HTTPS is generally viewed as an icon of cyber protection, partly due to Google giving HTTPS high priority in their search engine’s rankings and continuously promoting it within the Chrome browser.
Despite knowing this, having HTTPS does not necessarily ensure a fully secure website. Cyber security goes above and beyond HTTPS.
Do search engine optimization (SEO) experts realize the full magnitude of the harm that a website hack and a data breach can cause in terms of SERP warnings and ranking drops?
SEO Community’s Perception of Cybersecurity
1. About the respondents
Out of 136 people surveyed, approximately 45% have greater than 10 years of knowledge in the area of SEO, and 26% reported having between 6 and 10 years experience. The group had a lot of experience, though the mix of independent, agency, and internal SEOs was more balanced.
2. Factoring in website security
Approximately two-thirds of SEO professionals asked reported that they incorporate checks for website security into their work, which is more involved than simply making sure the site is using HTTPS.
There is a misguided notion that HTTPS fully safeguards a website, when in reality it merely secures a connection and encrypts any transmitted data. Check out this link to learn more.
Identifying the security flaws of a website is a separate ability than search engine optimization.
Full-service agencies likely have the capabilities to advise clients on SEO related issues, while outsourced independent and in-house SEO specialists can utilize tools such as Detectify and CyberScanner to gain the requisite information.
3. Establishing whether the site has been hacked previously
Around 25% of SEO experts questioned do not take any steps to determine if a site has been hacked before. It can be challenging to find out if there has been a breach besides Google alerts and the organization being transparent about an earlier hack.
We now have access to 16-months of data from Google Search Console which can help us detect spam attacks more quickly by inspecting view data. However, other types of hackings, such as malware, phishing, and crypto-mining, may require the use of more specialised software to accurately detect them.
4. Hacked website’s detrimental factors to organic search
The consequences of a hack on search engine optimization have been discussed extensively over the years, however, as the information shown here indicates, it has had a considerable impact when faced firsthand.
Google has previously reported that the majority (84 percent) of sites that have been subject to a hack have been successful in appealing for reconsideration; however, the consequences of the hack can still be felt prior to the appeal process.
5. Hacked website’s full recovery within search results
Various investigations have been conducted that evaluate the repercussions from an online site breach (e.g. the Wordfence analysis from 2015), yet there are comparatively few focusing on how long it takes to recover.
The degree of the hack, the kind of hack, and how well the company responds to making alterations are all elements that determine the likelihood of recuperation.
Most of the survey respondents agree that it can take anywhere from weeks to months for a website to completely recover, while one individual stated that it might not be possible to recover at all.
Determining an attack can be a difficult process to start off with and the distinctiveness of the traffic varies between different websites. For example, the website of certain one-day events often can generate an incredible amount of traffic at certain points in the year, but these peaks and valleys are to be expected.
6. Hacks’ damage to a website
Julia Logan (otherwise known as IrishWonder) gave me a personal account of a hacking episode from an event website in 2015.
There was an unexpected rise in search results for the website of a yearly industry occurrence that diverged from its usual trend. This was down to an influx of parasite pages:
The website was listed on Google’s blacklist after it was hacked in July 2015. The website was supported by WordPress and had several plugins installed that contained previously-recognized security issues when it was compromised. These were:
Wordfence
A security flaw was uncovered in November 2014 related to cross-site scripting that affected version 5.1.2, however it was fixed in the subsequent version. 5.1.4.
WordPress SEO by Yoast
In March 2015, a weakness in SQL was discovered that allowed unauthorized access on versions 1.7.3.3 and lesser.
Before the breach, the website’s folders had not been blocked from showing their contents. The index pages from a variety of theme and plugin locations became registered in Google’s search engine, resulting in the website being open to the potential of increased vulnerability if it was ever the focus of a platform or plugin security breach.
Once the first step of clearing out the site was completed, there was still a potential issue with the indexed directories – the server was setup to deliver a ‘404’ response if any of these URLs were visited, but the fact that they were indexed could lead to further hacking attempts.
