This question used to have a simple answer, and the old advice that "inbound links can never hurt you" is no longer true. Here is how it works today.
Random spammy links: usually ignored
Every website picks up odd links from scraper sites and spammy directories. Google's systems are good at spotting these and simply ignoring them. In most cases you do not need to do anything about them.
Links you build or buy: can cause real problems
Google's spam policies prohibit link schemes: buying or selling links that pass ranking value, large-scale link exchanges, private blog networks and automated link building. If Google finds a site deliberately doing this, it can:
- stop trusting those links, so any ranking benefit disappears, or
- apply a manual action, shown in Google Search Console, which can push pages down the results until it is fixed.
When should you use the disavow tool?
Rarely. Google recommends the disavow tool only if you have a manual action for unnatural links, or you know a large number of paid or spammy links were built to your site, for example by a previous SEO company.
What good links look like
Links that help you rank are ones a real business would earn: trade and local directories, suppliers, local news, community sponsorships and content worth referencing. That is the only kind of link building we do.
Worried about links a previous agency built? Our full website audit checks your backlink profile.