Cloaking

Cloaking is a technique that presents search engines with different content from what users actually see on a website.

• Users encounter a visually appealing site, often with minimal text and numerous graphic or multimedia elements.
• Search engines, however, have limitations in processing graphics and multimedia, so they receive a different version of the site (with the same URL).

Typically, this alternate site features text tailored for search engine optimization. Cloaking breaches search engine guidelines. If detected, a search engine may penalize the site by removing it from its index, causing it to disappear from search results.

Important: Websites designed separately for computers and mobile devices are not considered cloaking. Search engines accommodate sites with mobile versions.