08/25/2026
Do bad backlinks give your website “bad signals”?
Not necessarily.
Google’s John Mueller clarified that if a site links out in ways that aren’t helpful or align with spam policies, Google may simply ignore those outbound links.
That’s different from passing a negative signal.
The takeaway for SEOs:
🔹 Don’t obsess over “toxic links”
🔹 Focus on relevant, useful links
🔹 Evaluate link quality, context, and relevance
🔹 Build links that actually help users
A link being ignored is not the same as a link hurting you.
SEO is less about collecting links—and more about earning the right ones.
Read the full Search Engine Journal article
What’s your take: Do SEOs worry too much about “toxic” backlinks?