They determined that it wouldn’t be necessary to obstruct the folders via robots.txt since they were already filled with Google-required indexable CSS files. Instead, they would take advantage of the URL removal request form and manually remove the folders from Google’s index.
The cyber criminals had commandeered the website’s SMTP functions in order to circulate spam emails, leading to the blacklisting of the website by all major spam databases.
It was crucial because the business had a necessity to deliver emails to its subscribers/event members, which would be very harmful to the company’s core activity.
Manually deleting the parasitic web pages from Google’s index was necessary to quicken the index clean-up process. It took several tries and a lot of emails to finally take the website off of the spam email directories. The site was then also migrated to HTTPS.
7. GDPR’s regulation
The introduction of GDPR has caused people to start talking more about cybersecurity and become more aware of it, however, many companies that I have been in contact with still don’t fully understand the necessity of protecting digital assets.
It is generally believed that many corporations are making strides towards full compliance, with a few near completion. The form of compliance that must be adhered to can differ from business to business, dependent on the quantity and kind of data they handle.
Deloitte’s survey found that only 15 percent of businesses questioned are expected to abide by GDPR provisions by the deadline of May 25. This data indicates that approximately 44% of the survey respondents rated themselves between 1 and 4 on the scale.
GDPR applies not only to companies within the European Union, but also to those outside of the EU that have dealings with EU nations.
8. User’s willingness to invest in cybersecurity
It seems this inquiry should be easy to answer, but it is more complicated than it initially seems. Astonishingly, some customers actually inform you that their website is so unimportant that they do not think relating it to any fundamental security is necessary. You have to stop them right there.
There is something they must remember.
They are not merely interested in completing a transaction, but also desire to attract people and details concerning them. They are gathering people’s first and last names, email addresses, where they work, telephone numbers, financial details, and even tracking the websites they have visited.
This information is like the British crown jewels. It’s ‘worth a few bobs’, as the English say. The Internet of Things is rapidly proliferating and is now quite ubiquitous. Nowadays, it is possible to break into a washing machine.
The ‘big data’ branch of business reaches earnings of more than one hundred billion dollars every year, which projects it to be the quickest growing sector of this century. That’s a lot of data to protect.
Some of our customers are involved in the process of exchanging leads. It’s obvious that they’re unwilling for a hacker to gain access to their precious database.
Perhaps we are taken on by a charitable group that distributes contributions to charitable causes around the globe. They would detest being presented with their web hosts being suddenly scrambled and shut, and a requirement for payment for the unlocking instead of their ordinary home page.
Clients of ours will constantly have something valuable they need to protect, and it’s reasonable to provide protective measures that coexist with other SEO strategies.
Our primary goal is to ensure that our clients excel in their chosen areas. Safety is one of the numerous ways they can benefit in the market.
Google appreciates those who take the time to provide extra security, but this should not be the only point that one should focus on when providing a thorough SEO package.
There are many untrustworthy people who are attempting to gain access to your confidential data. They may be attempting to bombard your customers with spam, take advantage of their personal details to do illegal activities, or even contaminate their individual gadgets to continually extract important financial insights.
To avoid a potential security violation, it is important for us to identify what the attackers are seeking and which approach would be most economical for them to utilize.
9. Cybercriminals wants
A lot of people in the SEO Security or information security field began their careers as hackers. It is understood that occasionally, a website is targeted and vandalized by people looking to demonstrate their newly acquired abilities. We hope they make the switch to the light side soon, as we did.
Some people make money from causing difficulties for everyone. The only thing that can put a halt to their unlawful behavior is the extent of our imaginations. Here are just a few of the reasons hackers hack for money:
They want to
- Get a site banned or demoted in rankings so a competitor makes the sale
- Steal your customer’s information
- Steal your content
- Change your content or data
- Change the topics your webpage ranks for
- Hurt your reputation or your products’ reputation
- Hurt you economically by disrupting your ad revenue, or squander your ad budget
- Disrupt your operations
- Confuse your visitors by blurring the line between products and services
- Bully or harass you and then ask for ransom
These individuals always manage to take advantage of the system.
