PBN Backlinks: What Are They & Why You Must Avoid Them in SEO?

From wherever you've heard the term "PBN backlinks," I advise you to forget it. While some people may say it’s a shortcut to boost your site’s search rankings, the truth is PBN links are risky and harmful practice.

If you really care about your website's long-term success, relying on these link schemes can do more harm than good.

In this blog, I’m going to explain what PBN backlinks are, why SEOs use them, how to identify and remove PBN links, and safer alternatives for long-term SEO success.

So let’s get started.

What are PBN backlinks?

PBN (private blog network) backlinks are links created from a network of websites or blogs owned by the same person or group. These sites are often hosted on different servers to avoid detection but are controlled by a single entity. 

The primary purpose of these websites is to link to another website and boost its search engine rankings.

Also, PBNs are typically built using expired domains that still carry some authority and can pass on link authority to the target website. The main goal of PBNs is to manipulate search engine rankings by generating multiple backlinks from these "owned" domains.

Think of SEO like preparing for a school exam. You can either study hard, learn the chapters, and do well the right way, or you can try shortcuts like bringing a cheat to the exam hall or copying from someone else’s work. You might get a high score quickly, but there’s a big chance you’ll get caught and face serious consequences.

PBN are like those shortcuts in SEO backlinks, they might boost your rankings fast, but they come with a high risk of getting penalized by search engines (Google, Yahoo, Bing, Safari). 

Then, 

Why do SEOs and link builders use PBN backlinks?

Some SEOs and link builders use PBNs because they offer a shortcut to getting backlinks. Otherwise, SEOs have to follow a more time-consuming link-building roadmap to acquire high-quality backlinks, which involves:

• Email outreach to build relationships
• Consistent follow-ups
• Networking with reputable websites
• Writing valuable guest posts
• Waiting for natural backlinks from others
  

These steps can indeed take time, but they help establish genuine authority and trust with search engines. PBNs, on the other hand, offer none of this. PBNs might make your site look more authoritative in the short term, but the risks are extremely high.

Search engines can easily spot these unnatural links, and if they do, your site could face penalties, lose its rankings, or even disappear from search results entirely. Using PBN backlinks isn't just risky, it can seriously hurt your site’s future. Even relying on PBNs just 1% is enough to put your business at serious risk.

Google can ban your site: PBNs violate webmaster guidelines

Google has been very clear about its stance on Private Blog Networks (PBNs). They consider PBNs a violation of their webmaster guidelines because they’re seen as a way to manipulate search rankings unfairly. Using PBN backlinks is a risky strategy that can result in harsh penalties.

“If you're building links for the sole purpose of manipulating search rankings, that's considered a violation of our webmaster guidelines.” 

- John Mueller (Google Webmaster Trends Analyst)

Google’s algorithms are designed to detect unnatural patterns associated with PBNs, and once identified, your website could be penalized. These penalties can drastically drop your rankings, and in some cases, Google may even ban your site from search results altogether.

In some cases, manual penalties are also applied, which could severely affect your website’s ability to rank. Many sites that have used PBNs have suffered severe consequences, often without Google publicly disclosing the exact reasons for the penalties.

If you rely on PBN backlinks, even just a little, you are putting your website’s future at serious risk. It’s a gamble that can destroy your business’s online presence.

Risks of using PBN backlinks

As a business owner, your website is one of your most valuable assets. You’ve likely invested significant time and money into building it, with the ultimate goal of driving more traffic and customers. 

But what if I told you that using the wrong SEO tactics, like PBN backlinks, could not only hurt your website but also cause it to disappear from search results entirely?

Here’s why relying on PBNs is a dangerous move for your business.

You might see short-term gains but end-up facing long-term losses

At first, using PBN backlinks may seem like a quick and easy way to boost your website’s rankings. You might notice an increase in traffic and think it’s working. But the truth is: these gains won’t last, and the long-term damage can be serious.

For example, imagine you run a successful business and decide to use PBNs to outrank your competitors. In the beginning, you might see results like more visitors, more leads, and higher search rankings. But after a while, Google catches on. Your site gets penalized, and your rankings drop dramatically, almost overnight.

Suddenly, all the traffic you gained is gone, and your competitors are back on top. Recovering from this kind of penalty is not easy, it takes time, money, and effort to fix the problem. Meanwhile, your business loses out on potential customers and sales.

Your reputation is at stake

Imagine you wake up one morning, and your entire website has disappeared from Google search results. Panic sets in as you realize that the traffic you depend on for leads and sales has dried up overnight. No inquiries, no conversions, and your phone stops ringing. 

All the time, money, and effort you invested into building your online presence are suddenly wasted. Worse yet, your competitors are now outranking you, taking the business that could’ve been yours. 

This is a very real risk when using PBN backlinks. PBNs are considered a black-hat SEO tactic, and getting caught using them can hurt your brand’s credibility. If word gets out that your business is using shady methods to manipulate search rankings, it can damage your reputation with customers, clients, and partners. Recovering from a reputation hit like this can be difficult, as trust is hard to rebuild once it’s lost.

