Recently, we have been made aware of websites being banned from using Google Ads because they had once been infected with malware, even if that malware has long since been purged.
Having been banned from Google’s pay-per-click advertising, some websites have seen a fall in traffic of over 80%.
What is malware?
Google defines malware as, “Any software or mobile application specifically designed to harm a computer, a mobile device, the software it’s running, or its users. Malware exhibits malicious behaviour that can include installing software without user consent and installing harmful software such as viruses.”
This means that Google will only show ads to users which are safe for them to click on.
If malware is found on a website, Google will block ads from running that point to it, meaning PPC traffic to a site will cease.
It is worth noting that even if the malware is not found on the pages that ads are pointing to, but in other areas of a site, the ads will still be blocked.
The road to redemption
To be allowed back onto Google’s PPC platform, a website owner must remove all of the malware from their website. Google will need to be made aware of this so they can go back and check that the website really is clean of malware and then reinstate the right of the owner to advertise with them.
Sounds simple
This issue can be far more difficult to fix than it sounds. Even once the malware has been removed from a website, Google may still not register this, and therefore continue to block ads from running. Repeated attempts to restart advertising accounts can fall on deaf corporate ears and the help that is supposedly available can be less than forthcoming.
However, although it may seem impossible to deal with, PPC experts have ways of handling the issue so that your Google Ads can be back up and running quickly.
Here at BBI we have worked on all types of PPC campaigns and have dealt with several issues from Google over the years. Our PPC marketing skills can help you to overcome a blocked ad and dramatically improve your conversion rates and meet ROI objectives.
If you are being told by Google that your ads cannot be shown due to malware on your site and you are unsure what to do next, then please speak to us now.