Former FBI director Robert Mueller once famously said, “There are two types of companies: Those that have been hacked and those that will be.” So if your site has fallen prey to the clickity-clack of cyber terrorists, don’t you worry. You’re not alone. And lucky for you, we’re dishing on the fastest ways you can get your ranking back on track.
-
Use the Google Search Console tool
Your first stop should be the manual actions and security section on the Google Search Console tool. It should show you the content that has been hacked on your site. From there it’s over to your IT specialist to trace the origins of the hacked content. That way, you’re no longer low-hanging fruit for hackers from the same source in the future!
-
Check plug-ins
As much as they help the user-experience and even the site administrator’s job, plug-ins can be the weak link that lets the enemy in. One easy way to work around this is to uninstall all plug-ins that were installed in the last 15-30 days and reinstall them.
-
Secure your site with new passwords
Okay, so it happened. Now that that’s over with, let’s focus on not letting it happen again. And in a step that’s as basic (and yet so effective) as restart your computer, change all the passwords on the site. We mean it. Every. Single. One.
-
Remove all external hyperlinks
Think of this step as the cyber version of burning all bridges. What you did in the past didn’t work, so it’s time to build new ones. Start with the external hyperlinks in your blogs and work your way through the rest of the site.
-
Scrap bad links
They ain’t doing you no good anyway, so why not! And in case you were wondering, the Google Webmaster Removal tool does a fantastic job of this. Go one step further and block these bad links through your robots.txt tool.
-
Work on a new sitemap
Sometimes the only thing that works is an overhaul. And that might be the only option when it comes to the sitemap of your webpage. Recreate it, then update it. ASAP.
Once you’ve checked these parameters, it’s time for Google to review your effort. And a reconsideration request via the Google Search Console tool is all it takes. If all is in order, the hacked site remark will be taken off your website, and you’re all set to carry on business as usual!
Of course, if you need assistance from a team of experienced SEO ninjas who do this kind of thing before breakfast, get in touch and we’ll put your recovery on the fast track.
