Link spam
Link spam is Google's name for creating links to or from a site mainly to push up its search rankings. Google's spam policies give examples: buying or selling links that pass ranking credit, trading links just to cross-link, building links with software, and keyword-loaded links in guest posts, widgets and forum signatures or spread across other sites' footers.
Source: Google Search Central, Spam policies for Google web search (last updated August 28, 2026), checked October 29, 2026
What Link spam means for your business
Google's test is the reason a link exists. A link someone gave you because they liked your work isn't spam. A link you traded for, paid for or built with software, mainly to rank, is. Paid ads and sponsorships are allowed when the link is tagged, which our nofollow entry explains.
Google doesn't use the term PBN. A private blog network is the SEO world's name for a group of sites someone runs only to link to the sites they want to rank, and Google's policy does list low-value pages made mainly to move links, which is what a PBN is built on. In December 2022, Google said its SpamBrain system could now spot sites used to pass links, and that credit from those links would be lost.
If a past vendor built links like these for you, Google can apply a manual action, and you'd see a notice in Search Console. Google's steps start with the links themselves: ask the sites to remove them or tag them. Our disavow entry covers the last step.
If Search Console shows a manual action for unnatural links, we'll go through them with you and sort out which ones to undo.
Last reviewed October 29, 2026. All terms
How AI answers it today
On October 29, 2026, Google's AI Overview covered two meanings: spam links in emails and texts, and links built to game rankings. It cited security companies, the FBI and SEO blogs, no Google page. ChatGPT gave only the SEO meaning and linked Google's spam policies.
Our run through ChatGPT and Google's AI Overview, October 29, 2026. A sample, not what every buyer sees.
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