Introduction to Hacked Pages in Google Search
Google’s search results can sometimes display pages that have been hacked, which can be frustrating for website owners. These hacked pages can appear in search results even after the malicious content has been removed from the site. This is what happened to a website owner who was a victim of a Japanese hacking attack. The owner had removed the infected web pages, but the pages were still showing up in Google’s search results.
Understanding the Japanese Hacking Attack
The Japanese hacking attack is a type of cyber attack where hackers create hundreds or thousands of rogue Japanese language web pages on a website. This can lead to a large number of unwanted pages being indexed by Google, which can negatively impact the website’s reputation and search engine rankings. In this case, the website owner had already removed the malicious content and shifted the site to a new hosting provider. However, the hacked pages were still appearing in Google’s search results.
How to Remove Hacked Pages from Google Search
To remove the hacked pages from Google’s search results, the website owner asked for help from Google’s John Mueller. Mueller recommended using the URL Removals Tool in Search Console. This tool can help remove unwanted pages from Google’s search results faster than waiting for the natural recrawling process. However, it’s essential to note that the URL Removals Tool does not remove URLs from Google’s index; it only hides them from search results.
Prerequisites for Using the URL Removals Tool
Before using the URL Removals Tool, there are three prerequisites that must be met:
- The page must be removed and return a 404 or 410 server response code.
- The URL must be blocked from indexing by a robots meta tag.
- The URL must be prevented from being crawled by a robots.txt file.
How the URL Removals Tool Works
According to Mueller, the URL Removals Tool can be used to hide unwanted pages from search results within a day. This is faster than waiting for the natural recrawling process, which can take longer. Mueller also clarified that the tool does not delete URLs from Google’s index but instead hides them from search results. The actual removal from the search index happens after Google verifies that the page is actually gone or blocked from crawling or indexing.
Conclusion
Removing hacked pages from Google’s search results can be a challenging task, but using the URL Removals Tool in Search Console can help. It’s essential to meet the prerequisites for using the tool and understand how it works. By following these steps, website owners can hide unwanted pages from search results and improve their website’s reputation and search engine rankings. Remember, removing hacked pages is not just about removing the malicious content; it’s also about clearing the pages from Google’s search index.