How to block “get-google-ranking” referral spam in Google Analytics
What is Get-google-ranking?
Get-google-ranking is the address used by various spammy domain names owned by Volkan Ikiz that are used by desperate online SEO websites in order to attract customers. Spammers utilize the referrer spam indexing method to target Google Analytics accounts with fake referral traffic in hopes that webmasters who monitor Google Analytics data will notice the unfamiliar referral traffic and visit the referring URL. There are numerous domain names that use the get-google-ranking name including:
- get-google-ranking.ga
- get-google-ranking.cf
- get-google-ranking.gq
- get-google-ranking.ml
- get-google-ranking.tk
These domain names typically target random Google Analytics accounts simultaneously with fake referral traffic known as ghost traffic. This type of referral traffic does not actually land on a website, instead, it only appears in Google Analytics data.
The purpose of this type of spam is to catch the attention of website owners and persuade them to visit the referring URL. If Get-google-ranking is visited a page that says Get Your Free Website audit now with a text field to enter a URL will be presented. If a URL is submitted the page will redirect to a new web page on the moradam.com domain such as http://panel.moradam.com/?s=no&r=42 and then to https://panel.moradam.com/project/. These websites are similar to notorious spammer Semalt.com and are suspected to be owned and operated by the same entity.
Although referrer spam is not technically malicious, it can negatively affect your Google Analytics data. For example, Get-google-ranking referral traffic creates a 100% bounce rate which changes a site’s actual bounce rate, making it harder to understand a site’s real analytical data.
Furthermore, referrer spam is considered an unethical black hat SEO method. Websites that practice the marketing tactic disregard other sites in order to promote themselves. This is why it is recommended to avoid websites that utilize this method.
How to block Get-google-ranking referrer spam
- Open your Google Analytics account and go to Admin > Filters.
- Click the + ADD FILTER button.
- Create a Filter Name such as “Get-google-ranking” or “Referrer Spam.”
- Select the Custom Filter Type.
- In Filter Field, find and select Campaign Source.
- In the Filter Pattern text box, add Get-google-ranking and click the blue Save button on the bottom of the web page.
To add multiple domain names to the same filter you make a Filter Pattern similar to “get-google-ranking.cf | get-google-ranking.gq | get-google-ranking.ml” with a | between each URL