Google penalties can destroy your rankings 

Google actively monitors websites for manipulative link-building tactics like PBNs. If your site is caught using them, you could face penalties that drastically drop your rankings, or worse, your site could be de-indexed and disappear from search results entirely. This could mean a massive loss of organic traffic, which may take months or even years to recover.

Investing in PBN backlinks can cost you more than you think: Negative ROI

Yes, you read it right! Investing in PBN backlinks might seem like a cheap way to improve your website’s search rankings, but it can actually end up costing you a lot more. Here’s why:

Direct money loss

Paying for PBN backlinks might save you money upfront, but if Google catches you using them, you’ll face penalties that could be very expensive to fix. The cost of removing bad links and recovering from a penalty often far exceeds any short-term savings.

Time loss

Fixing the damage from a Google penalty takes a lot of time. You’ll need to identify and remove the harmful links, deal with Google’s reconsideration process, and wait for your site to be reviewed. All of this diverts your focus from growing your business to fixing a problem that could have been avoided.

Disaster

Imagine all the time and money you’ve invested in developing your website and creating valuable content. If Google bans your site because of PBN backlinks, you could lose all your organic traffic and search rankings. It’s a worst-case scenario that makes all your previous efforts feel wasted.

How to identify and resolve PBN backlinks?

I've already mentioned that building PBN backlinks won’t benefit you in the long run. While they might give you quick results, they come with big risks and could lead to severe penalties from search engines if detected. Google’s algorithms are designed to identify and penalize manipulative link schemes, making PBNs a risky choice.

So, you might be wondering, "How do you know if your site has links from a PBN?"

Whether you built the links yourself or not, there could be possibilities that your site has PBN backlinks. Here’s how you can identify them.

You can address the issue by using tools like Ahrefs, Moz, or SEMrush to analyze your backlink profile. These tools will help you find websites linking to your site, allowing you to identify any suspicious or low-quality links that might be part of a PBN. 

As an SEO professional at ZeroAdo, I personally use Ahrefs, one of the most popular SaaS tools for analyzing backlinks, including identifying potential PBN links.

Here's how you can use it to find and analyze PBN backlinks.

Step 1 - Log into Ahrefs and enter your domain

Start by logging into your Ahrefs account. In the search bar, enter your domain name to analyze your website.

Step 2 - Go to the 'Backlinks' section

On the left-hand menu, click on "Backlinks" under the "Site Explorer" section. This will show you a detailed list of all the backlinks pointing to your site.

Step 3 - Analyze the domains linking to your site

Look at the websites linking to your site. PBNs often use low-quality or irrelevant domains. 

Focus on sites with:

Low-quality content

PBN sites often have low-quality content that's just there to create backlinks. If you see websites with poorly written, thin, or irrelevant content that's mostly made up of links, it might be a PBN.

For example, in the below blog, 

https://teamrockie.com/the-ultimate-guide-to-finding-your-perfect-bubble-tea-supplier/

The content is thin and lacks substance. The article appears to be written only to give a backlink to the bubble tea supplier rather than providing any real value to readers. This type of content is a hallmark of PBNs, where the focus is on creating as many backlinks as possible, not on quality or relevance.

Lack of engagement

Real websites usually get some user interaction, like traffic, comments, and social shares. PBN sites often have little or no real engagement. If a site has barely any social proof or user interaction, it could be part of a PBN.

For example, the link I’ve shared above (“https://teamrockie.com/the-ultimate-guide-to-finding-your-perfect-bubble-tea-supplier/”) clearly demonstrates this, it lacks social links and a comment section, which are common signs of a genuine website. This absence of engagement can be a strong indicator that the site is part of a network solely designed for link manipulation rather than for providing valuable content to users.

Another example of the lack of engagement with PBN sites is their low traffic. Even if these sites have a high Domain Rating (DR) of 50 or more, they often receive almost no visitors. This is because PBN sites are mainly built for link-building purposes, not for offering valuable content that people want to read. So, while they might appear impressive to search engines, they don’t actually attract or retain real visitors.

Similar designs or themes

PBNs often use the same or similar designs and themes across their sites to save time. If you notice that several linking sites have a matching design or theme, they might be connected as part of a PBN.

Here are some examples of sites with similar themes that could indicate PBN use:

• https://diy-vision.mn.co/
• https://infiniteabundance.mn.co/
• https://nethxt.mn.co/
• https://bipolarjungle.mn.co/
• https://stemfemmes.mn.co/
• https://fcmcommunity.mn.co/

Step 4 - Check the anchor text

PBN links often use exact-match anchor text (the text used for the hyperlink). Ahrefs allows you to see what anchor text is being used for the links. If you see a lot of exact-match keywords or unnatural phrases, it could be a sign of PBN links.

Step 5 - Check the IP address of the linking sites

PBNs sometimes use multiple sites hosted on the same IP address or within the same subnet. In Ahrefs, you can check for this by looking at the “Referring IPs” section. If several linking sites share the same IP, it’s a red flag.

