If you’re a heavy user of the WordPress platform, then I’m sure you’ve been infected with SEO spam at least once. SEO spam is usually the result of bad SEO practices that have been carried out by an inexperienced or unethical SEO agency.
It usually occurs in the form of hidden links, spam comments, spam content and keyword stuffing. Some spam comments are even made by automated spamming bots.
SEO spam can affect your WordPress SEO efforts in a number of different ways. It can make your site look less credible, and can lead to your site being blacklisted by Google and other search engines.
SEO spam can also be used to manipulate your search engine rankings. The best way to deal with SEO spam is to prevent it in the first place. You can do so by avoiding hiring an inexperienced or unethical SEO company.
However, if you’ve already been affected by SEO spam, then here are some ways you can deal with it:
1. Monitor Your Site for Spammy Links
The best way to prevent spam from affecting your site is to monitor your site for spammy links. You can do so using a number of different WordPress plugins like Google XML Sitemaps, All in One SEO Pack, WordPress SEO by Yoast and others.
You can also find and remove spammy links manually by using Google Search Console.
It’s also a good idea to regularly check the comments section of your WordPress site for spam. You can do so using a tool like Akismet, or by manually checking the comments section.
You should also regularly check your RSS subscribers for spam. Use a tool like Google Alerts, or use Google’s search query operators to find and remove spammy RSS subscribers.
2. Remove Automatic Spam Comments Using WordPress Plugins
Many WordPress plugins allow you to automatically remove spam comments from your site. A number of these plugins allow you to automatically remove spam comments and track them for future reference.
You can also manually delete spam comments on a regular basis. You can do so by using a tool like Akismet, or by using a manual spam comment removal plugin like Remove Comment Spam.
3. Remove Spam Content Using WordPress Plugins
Many spam comments contain links that lead to spam content. You can use a tool like Blekko to find spam content on your site. This tool allows you to find any site that contains links to spam content.
You can then use a tool like Google Webmaster Tools to remove the links from the search results.
4. Remove Hidden Links Using Free Tools
A number of WordPress plugins allow you to find and remove hidden links from your WordPress site. These plugins include Remove Hidden Plugins, Remove Hidden Content, and Remove Hidden Characters.
You can also manually find and remove hidden links and hidden content from your WordPress site. You can do so by using a tool like Google Search Console, or another free link-checking tool like Link Detective.
5. Remove Hidden Links & Register Your Domain With Google Webmaster Tools
You can also use Google Webmaster Tools to remove links from the search results. Simply register your domain with Google Webmaster Tools, and then add your site to the site search console.
Go to Sitemaps, and then click on ‘Add/Test Sitemap’. Add a Google Sitemap, and then click on ‘Verify Sitemap’. Once your site is verified, you can use the disavow tool to remove spammy links from the search results.
6. Remove Spam Comments & Links Using Paid Tools
In addition to using free tools, you can also use paid tools to find and remove spammy links and spam comments from your WordPress site.
You can use a paid tool like Link Detox to discover spammy links and spam comments. You can then use a tool like Google Search Console to remove the links from the search results.
You can also use a paid tool like Ahrefs to find and remove spammy links from the search results.
7. Monitor Your Site for Spammy Content
Spammy content usually contains hidden links or hidden text. You can use a tool like Copyscape to identify spam content on your site.
You can then use a tool like Google Alerts to find and remove spam content from the search results.
8. Monitor Your Site for Spammy Keywords
You can also find and remove spam keywords from your WordPress site. You can do so using a tool like Google Search Console.
9. Request a Manual Review of Your Site
If you’ve been affected by SEO spam, then you can always request a manual review of your site. You can do so using a tool like Moz Local.
10. Remove Spam From Your Google Search Console Data
You can also use Google Search Console to remove spammy links from the search results.
Simply navigate to Search Traffic > Links to Your Site. Then click on ‘Manage Links’.
You’ll be presented with a list of links to your site, and you can remove spammy links by clicking on the ‘Disavow’ button.
Bonus Tip: Protect Your WordPress Site From Spam
If you want to prevent spam from affecting your WordPress site, then you should do your best to protect your site from spam. In addition to using a tool like Akismet, you can also use a tool like WordPress Security to protect your site from spam.
You can also use a free tool like Google Search Console to monitor your site for spam.
Wrapping Up
If you’re a WordPress user, then you’ve probably been affected by SEO spam at least once. SEO spam is usually the result of bad SEO practices that have been carried out by an inexperienced or unethical SEO agency.