"Affiliate directory" linking to my website

Very strange pages in "affiliate directory"

[OutdoorMan]

Hi.

(Let me see if I can explain this in understandable english)...

I did the link:www.example.com in Yahoo's index and discovered that some strange "affiliate directory" links to one of my pages.

The "affiliate directory" also uses 3 small setence-snippets of mine, and links to the page where the snippets origin (my webpage) -- It looks something like this:

<url>my pageName</url> - ... <snippet 1> ... <snippet 2> ... <snippet 3> ...

- one URL pointing at my web page, and three snippets from my website, that is.

The "affiliate directory" looks like a real spammer website, containing pages with lots of links, iframes with even more links and AdSense (!) ads.

The "affiliate directory" don't show up in G's index, when I try the site:www.example.com -- but it appears to have AdSense-ads? And some of the pages even had some TBPR.

Now for the question(s):

1) Should I report this "affiliate directory" by using the spamreport-link in Webmaster Tools?

2) Is the "affiliate directory" doing any damage to my website/webpage/ranking, by linking and using some small sentences from my webpage?

3) Can I do anything to prevent this 'abuse' in the future - and can it be called 'abuse'?

I guess that I just don't know how to react on this one...

[edited by: tedster at 1:44 am (utc) on Nov. 27, 2006]
[edit reason] fix formatting [/edit]

[Pirates]

They probably scraped your site and used three key pages from it. I expect you will find far from beeing an affiliate they are not at all linking to it now. They may have initially linked but once the link was established they then use your link and scraped content to link to your competitor. Usually through two other sites first. This is the sort of #*$! I obseverve and don't wanna compete with.

[OutdoorMan]

Pirates > The "affiliate directory" page that I'm talking about actually do link to my webpage (I have tested it and it's got a direct link to my webpage).

Also, it seems to be the only real outgoing link on that page. All other links on the "affiliate" page either goes to other subfolders on the "affiliate directory" or to pages on another webdomain.

And yet another thing... The "AdSense-ads" I mentioned, something is wrong -- It seems that all AdSense-ads on that "affiliate" page points at the "affiliate directory's" Home Page instead of the advertisers websites.

[MThiessen]

And yet another thing... The "AdSense-ads" I mentioned, something is wrong -- It seems that all AdSense-ads on that "affiliate" page points at the "affiliate directory's" Home Page instead of the advertisers websites.

You sure it's adsense and not adbrite? They look very similar, but you can point adbrite to your affiliates.

[OutdoorMan]

You sure it's adsense and not adbrite? They look very similar, but you can point adbrite to your affiliates.

1) Yes, I'm sure. It even shows the "Ads by Google" and "Advertise on this site" links and when I click on the "Ads by Google" I am beeing directed to an Google-page.

2) I don't have any affiliates ;)

I don't have any idea of why this "affiliate directory" has a link that points at my webpage -- My website isn't in any way related to the "affiliate directory".

[MThiessen]

Well there is a thing in google where you can use a google page for domain parking. It "looks" like a directory but it's not.

[edited by: tedster at 4:45 am (utc) on Nov. 27, 2006]

[MThiessen]

Ah yes..

This is an MFA or "made for adsense" site. The adsense ads are legit, they are a "scraper" and got not only your content, but many other people content.

I really don't see how they can harm you, I myself have been, and still am, copied far and wide on the web, too much to even police them all, and they don't hurt me a bit.

But, if they went so far as to copy MORE then you are saying, like whole pages, you might want to go after them.

In my honest opinion (IMHO) there is no threat to you here. I would just try to email them to remove it and just forget about it.

After all, YOUR content was there first, the dup content filter is on them not you. True it looks bad, but I honestly don't think they can harm you.

[OutdoorMan]

The "affiliate directory" sure looks bad (non-legit) to me, but I'm very glad to read that I shouldn't worry about it.

Thanks for your time and your explanation, MThiessen. Now I can sleep well :)

[MThiessen]

Edit: read your sticky tedster, I understand.

[edited by: MThiessen at 5:01 am (utc) on Nov. 27, 2006]