Hacklink Market Linked to SEO Poisoning Attacks in Google Results

Cybersecurity researchers at Netcraft have discovered a series of new SEO poisoning related attacks exploiting Google’s search results to spread malicious content and other scams. According to researchers, an “organized” network of attackers is using compromised websites to boost the visibility of malicious content in search rankings.

Behind this operation is Hacklink, a black market platform that allows scammers to inject links to phishing pages and fraudulent services into unsuspecting websites, with search engines doing the rest.

Instead of defacing websites or stealing data, attackers using Hacklink insert invisible code into the source of compromised sites. These links are designed to match keywords searched by users, especially in the gambling, pharmaceutical, and adult content sectors. When someone searches for a related term, the attacker’s sites show up high in the results, often outranking legitimate businesses.

The content is prepared to be hidden from everyday users but fully visible to search engine crawlers. By doing this, the attacker piggybacks on the reputation of the compromised site, especially those ending in .gov, .edu, or popular country code domains. This tactic tricks search algorithms into treating scam sites as credible, giving them an increase in visibility.

Hacklink is an online shop for scammers. Attackers can browse a list of already-compromised domains, select keywords and target URLs, and pay to have their content injected.

According to Netcraft’s report shared with Hackread.com ahead of publishing on Tuesday, prices vary, but listings often start around $1, with premium domains costing more. All of this is done through a web-based control panel, making large-scale manipulation of search rankings accessible to anyone with money and malicious intentions.

In many cases, the website owner remains unaware. Their site looks and functions normally, even as it silently boosts fraudulent sites selling fake products, redirecting to phishing pages, or spreading malware.

Netcraft’s report also notes an increase in attacks targeting the online gambling sector in Turkey. Groups like “Neon SEO Academy” and “SEOLink” are offering services to manipulate search rankings for gambling-related keywords. These operators claim access to over 15,000 compromised websites and actively market their offerings through platforms like Telegram and WhatsApp.

These groups offer much more than link injection. Some provide access to admin panels of vulnerable sites, allowing more extensive and long-term control. Others use private blog networks to further boost the legitimacy of malicious links, an approach that mixes pushy SEO tactics with questionable ethics.

Researchers also noted that attackers are able to dynamically change the text that appears in search results by adjusting anchor text across their link network. This means they can remotely influence how a compromised site appears in Google’s results, even without full control of that site.

In more advanced setups, this method can even take search users to phishing pages or cloned versions of real websites. Users who think they’re visiting a trusted service may be entering passwords or payment information into a trap.

While online gambling is the most visible victim today, this method could be applied to almost any industry that relies on search engine visibility, including banking, healthcare, crypto trading, and charitable fundraising. The tactic targets both user trust and brand integrity, making it difficult for victims to even detect the problem.

Organizations should security admin panels, apply patches, and monitor file changes regularly. But awareness is just as important. SEO poisoning isn’t just a search engine problem, it’s a growing part of the cybercrime economy.

Site owners should review how their domains appear in search results, audit for unauthorized outbound links, and monitor their domain’s reputation. If suspicious links are detected, use disavow tools and report abuse to search engines promptly.

For users, verify URLs carefully, especially when dealing with financial transactions or personal information. And when in doubt, go directly to a known domain rather than trusting search engine links alone.

And most importantly, follow Hackread.com for more cybersecurity-related news and security tips!