How to check if a website has been serving up malware

A new resource in the link builders toolbox

In SEO links are the golden commodity that make or break a campaign. Not only are inbound links critical in ranking, but who you LINK TO can also be a serious consideration. Google has said many times that you really can’t be hurt by who links to you, but you can be damaged for linking to bad neighbourhoods.

One area that can certainly get a website flagged is by serving up malware or other nastiness. Most often this is done by hackers/crackers that have accessed the site and installed malicious scripting on the server. But how does one know if a potential link target has had issues in the past?
Enter the Google diagnostic tool

There is a handy little too at Google for checking the recent history on domains which is well worth using when link building (link exchanges, link drops) as well as checking websites you may be linking out to within your content or blog posts. It is a simple query; http://google.com/safebrowsing/diagnostic?site=site-reference.com (replace the end part with the domain you’re investigating)

What does an infected website look like? Here’s one example; http://google.com/safebrowsing/diagnostic?site=news.com.au

It can happen to anyone

And yes, I mean anyone… look at a search for Google.com - or eBay - and Joomla (as recent as yesterday) - you get the idea. While these sites seem to be good at catching it, there have been attempts.

How reliable is the application? It’s hard to say at this point as it’s only reporting problems that Google has seen; they don’t seem to be testing entire websites. What is important is that you remember that malicious actions can have an affect on your site’s presence in search engines. Be vigilant.

This only takes a few moments and can be invaluable to the search optimizer. Add this little toy to your toolbox and take the time to check out those sites you’re considering linking to from now on…. Better safe than sorry. I’d also suggest checking your own site every month as well to ensure you haven’t been compromised. All in all.. and groovy new tool in the box.

L8TR

(thanks to Jim Stewart for the tip )

source : http://seo.site-reference.com/