White Hat SEO

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Definition

White hat in SEO refers to all techniques used that comply with Google recommendations. It is considered the most ethical and least risky SEO practice. It is a very effective technique that requires patience. While the results are significant, they usually only work over a long period of time. You should keep this in mind when choosing this option.

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The history of the term "white hat"

The term “white hat” originally comes from the hacker scene. A white hat uses their knowledge for ethical purposes. He or she is legally employed by companies or organizations. This ensures the security of the organization’s information systems. These types of hackers deliberately try to hack companies’ websites and information systems. This allows potential vulnerabilities to be identified.

The term “hacking” is therefore used. However, these are not malicious cybercriminals. Rather, the aim is to identify weaknesses in the infrastructure through hypothetical attacks. In this way, websites and security systems can be optimized through corrections. Hacking is therefore not used for personal or political purposes. This distinguishes white hat from other hacking methods.

But where does the term “white hat” come from? It has its origins in American western culture. The good protagonists often wore white hats, while the bad guys wore black hats. Black hats therefore represent the bad guys.

White Hat, Grey Hat, Black Hat: What's the difference?

White hat, grey hat and black hat are three search engine optimization (SEO) techniques. They all attempt to optimize the natural ranking of websites. However, the techniques used are very different.

Black Hat: immediate results with fatal consequences

Black hat is a form of malicious, sometimes even illegal hacking. It manipulates the algorithm of search engines. This enables websites to be ranked in an often abusive manner. Black hat is therefore the exact opposite of white hat. The best-known black hat methods include

Duplicate content: When existing content is copied.
Cloaking: Two different types of content are used here. On the one hand, content that is presented to users. Another content is shown to search engines. This is usually saturated with keywords and over-optimized. This usually misleads users.
Hidden text: The content is camouflaged by various means. This enables the placement of keywords. These are only visible to the search engine and invisible to users.
Automated link building (backlinks): Comments in forums with link placement, the creation of blogs and much more are utilized.
Keyword stuffing: This is the over-optimization of content through the misuse of keywords.
Satellite pages or doorway pages: Bridge pages are created here. They are mainly designed to redirect to other pages.
Negative SEO: This aims to damage the ranking of competing sites through unethical methods. This includes toxic links, negative reviews, link suppression, duplication of content, etc.

Black hat is therefore initially profitable. It causes websites to quickly rise to the top of Google results. Nowadays, however, the weak points are quickly discovered by Google. The result: penalties for keywords, pages and even complete deindexing. As a result, the site ends up at the bottom of the search results.

The Grey Hat - the ideal solution?

The Grey Hat is located between the White Hat and the Black Hat. This nuanced technique benefits from the advantages of both extremes. The grey hat is therefore an alternative. It is a middle ground between the ethical, sustainable techniques of the white hat and the effectiveness of the risky black hat techniques. It is therefore more efficient than the white hat and less risky than the black hat. However, it should be used with caution. The ethics of this method are often criticized. Grey Hat initially appears to be a possible alternative. However, the sustainability and quality of the method has its limits.

The interests of white hat in SEO

White hat is considered the most sustainable solution for search engine optimization. It makes it possible to:

Ensure the credibility of the website. White hat is indeed an ethical technique. It uses manual SEO, mostly free from automation and AI. This strengthens Google’s trust and avoids the risk of deindexation.
Improving the user experience. A website that uses white hat SEO is mostly of high quality. Relevant, interesting content for users improves the experience on the website. This leads to a better listing on Google.
Be sustainable and guarantee better results in the long term. White Hat enables a comprehensive and sustainable improvement of the website. This is achieved by means that, unlike black hat, are not aimed at high, short-term visibility. The method is slow, but guarantees long-term development in SEO.

The techniques used

Many different methods are used as part of White Hat. The most notable are as follows:

Keyword optimization. Keyword research is a fundamental advantage for White Hat. Keywords are targeted using various tools. In this way, the websites better match the search intent of the users. This increases the website’s visibility.
Optimization of semantic tags. In the same vein, it is essential to maintain the tags in order to improve the ranking. This includes the H1 tag and the meta title. They should match the content of the page and be as appealing as possible. It is advisable to use the main keyword. This is how you attract visitors to your site!
Improve the quality of the content offered. Relevant content is crucial to be visible. This is the only way to make it interesting for users. Good content writing is therefore of crucial importance. Authentic, high-quality and relatively long text is particularly appreciated.
Link baiting or “link bait”. This is a netlinking method. It involves creating content with high added value. The aim: other websites use this as a reference and link to this content. For Google, these links stand for reliability and quality content.
Website design through smooth and fast navigation. It is crucial that the website is ergonomic and well structured. The site must also be responsive. This means that it must also work well on mobile devices. Finally, it is important that loading times are minimized. This reduces the bounce rate. It indicates the proportion of users who leave the site immediately due to a lack of responsiveness.

White hat SEO therefore remains the right way to optimize SEO in the long term and without risk.

White Hat: Who are these ethical hackers?

In the 1960s, numerous attempts by hackers emerged. Concerned governments and companies therefore made a decision in the 1970s. Teams were formed to detect vulnerabilities in computer systems. The first ethical hackers emerged at that time. It was not until twenty years later that they were referred to as white hat hackers. In 1995, the term “ethical hacking” was coined by John R. Patrick, then Vice President of IBM. The profession subsequently became legitimate.

White hat hackers use their knowledge to discover vulnerabilities in computer systems. They are then tasked with using their skills to fix these vulnerabilities. They can therefore be employed by companies or government organizations. However, they are also often employed by private individuals to ensure the security of their websites.

White hat hackers then use the same techniques as black hat hackers. This time, however, in a legal manner and with the consent of the third party. Their intentions are therefore far from the same as black hat hackers. For this reason, they are sometimes referred to as “ethical hackers”.

The main methods used

Penetration tests are a popular method used by white hat hackers. They try to penetrate the given systems by any means necessary. In this way, any future risk of intrusion can be prevented.
Social engineering attacks aim to identify vulnerable individuals. Their carelessness puts the security of a structure at risk. They share valuable information with unknown third parties. This happens, for example, through phishing emails. In white hat hacking, error-prone members of the structure are identified in advance.
Advanced programming or “honeypots” to distract hackers from possible attacks. This can buy time in the event of an attack. Information about the hackers and their intrusion methods is also collected.
Denial of service attacks (DoS attacks) are also simulated by white hat hackers. This allows the correct reactions to be predicted. These attacks temporarily disrupt the performance of structures or networks. The aim is to respond to this in the best possible way. This technique is used to test the optimal tactics.

White hat SEO and hacking is therefore a complex task. It requires very precise knowledge of computer science. This knowledge is used for noble purposes. That is why “white hat” always refers to ethical behavior and good intentions. Whether in hacking or SEO.

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