How to Remove Japanese Keyword Hack from Your Website: The Complete Technical Guide

 

Japanese keyword hack attacks are among the most damaging SEO spam threats affecting websites globally, particularly WordPress-powered platforms. These attacks involve the injection of Japanese-language spam pages—often promoting counterfeit goods or phishing content—into your website’s structure. As a result, Google indexes dozens or even thousands of these spam URLs, damaging your domain authority, reputation, and user trust.

At The Adroit, we've helped numerous clients identify, eliminate, and recover from this specific type of malware. This comprehensive guide outlines everything a site owner, IT team, or agency needs to do to completely remove Japanese SEO spam, regain control of search visibility, and protect the website from future attacks.

Removing the Japanese keyword hack is not an overnight task. It typically requires 15 to 40 days, depending on the volume of infected files and the number of spam URLs indexed in Google. This article is designed to be your definitive guide to address and resolve the issue in its entirety.

 

Understanding the Japanese Keyword Hack

The Japanese keyword hack attack is a type of black-hat SEO spam where attackers inject malicious scripts and fake Japanese-language pages into your website’s file structure. These pages are optimized for search engines and often link to scam products like luxury items, sportswear, or electronics.

These spam pages may appear on Google under your domain like so:

• yourdomain.com/983/cheap-gucci.html

• yourdomain.com/612/nike-sale.html

• yourdomain.com/index.php?q=腕時計激安 (Japanese for "cheap watches")

 

Google eventually indexes these pages, causing users and search engines to view your website as suspicious or hacked. The long-term effect is declining SEO visibility, loss of customer trust, and even manual penalties from Google.

 

Signs That Your Website Has Been Infected

1. Google Search Results Display Unknown Japanese Pages

In google search bar run “site:yourdomain.com”

This search command reveals all indexed pages under your domain. If you see unknown folders or Japanese-language content, your site has likely been compromised. This is a classic sign that you need to start fixing the Japanese keyword hack immediately.

2. Google Search Console Flags Indexed Spam URLs

Log in to Google Search Console and:

1. Go to Google Search Console

2. Go to Security Issues for any malware warnings or “Hacked content” notices

3. Visit Indexing → Pages 

4. If the number of Indexed and Not Indexed pages in Google Search Console is unusually high, it’s a strong indicator that your website may be infected with malware. You can also estimate when the malware started affecting your Search Engine Optimization performance by observing the timeline of the increasing page count.

3. Third-Party Security Scanners

Use malware scanning tools such as:

• Sucuri SiteCheck

• MalCare Security Scanner

• PCRisk

• Virus Total

These can help detect file modifications, hidden redirects, base64 scripts, and more.

4. Alerts from Hosting Providers

Many hosting providers like Hostinger, SiteGround, Bluehost, etc., offer malware detection and notifications. Premium security tools offered by these providers can help identify malware early.

 

Step-by-Step Guide to Fix Japanese Keyword Hack

Step 1: Backup Your Website

Before making any changes, perform a full backup of your files and database. Use FTP, cPanel, or trusted WordPress backup plugins like UpdraftPlus or All-in-One WP Migration.

Step 2: Scan and Clean All Website Files

Manually inspect and delete suspicious folders such as /612/, /983/, /s91/, and unfamiliar PHP or HTML files.

Pay special attention to:

• index.php (root file)

• .htaccess

• /wp-content/themes/

• /wp-content/uploads/

• /wp-content/plugins/

Use malware cleaning plugins or professional services like Sucuri, Wordfence Premium, or MalCare Pro to automatically detect and quarantine infected files.

If manual cleaning is too complex or time-sensitive, reach out to your hosting provider or professional malware removal services. Companies like Sucuri can clean and restore your website in under 48 hours.

Step 3: Update All Website Components

Ensure your website software stack is updated to the latest versions, including:

• WordPress core

• Themes and plugins

• CMS frameworks (if using PHP, Rails, Laravel, etc.)

