Delisting 101: Bad Webhosting Can Even Get You Banished From Google

You thought cheap webhosting was a bargain. Maybe … but bad webhosting isn't just a bummer — it can get you delisted, added to badware lists, etc.

And it doesn't have to be your fault (directly, anyway).

Use IX Web Hosting | ixwebhosting.com web hosting at your own risk. One day you might just get hacked and/or defaced. Even worse, you might be — courtesy of some Turkish hacker — installing malware on users' computers by proxy. The hackers seem to be pretty good, if a little mean. Fix it, and then it just might happen the next day anyway. That seems to be the story reported everywhere.

A few associates of mine have — they got hacked … and finally delisted.

Now that's OK. People get hacked all the time because of their own incompetence. But at least one of them that I know has a totally static web site. That leaves brute force and/or password sniffing cleartext passwords. Both are unlikely en masse.

So it's that, or your web host *itself* is hacked!

A possibility. I found this all suspicious. I Googled it. What I found is absolutely appalling —

Hundreds and hundreds of hacked domains, with a similar vector.

Some of these people are upgrading often and responsibly, using custom applications, etc.

The same vector simply can't apply to everyone's web sites. They're running various applications with various flaws. So that's unrealistic. Some had weak passwords, I'm sure — but so many? Hence, it's more likely that it's an underlying problem with the web server. IX continues to tell everyone to use stronger passwords, upgrade their anti-virus software (¿que?), and be more careful. As if key-loggers are that common? Um no.

Maybe they should take their own advice and tighten up their own boxes before blaming the user. The users are reportedly get hacked over and over — and over. Scary. So all of them have the same flawed anti-virus application, and use weak passwords? No. Probably not.

If your web host gets hacked, you're at their mercy. So they'd better know a thing or two about security. But you paid $2.99 per month, did you? Bad move. That was your mistake.

Several References:
http://ixwebhostwarning.wordpress.com/
http://forums.applenova.com/showthread.php?t=18025
http://www.vistainter.com/reviews/I/ixwebhosting.com/
http://kuscsik.blogspot.com/2008/01/ix-webhosting-default-backdoor.html
http://www.webhostingtalk.com/showpost.php?s=01a9f3f779beec5274cdc25a9856c8e0&p=5396336&postcount=13
http://www.webhostingtalk.com/showthread.php?p=5403583#post5403583
http://hostjury.com/reviews/IX-web-hosting
http://forum.joomla.org/viewtopic.php?p=1422266&sid=72538fc95043a14ad091c82e0f161195#p1422266

Find more:
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=ixwebhosting+hacked&btnG=Search

The worst part is, when you get hacked courtesy of their lackadaisical security, they throw up a monetization page while you're down. So they're profiting while you're getting delisted and Google thinks you're either dead, hacked, or someone snapped up your domain to monetize old links and random traffic. Awesome IX … awesome.

That's some pretty lousy SEO. Cheap web hosting can really be the end. Google might notice of course, and give this lot (of presumably similar IPs) a second gander. But what if they don't?

So bad web hosting can't just lead to downtime. It can lead to permanent exile from Google, and getting on the spyware/badware bad-list for a long, long time. And then R.I.P. everything. Kiss it all goodbye … all thanks to $2.99 hosting.

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Brian Pasch Invites NJ Business Owners To Free SEO and Internet Marketing Briefing

Pasch, CEO of the Pasch Consulting Group, is holding a free SEO and Internet Marketing briefing in Red Bank on April 28, 2009 at 6:30pm. The event will cover the most cost-effective and results oriented Internet Marketing Strategies for New Jersey business owners.

There are only a few spots left for New Jersey business owners to register for the Executive SEO Briefing that will be held at the Red Bar and Lounge. The Executive Briefing is free but participants must signup in advance using this special registration link: http://biznik.com/events/internet-marketing-best-practices.

“In a challenging economy, executive officers and business owners are looking for cost effective ways to promote their businesses, and Internet Marketing should be tops on their list”, says Pasch.

Brian will discuss how business owners can leverage the hottest online tools like Facebook, Twitter, press releases and social networking sites to grow their customer base.

If you would like more information regarding this event, contact Carrie Valentine at 732-450-8200 or email at carrie@paschconsulting,com. Additional event information is also provided on the registration link.

There will be a cash bar and food will be available. Attendees are responsible for their own food and drinks. Red will be featuring a ½ priced wine by the bottle special for those dining after the mixer.

About Brian Pasch of the Pasch Consulting Group

Brian Pasch, CEO is an 18-year veteran of the direct marketing industry. His career has spanned both management and technology roles. PCG continually tests new digital marketing strategies which can provide a cost effective channels for business advertising and lead generation. Brian Pasch and his staff are currently rating the effectiveness of the top social networking and blogging portals.

PCG works for and with an ever-growing number of business large and small from all over the country to maximize results of their digital marketing efforts.

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UK politicians use SEO for rebuttal

The UK's Conservative party used search engine optimization (SEO) tactics to draw viewers to its rebuttal of Alistair Darling's budget proposal

If there was ever any question about the power of search engine optimization (SEO) it should be long gone after news has surfaced that politicians in the UK are using keywords to draw online viewers to their website.

The UK's Guardian newspaper reports that in an attempt to gain viewership to its "live rebuttal" of the Labour Party's budget on Wednesday, the UK's Conservative party purchased numerous keywords which would redirect people searching for terms related to the budget.

Jeremy Hunt, one of the Conservative members of Parliament, said the party chose this tactic because so many people go to Google to learn more information about something like a budget proposal.

"We understand that it's important for us to serve up our views in different formats, and Google is one of the first places people go to when trying to find information on a given subject," he told the paper.

Hunt went on to say that the group's recent foray into search engine optimization (SEO) is " a perfect example of how political parties should be using the internet."

It would appear that the UK is ahead of the curve in terms of using search engine optimization (SEO) for things beyond the business world. Recent reports noted that the government's Office of Security and Counterterrorism would be teaching search engine optimization (SEO) to some Islamic groups in an attempt to reduce the ranking of so-called "radical Islamic" organizations.

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