Cyber-attacks are a common occurrence nowadays, ranging from incredibly large doses of 1Tbps traffic distributed denial of service attacks directed at web hosts, to the hacking of the Pentagon attributed to North Korea this April, and the Stuxnet virus that damaged Iranian nuclear fuel centrifuges several years ago. Did somebody raise the subject of Hillary Clinton’s emails as well as the Russian Federal Security Service subcontractors?
Cyberattacks are happening more and more often and on a larger scale, which is even more concerning. Ginni Rometty, CEO and Chairman of IBM, opines that cybercrime is the most serious danger faced by any organization on earth and she is as reliable a source as any.
Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with a workforce of under 250 people are the principal targets of hackers. It appears to be at odds with common sense (why not go for bigger companies?), but it really makes perfect sense. Companies that are bigger typically put more into their cyber security and they often educate their workers in good cyber practices, which makes them more difficult to breach.
Take one instance. In 2011, the then-Vice Premier Xi Jinping was part of a 60-person delegation from the People’s Republic of China that traveled to Pelamis Wave Power near Edinburgh. The organization was extremely proud that theirs was the only firm to be visited outside of England.
About two months later, there was an unexplained intrusion at the design headquarters of the corporation. Five laptops were taken, but nothing else. A few years had passed, and the Chinese showed off the ‘Haiphong 1’ wave generator, which was incredibly similar to the Pelamis original.
If the Chinese are unable to access your sensitive commercial details legally, they will do anything to get it if it is considered high value to them– they will beg, borrow, burgle, or even steal it. When speaking about Chinese government aims, the importance of renewable resources is on the same level as the allegiance to the Chinese Communist Party; occupying the highest point.
10. Hacker’s getting what they want
Ransomware
This type of attack has become increasingly common. Someone or a group breaks into a business’s database, scrambles all essential data needed for it to operate, and then asks for money in return for a key to decrypt the information.
This past year, this kind of attack was the most regularly seen and is expected to rise in frequency over the coming years.
Criminals who specialize in compromising computer systems understand that businesses without a lot of resources would be unable to close operations temporarily in order to deal with a cyberattack. They have also located the best balance between making a profit and a person’s suffering.
The prices requested for businesses to recover their necessary information are affordable enough that it would be advantageous to pay the demanded money and looking for justice is a pointless task. The exact amount of money asked for varies, but it can be anywhere from a little bit to several thousand dollars for a ransom.
Police officers suggest businesses to pay the ransom requested in cases of ransomware, as it is often seen as being too tough and pricey to address. Approximately two out of three victims of this offense capitulate to the requests of the cybercriminals.
Advanced persistent threat
Organizations can observe brute force attacks and malicious software quickly, and once a breach is identified, they can deploy counteractions.
This can cause attackers to possess only a small amount of the information they attempted to get. A gap in the volatile market has been filled by Advanced Persistent Threats (APTs), which have been employed by agents.
This type of assault is not just a straightforward plunder of your business’s finances or customers’ data. The aim of cybercriminals is to breach your company’s system and stay undetected, continually collecting important information.
This is the most effective approach to gaining access to important intellectual property, contracts, forthcoming projects, and even delicate political intelligence to capitalize on.
The assault begins when somebody within an organization permits access to an unapproved individual or malicious software. The intruder then managed to remain undetected and put in place methods of continuing access indefinitely.
Though usually utilized in attacking governmental agencies and big companies, recent incidences have been of small and medium-sized businesses that are innovating, and this is a usual technology used in industrial espionage.
American businesses, including those in the military field, have experienced huge losses as over tens of billions of dollars of confidential data was exposed.
Conclusion
I spoke with various SEO professionals when doing this research, and I have observed that website security is a problem that will be around for some time.
It is critical for the sector to teach customers about the dangers posed to SEO and their organisations.
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