmaster Tools NOW. Not only did GWT alert me of malicious content on my site (from getting hacked) it also told me “levitra” and “viagra” were high significant keywords on my site – obviously sounding off a huge alarm pointing at comment spam.

Do you have any questions on dealing with this? Let us know in the forums, @webstrategyshop, or via comment here. You don’t want this to happen to you.

Google Webmaster Tools – Matt Cutts

Matt Cutts discusses using Google Webmaster Tools to optimize your websiite.