Cleaning Up Hack - Any Way to Clear GSC Cache in Bulk

[Dana Franks]

We have two clients who got hacked recently and we're now dealing with the fallout. On one they have more than 6000+ Google search results for spam pages. On the other we can't get AdWords approved because they keep accessing cached content.

I keep being told that there is a way to get GSC to dump all cached content for a site and reindex everything. I have done research and have not found a way to do that. There's the removal tool but that means removing each individual URL, which is a LOT when you have more than 6000. Any suggestions?

 

[Rich Owings]

The removal tool only works temporarily. I would ask the developer to have those URLs return a 410 code: 410 Gone — httpstatuses.com

 

[djbaxter]

Refresh outdated content - Google Search Help

Important: If you've already updated a live page, you don't have to fill out the form. If content was deleted from a site but still comes up in Google Search results, the page description or cache mi

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Remove outdated content
If content was deleted from a site but still shows up in Google search results, the page description or cache might be outdated. To request a removal of outdated content:

1. Go to the Remove outdated content page.
2. Enter the URL (web address) of the page that has the outdated content you want to remove.
3. Select Request removal.
   • If you see the message "We think the image or web page you're trying to remove hasn't been removed by the site owner," follow the onscreen steps to give us more information.
   • If you see the message "This content is no longer live on the website," select Request Removal.

You can check the status of your request on the Remove outdated content page.

Google Search Console

Use Search Console to monitor Google Search results data for your properties.

www.google.com

Remove outdated content

Instructions:

• This request works only for pages/images that have already been modified, or removed from the web.
• If you need to remove personal information or content with legal issues, you should submit this request instead.
• Enter the URL copied from Google Search Results.
• If successful, cached result and snippet will be removed from Google Search results.
• If unsuccessful, learn why.

More details

Refresh Outdated Content tool - Search Console Help

Request an update to outdated content in Google Search resultsOverview Use the Refresh Outdated Content tool to have Google update search results for pages or images that no longer exist, or pages th

support.google.com

Remove outdated content tool
Remove snippets and cached content for pages that you don't own
What is this tool used for?

1. If you see a search result that you do not own, and either
   • the result snippet or the cached (stored) result in Search results is different from the current page, OR
   • the page no longer exists, then
2. You can request that Google drop the outdated cache and snippet from search results, as described in "How do I use the tool".

What is this tool not used for?

• Do not use this tool if you think the information on the page is wrong, bad, illegal, etc. If you think the current information is bad, wrong, dangerous, personal, or harmful, see here.
• If you are a verified owner of the page in Search Console, use this tool instead.
• If you want to permanently remove a search result for a URL that is publicly accessible. See here for more about removing information from Google and the web.

How do I use the tool?

1. Read "What is this tool used for" and "What is this tool not used for" above.
2. Open the Remove Outdated Content tool
3. Enter the URL of the search result to clear. Learn how to get this URL.
4. Click Request Removal. You will see a list of your requested removals at the bottom of the page.
5. Periodically check back to see if your removal was granted. If granted, see the next section. If denied, there will be an explanation why.

What will a successful request do?
If your request is successful:

• Google will remove the snippet and cached copy from search results.
• If the page is no longer available, it will remove the search result entirely.
• If the page is still available, it will remove the currently cached version and snippet from search results. The page can still appear in search results, but without a snippet or cached version. The cached version and snippet will be refreshed in search results the next time Google's crawler visits the page.

Why was my request denied?
Please see this help topic for explanations why a snippet or cache removal request might be denied.