Negative SEO Protection Checklist: One Hour a Month
checklist, defense onlyYou cannot stop a stranger from pointing links at you or copying your text. You can make a break-in hard, a restore quick and a problem impossible to run unseen for weeks. Four habits do most of the work, and one hour a month catches the rest. This checklist is written for small sites.
- four habits
- a six-month calendar
- three log lines a month
| check | where |
|---|---|
| manual actions and security | Search Console |
| links export, baseline | Search Console |
| reviews | Business Profile |
| log sample | host or server |
// about one hour a month is enough for a small site. The schedule is my own opinion.
Four Habits, One Hour
Updates, backups, two-step login and alerts.
Protection against negative SEO is mostly dull. The value of a routine is the baseline: when you know what a normal month looks like, an abnormal one is obvious. My pillar guide to negative SEO attacks explains the attacks. This page is the checklist.
The Four Habits
Each one takes minutes.
Updates
Keep WordPress current, and update plugins and themes. Delete the ones you do not use and install only from trusted sources.
Backups
Keep regular backups of files and the database, and keep older copies. Test a restore, or the backup is only a hope.
Two-step login
A code from your phone after the password. Turn it on for WordPress admins, hosting, the registrar and the Google account.
Alerts
Switch on Search Console email notifications, add an uptime monitor and turn on review notifications.
Six Months of Monthly Checks
About one hour a month.
| month | checks |
|---|---|
| month 1 | manual actions, security, links export as baseline, reviews, log sample |
| month 2 | manual actions, security, new links, reviews, log sample |
| month 3 | manual actions, security, new links, reviews and copies search, backup restore test |
| month 4 | manual actions, security, new links, reviews, log sample |
| month 5 | manual actions, security, new links, reviews, log sample |
| month 6 | manual actions, security, new links, reviews and copies search, users and passwords |
Three Lines a Month
Your own dated files are the proof.
Write three lines in a log each month: the date, anything unusual and what you did about it. When a removal request, a counter-notice or a reconsideration request needs evidence, the log is what makes it believable. For the links part, see my guide to a backlink audit for negative SEO.
What Each Check Looks For
One line per check.
- Manual actions and security: a clean report is worth a dated screenshot.
- New links: a spike of new domains, or anchor text that fits nothing you sell.
- Reviews: a burst of one-star reviews with vague text.
- Copies: an unusual sentence from your page, searched in quotation marks.
- Log sample: one address making most of the requests.
Questions People Ask Me
How can I prevent a negative SEO attack?
Keep software updated, keep tested backups, use two-step login everywhere, and set alerts. Then spend one hour a month on the checks in this list.
How long does the monthly check take?
About one hour for a small site, in my experience. The first month takes longer because you build the baseline.
What alerts should I turn on?
Switch on Search Console email notifications, add an uptime monitor and turn on review notifications in your Business Profile.
Where should I turn on two-step login?
For WordPress admins, hosting, the domain registrar and the Google account that owns Search Console and your Business Profile.
Send Me the Site. I Will Set Up the Baseline.
Send me your website address. I will tell you which alerts and checks fit your site and what the first hour should cover. A cheap SEO expert can run the monthly check if you do not want to. See my negative SEO recovery services.
Sources and Last Check
- WordPress Advanced Administration Handbook: Hardening WordPress (updates and backups)
- Search Console Help: Manual actions report (manual actions report)
- Search Console Help: Security issues report (security issues report)
// last checked 12 Nov 2026. The four habits and the schedule are my own opinion; the updates and backups statements follow the WordPress handbook.