Once you’ve identified these harmful links, you can try contacting the website owner and request they remove the link. If they don’t respond, you can use Google’s Disavow Tool, which tells Google to ignore those links when ranking your site. 

After that, keep an eye on your backlink profile regularly to ensure no new harmful links appear. Taking these steps will help protect your site from potential penalties and maintain a healthier SEO profile.

PBN backlinks vs. quality backlinks

When it comes to building a successful SEO strategy, understanding the difference between PBN backlinks and quality backlinks is crucial. PBN backlinks are considered a black-hat SEO tactic, as they come from networks of websites created solely to manipulate search engine rankings. 

These backlinks may offer quick results but come with high risks, including penalties from search engines like Google. On the other hand, quality backlinks are earned naturally through link-building services that have a process of outreach, follow-up, and relationship-building. They come from authoritative, relevant websites and contribute to long-term SEO success.

FeaturePBN backlinksQuality backlinksSource of backlinksFrom a network of sites specifically created to manipulate search engine rankingsFrom high-authority, relevant, and trusted websitesRisk levelHigh risk of penalties from Google due to violation of webmaster guidelinesNo risk, as they align with search engine guidelinesContent qualityOften features low-quality, thin, or irrelevant contentTypically backed by high-quality, valuable, and niche-relevant contentAnchor textOver-optimized and repetitive anchor textNatural and diverse anchor text distributionImpact on SEOShort-term ranking boosts but high risk of losing ranking due to penaltiesLong-term, sustainable SEO improvementEngagementLittle to no real user engagement or trafficGenuine engagement, traffic, and social sharesCostOften requires purchasing expired domains and hosting multiple sitesTime investment in building relationships, but no black-hat expensesDetectability by search enginesEasily detectable through footprint patterns and low domain qualityNo fear of detection as links are earned naturally not forcefully 

Best practices for safe link building

If you've decided to avoid PBN backlinks, kudos! 📣

You're already on the right track for building a sustainable and penalty-free SEO strategy. Now that you've made this decision, what are the best practices for safe link building? Let me share them with you.

Create high quality content

Producing valuable, informative, and engaging SEO content is the key to any successful link-building strategy. When you create content that people find valuable and helpful, like blog posts, guides, or how-to articles, other websites will naturally want to link to your content.

This gives you a backlink without asking for other site owners to link to you directly. Moreover, high-quality content not only brings in natural backlinks but also helps build your site’s reputation. The more trustworthy your content is, the more other websites will link to it, improving your SEO and making your site more credible.

Do guest blogging

Guest blogging is a tried-and-tested method of earning backlinks. By contributing high-quality articles for other websites in your field you can get your name out there and earn backlinks to your site. One thing that you need to ensure is that you only guest post on websites with strong authority and relevance to your industry.

Build relationships with people

Networking with influencers, bloggers, and industry experts is a powerful way to earn organic backlinks. Building genuine relationships with people in your niche can lead to more opportunities for collaborations, interviews, or mentions on their websites. These relationships not only help with link building but can also establish you as a thought leader in your field.

Use social channels to promote your blog

Social media is a great way to increase visibility and engagement of your blog. When your content gets shared across social platforms, it’s more likely to catch the attention of bloggers, journalists, and other websites that might link to it. This organic method can also lead to higher traffic and improve your site's authority.

Myths about PBN backlinks

Let’s talk about some myths related to PBN backlinks.

Myth 1 - PBN backlinks are a quick way to boost rankings

Reality: PBN backlinks might give you a short-term boost but they can lead to penalties from search engines and hurt your site in the long run.

Myth 2 - PBN backlinks have the same value as natural links

Reality: Natural backlinks from trusted sites are much more valuable than PBN links, which are often seen as tricks.

Myth 3 - PBNs can replace quality content and SEO efforts

Reality: Good content and honest SEO practices are essential for long-term success. PBNs can’t replace the need for strong content and proper SEO work.

Myth 4 - PBNs won’t help you rank

Reality: PBN links might give you a quick ranking boost, but they come with big risks. While they can improve your position temporarily, search engines can detect PBNs and punish your site, causing serious harm to your rankings and reputation. So for long term success, it's better to focus on getting high-quality, natural backlinks from trusted sites.

Stop relying on PBN backlinks and focus on high-quality links

PBN backlinks can seem like an attractive shortcut to boost your rankings quickly, but they come with high risks. Sometimes it might give you short-term results, but they can lead to penalties from search engines and harm your site’s reputation in the long run. 

Instead of taking shortcuts, it's better to focus on getting high-quality backlinks from trusted and relevant sites. This approach is more reliable and helps you build a stronger, more credible online presence. For long-term success, choose quality over shortcuts.

For a safer and more effective link-building strategy, you can consider using Zeroado. We help you secure high-quality, authoritative backlinks through ethical and proven methods, ensuring steady and sustainable growth for your website. 

Connect with ZeroAdo if you really want to enhance your SEO efforts and watch your rankings improve steadily and safely.