Even if certain features are available only in paid versions of plugins or themes, invest in them or use trusted alternatives. Avoid outdated or abandoned plugins at all costs.Updated software ensures your site runs smoothly, supports optimal loading speeds, and aligns with technical requirements for SEO services.

Security Tips

It’s critical to keep your web technologies updated—whether you're using WordPress, Ruby on Rails, PHP, HTML5, or others. Every day, new vulnerabilities are discovered, and older threats evolve. Regular updates ensure your website is protected with the latest security patches.

Step 4: Update the Robots.txt File

Create or modify your robots.txt file to block crawling of spammy directories.

Note: Do not delete existing content. Add the following lines to the bottom of your file:

User-agent: *
Disallow: /*.html$
Disallow: /*.aspx
Disallow: /wp-admin/
Disallow: /988
Disallow: /954
Disallow: /222
Disallow: /232
Disallow: /272
Disallow: /499
Disallow: /612
Disallow: /983
Disallow: /index.php
Disallow: /s91
Disallow: /?

Save and upload this file to the root directory (/public_html/robots.txt).

Step 5: Remove Spam URLs from Google Search Index

1. Navigate to Search Console → Removals

2. Click New Request

3. Use URL prefix removal (e.g., https://yourdomain.com/612/ or *.html)

4. Check “Remove all URLs with this prefix”

5. Submit the request

This step is essential in fixing the Japanese keyword hack by getting spam URLs out of Google's index.

Step 6: Submit a Clean Sitemap

After your website is cleaned:

• Regenerate your sitemap using plugins like Yoast SEO or Rank Math

• Submit the updated sitemap to GSC:

This signals to Google that your content is clean and ready for re-crawling.

Step 7: Create and Upload a spam-url.txt File

If many spam URLs still appear in search:

1. Create a spam-url.txt file with one spam URL per line:

https://yourdomain.com/612/index.html

https://yourdomain.com/index.php?q=gucci

https://yourdomain.com/983/ナイキ

2. Upload this file to the root directory

3. Submit it to Search Console → Sitemaps as:

https://yourdomain.com/spam-url.txt

Google Search Console displays only 1,000 URLs at a time. To collect more:

• Download data from Pages → Why pages aren’t indexed

• Check Links → External/Internal links for malicious URLs

• Add these URLs to your spam-url.txt for periodic resubmission

Repeat this process weekly until all spam URLs are removed.

 

Additional Steps if Google Still Shows Indexed Spam Pages

Submit a Reconsideration Request (if penalized)

If your site received a Manual Action from Google:

1. Go to Search Console → Manual Actions

2. Click Request Review

3. Submit a detailed explanation of all actions taken to clean the site

Use Google’s Spam Reporting Tool

Use this if no manual action exists but spam persists:

• Google Search Console Spam Report

Include:

• Your domain

• Sample spam URLs

• Explanation of malware cleanup efforts

 

Post-Cleanup: Best Practices for Ongoing Security

1. Install and Configure a Security Plugin

Use any of the following:

• Wordfence

• Sucuri Security

• iThemes Security

2. Enable Web Application Firewall (WAF)

Services like Sucuri Firewall or Cloudflare WAF help block malware injection attempts.

3. Secure WordPress Admin Area

• Change default admin username

• Enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)

• Limit login attempts and track login activity

4. Regular Monitoring

• Schedule daily/weekly malware scans

• Monitor Google Search Console for any new security issues

• Keep backup systems in place

 

Final Thoughts

The Japanese keyword Hack is a dangerous and increasingly common issue, particularly for websites using CMS platforms like WordPress. While the removal and recovery process may span several weeks, consistent effort and the right steps will fully restore your site’s credibility, visibility, and performance.

Cleaning the site is just one part of the equation. Ongoing monitoring, frequent updates, and proactive security practices are crucial to prevent future compromises.

Need Professional Help?

If you are unsure how to proceed or want to ensure complete recovery in the shortest time possible, consider working with experts.

The Adroit specializes in comprehensive malware removal, spam URL cleanup, WordPress hardening, and long-term security management.

Reach out to us at www.theadroit.in to restore and secure your website with professional assistance.