Japanese SEO spam, also known as the “Japanese keyword hack,” is a type of malware where hackers use your website to inject Japanese search terms, which lead visitors to fake stores. This can harm your SEO and get your website blacklisted. In this article, you’ll learn how to recognize this spam using tools like Google Search Console and what steps you can take to remove it and secure your site.
What is Japanese SEO Spam?
Japanese SEO spam is a hack where hackers add Japanese keywords to the titles and descriptions of your website pages. Sometimes they even create completely new spam pages in random directories, which are linked to fake stores. This type of attack can affect any website, whether you use WordPress, Joomla, or Magento. Once search engines index these pages, your website will suddenly rank for thousands of unwanted Japanese keywords.
How Japanese SEO Spam Affects Your Website
SEO spam can damage your website’s reputation with both visitors and search engines. Visitors who suddenly see Japanese keywords or redirects to suspicious websites are unlikely to trust your website. This can lead to reports to search engines like Google, which can blacklist your website or trigger browser warnings. Hosting providers can even suspend your website until the problem is resolved.
How to find Japanese SEO spam on a hacked website?
This spam can be difficult to detect because it is often hidden from regular users. Hackers specifically target Google’s search engine bot, which means you won’t see the spam unless you set your browser to be a Googlebot. Tools like the Firefox User Agent Switcher can help make this spam visible.
- Adjust browser settings: By setting your browser as a Googlebot, you can see the spam that is normally hidden from regular users.
- Use a malware scanner: Tools like Sucuri SiteCheck can help you spot the hidden spam.
- Check Google Search Console: If an unknown owner has been added to your search console, there is a good chance that your website has been hacked.
- Look for suspicious new pages: Hackers can create new directories and pages that you don't recognize.
Why was my website hacked?
There are several reasons why your website may have fallen victim to a Japanese SEO spam hack:
- Outdated software: Attackers often exploit known vulnerabilities in outdated CMS software.
- Weak passwords: Admin passwords that are too simple provide easy access for hackers.
- Unprotected admin panels: Admin panels without additional security such as two-factor authentication are vulnerable to brute force attacks.
Examples of Japanese SEO spam
In a recent case, we discovered that spammers had hidden their malware in a file named wp-content/mu-plugins/.tott.log. The file was encoded in Base64, making it difficult to detect the malicious content. After decoding, we discovered that the malware contained spam content specifically designed for search engine bots.
Steps to Remove Japanese SEO Spam
Before you begin, make sure you have a full backup of your website. If anything goes wrong, you can always revert to a previous version. Here are the steps you can follow to remove Japanese SEO spam:
- Step 1: Remove unknown users in Google Search Console.
- Step 2: Scan your website for malware and remove suspicious files.
- Step 3: Check configuration files such as `.htaccess` and `wp-config.php` for suspicious changes.
- Step 4: Reset your database users and implement strong passwords.
- Step 5: Replace your WordPress core files to remove hidden malware.
- Step 6: Remove unused plugins and themes and keep all your software up to date.
- Step 7: Check your `uploads` directory for suspicious files like `.php` or `.js` files.
- Step 8: Install a firewall to prevent future attacks.
- Step 9: Check your sitemap for suspicious links and remove them if necessary.
- Step 10: Make regular backups of your website to quickly recover from an attack.
Conclusion
Japanese SEO spam can seriously damage your website, both in terms of SEO and reputation. It is therefore important to regularly scan your website for malware and set up security measures such as strong passwords and firewalls. If your site has already been hacked, follow the steps above to remove the spam and secure your website. For professional help with removing malware, you can always contact Flexamedia.
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