Google Bombing

Google Bombing: Google bombing, also called Google washing, refers to the practice of creating hundreds or even thousands of links to a specific web page through keywords in the page's anchor text. This causes the web page to rank highly for a specific search query. While the aim of Google bombing seems similar to many tactics used in search engine optimization, SEO is dedicated to improving the way relevant web pages are ranked in a search. As a result, Google bombing is not considered an SEO technique.

Google bombing reportedly dates back as early as 1999, although the term seems to have emerged around 2001. While the practice may initially look like a Black Hat SEO tactic, in many cases, it is used more for humor: for example, in the early 2000s, the search engine query "miserable failure" was used to Google bomb George W. Bush and Michael Moore after this anchor keyword was added to links related to their information. Similarly, one of the first instances of Google bombing listed the Microsoft homepage as the first result in a search for the phrase "more evil than Satan himself". However, the practice has also been used a form of political and social protest to redefine or change the perception of a term.