Website denies it is being blocked
Share
Moneysupermarket.com has denied rumours that internet giant Google has blocked it for using so-called black hat techniques in its search engine placement coding.
The price comparison website is having trouble being featured on Google's natural search pages, meaning generic searches fail to find it. This has fuelled ru-mours of foul play.
Internet forums have claimed that Google has sanctioned moneysupermarket.com for using invisible links and advertising websites to falsify its details.
Websites use such black hat techniques to trick Google into thinking they have more links and information than they do, pushing them up searches. To quantify its listings, Google relies on keywords within pages, links to other websites and popularity.
If Google discovers fraudulent methods of search engine optimisation - coding within a website which maximises Google's ability to find it - it can block a website from generic searches. Moneysupermarket.com says it has not been sanctioned but that Google's programs fail to recognise some of its search engine optimisation techniques. It addsthat Google has written to it confirming that it is not being sanctioned.
Stuart Glendinning, director of loans, savings and current accounts at moneysupermarket.com, says: "We don't know the rules of Google. It's all guesswork. When Google changes its algorithms, search en-gine optimisation techniques be-come unreliable."
Simon Baker, operations manager at Leadbay, says: "Google is a law unto itself and persistent search problems can have serious consequences for businesses."
