RESOLVED: Hubs listed in Google with "Norton?" Icon

1. 94

   jansharesposted 11 years ago

   I noticed this morning that my hubscores have dropped unlike I've ever seen. So I wondered about copied hubs. I went to Google and put in partial titles and keyword to my hubs. I didn't see any duplicates (not sure I did this right) but I did notice the grey Norton icon with the "?" which indicates to viewers that it's not safe to view or that something's not legit about the site. I am not savvy about this sort of thing so please explain why all of my hubs have the dreaded "Norton?" icon on them. I checked several, old and new.
   (Leaving out now, will check replies later, thanks)

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   1. 89

      Kathryn Stratfordposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      That's interesting. I don't know the answer to that, but I will ask my tech-savvy boyfriend later on. Maybe he would know. That is a little disturbing, so I hope we find out why it is like that.

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         jansharesposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         Thanks, Kathryn.

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      Marina Lazarevicposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Hi janshares! Thanks for reporting this. Matthew is on vacation this week but we'll take a look and see why this might be happening.

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      Marina Lazarevicposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Hi again! After taking a deeper look, we are confident that the question mark icon isn't negative. It just means that the domain has not been tested. You can check individual domains on Norton Safe Web.
      
      hubpages.com is OK/Safe: https://safeweb.norton.com/report/show? … bpages.com
      
      janshares.hubpages.com is ?/Untested: https://safeweb.norton.com/report/show? … bpages.com
      
      Some subdomains are green and tested, others aren't. It's expected that not every page on HubPages has been evaluated by Norton. I wouldn't worry too much about it!

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      1. 94

         jansharesposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         Thank you, Marina, for your response about Matthew and info about what the " grey Norton?" icon means. So, are you saying that subdomains that are relatively new, like mine, 10 months old, have not been around long enough to have been Norton-tested and Norton-approved? Therefore, untrusted? Hmmm. I do appreciate your "not to worry" stance but it's a bit disconcerting. Because at the end of the day, there are readers who will not click on a search result with a domain they think is not trustworthy. I just wonder how that affects views. I guess we just have to wait. Actually, I recall that the same thing happened when I first published my website. But for articles we are trying to promote and get traffic to asap, that doesn't bode well.

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            Kathryn Stratfordposted 11 years agoin reply to this

            Oh, good, I'm glad we get an explanation. But it's too bad, because when I browse online, I usually avoid the question mark, and I am sure many others are like that, too.

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            1. 94

               jansharesposted 11 years agoin reply to this

               Yup.

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            Marina Lazarevicposted 11 years agoin reply to this

            I think being a relatively new subdomain might have something to do with it, but I'm not sure what other criteria Norton uses for determining which domains to prioritize evaluating. FWIW, the grey question mark means "untested", not "untrusted" - I think the latter sounds much more malicious! My guess is that most people who use these apps / services know to look for the red warning or orange caution icons.
            
            
            
            Do you have a Norton browser extension running? I don't think those icons appear by default in all browsers and SERPs. I used to run a similar McAfee app in Chrome but removed it when I realized it was slowing things down. One other option is to request that Norton evaluate your site. I don't have information on the specifics but was able to find a page on the Norton site explaining how to submit a website for evaluation. You may not be able to register your HubPages subdomain because you are not the owner, but you can request evaluation for any sites that you do own and operate.
            
            I hope this helps alleviate your concerns somewhat.

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               jansharesposted 11 years agoin reply to this

               Very helpful, Marina. I appreciate it this information very much. Yes, I do have the Norton thingy running. I thought that might have something to do with it as well. Thanks again.

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2. 94

   jansharesposted 11 years ago

   I just checked using Google browser and it looks fine. I was using msn browser before then searching google. That may have been part of the problem. But it concerns me because if someone is searching in a similar way, it may sway them from opening those articles. I certainly don't like to click on those articles with the "Norton?" in the grey box. Also, my views were down which also contributed to my concern.

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   1. 75

      Barbara Kayposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I wonder if Hubpages should be notified about this. It would hurt the traffic for everyone on the site and hurt Hubbpages too. If it is showing for you, it is probably showing for everyone.

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      1. 94

         jansharesposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         This is why I posted it under "Technical Problems" just in case it is an issue for the site and not just me. Waiting for a reply from Matthew.

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3. 70

   brakel2posted 11 years ago

   I sometimes have warnings about the site. They come and go.

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      jansharesposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks, brakel2. Some time ago, Cardisa posted info in the forum warning of the same. Can't recall details.

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4. 70

   brakel2posted 11 years ago

   Ny views have been down for three weeks ever since Penguin. I think it was May 22. It doesn't help with Google paid ads that move you to page 2 in search.

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5. 40

   Writer Foxposted 11 years ago

   Janshares:  Do you have Norton installed on your computer?  If you do, you can contact Norton about this at:
   https://support.norton.com/sp/en/us/hom … nt/contact

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      Marina Lazarevicposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Great idea! They might have some more information on how to get your subdomain evaluated faster (if it's possible.)

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      jansharesposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Thank you much, Writer Fox.

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6. 94

   jansharesposted 11 years ago

   Favor please, not asking you to read my hubs. But can you google partial titles and keywords of one of my hubs and tell me what you see on the title search? To make it quick and easy, just google "how to make Jamaican oxtails" and see if there's a grey Norton icon. Thanks a bunch.

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      Marina Lazarevicposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Looks good to me!
      
      

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      1. 94

         jansharesposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         Thanks so much, Marina. That's how it looks when I used Google browser. I'm thinking now it must be my msn browser and the norton thing going on. I will check out. Thanks all, for your help.

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