How To Manage Language Spam In Google Analytics – Practice From Semalt

Internet experts argue that keyword and referral spam infiltration for Google Analytics users is now a thing of the past. Google analytics displays URLs and spam messages as legit when hackers or fraudsters send random false data to random websites and GA (Google Analytics) tracking codes.

According to the leading expert from Semalt, Artem Abgarian, this challenge can be resolved easily by use of filters. However, skewing the information is by itself problematic.

The bad news to the internet users, site owners and programmers is that hackers have now breached from organic keyword and referral spam. Spammers are now hitting online users with language reports. The SEO Roundtable wrote a report on the same three weeks ago.

In Google Analytics context, fake traffic can be defined as fake hits sent to a user's Google Analytics property. A "hit" refers to user interaction with a site which result in sending of information to the Google Analytics property. For example, it can be "transition," "screenview," "event," or a "pageview."

A fake hit is generated by a bot or a program instead of interaction by a human being. Presently, it is possible to fake any Google Analytics hit. This means spammers can send fake direct traffic, fake organic traffic, fake organic traffic, and fake data from derived from social media. Hackers can fake virtual pageviews, events, hostname, request URL, transaction item, and keywords. Moreover, hackers require Google Analytics ID to perform their dirty magic. Practically, they can rewrite analytics information from any location across the globe and without Google Analytics account access.

Getting Rid of Language Spam in Google Analytics by Setting up a Hostname Filter

The article is particularly useful to users whose Google Analytics is experiencing ghost and referral spam. Thus, this section will discuss how to minimize or eliminate negative effects of fake traffic on Google Analytics reports.

Most of the internet users have received this kind of spam in their Google Analytics. Therefore, how can online users eliminate these spam? In this connection, the section explains how hostname filter can be used for filtering most of the spam. Follow the steps below:

1. Visit the Admin Page of the Google Analytics

On the Google Analytics page, click the button in the rightmost column and select "Filters".

2. Click on Blue the "Add Filter" Button

A new filter should be set up for this view as per Google Analytics best practices. It maintains a single unfiltered website's traffic.

3. Create Hostname Filter

On the Google Analytics page, select "Create New Filter" at the topmost left and enter Filter's name in the provided field. Under "Filter Type" select "Predefined," then in four drop-down menus select 'include only'> 'traffic the hostname'>that are equal to,' then enter website's URL. Finally, navigate back and check hostnames reported for legit website's traffic. Ensure to include all the hostnames associated with genuine traffic to the site.

4. Save the Site's Filter

The simple filter must take care of bulk referral spam which gets lobbed on the site.