I'm seeking help with a serious issue. I hired an SEO expert on People Per Hour to improve my website, Lincolnshire News Today, which was already performing well.
Unfortunately, the expert's work has damaged my site, and I'm trying to identify the cause to fix it. The expert was banned from People Per Hour due to numerous complaints and malicious activities, such as adding back doors to websites and posting unauthorized content.
Since the work was done, my website's impressions have dropped by 80%. I'm desperate to find out why and how to resolve this issue to get my website back to its normal state.
Can anyone offer advice to help me solve this problem?
The SEO expert auction fiasco. Sorry to hear you got tangled up in that nightmare. Here are some steps to help you diagnose and potentially reverse the damage to your site:
Immediately Take These Actions:
Change all passwords: Ensure all login credentials (CMS, FTP, and email accounts) are updated with strong, unique passwords. The last thing you want is for the malicious expert to have continued access to your site or external services.
Update permissions and access: Review and revise file and folder permissions to prevent unauthorized access or changes.
Reinstall and update all necessary software: Make sure your CMS, plugins, and themes are up-to-date to reduce potential vulnerabilities.
Analyze and Identify Issues:
Auditing for malware and backdoors: Use scans from reputable services like Malwarebytes or VirusTotal to identify any malicious code or backdoors that may have been added. Scan your site, database, and server logs for signs of unauthorized activities.
Check for suspicious code in theme and plugin files: Manually inspect your theme and plugin files (or use a code analysis tool) to remove any suspicious or unauthorized code.
Review database changes: Compare your database schema and content before and after the SEO expert’s work. Identify any unusual queries or changes that could be contributing to the drop.
Verify robots.txt and meta tags are not blocking search engines: Ensure your site is not accidentally blocking search engines or limiting their crawl.
Check for duplicated or redirected content: Look for potential content duplicates, redirects, or canonicalization issues that might be affecting your site’s performance.
Investigate Potential Causes:
Google Search Console Insights: Check your Google Search Console insights for any specific warnings or notifications related to crawl errors, site speed, or content issues.
Analyze site metrics: Look for patterns or peaks in your analytics to see if there are other indicators of why the impressions dropped.
Consult with web hosting support: Your web hosting provider can check server logs and provide insights into any potential issues on their end.
Plan for Recovery:
Create a backup plan: Regularly back up your site’s files and database to prevent losing any recent changes or data.
Bringing in new expert help: Consider hiring another SEO expert to review your site, assess the damage, and provide professional guidance for recovery.
Remember, environmental factors can sometimes also affect performance. Double-check for other possibly unrelated issues, such as server issues or other technical problems. Fingers crossed for your speedy recovery.