Google Blogger is a very popular publishing platform. Millions of blogs run on Blogger, adding a vast inventory of knowledge to the internet. It is a free service designed for communication, self-expression and freedom of speech. But while that stands, Google also has to uphold its image of quality and safety for its users. If a blogger violates Google's quality guidelines, then Google will take action against that Blogger blog to protect its users. A lot of people ask us why their blog was suspended or deleted, even when they seemingly didn't do anything wrong. Well, there must be something they were doing, which is why Google had to do it. In this post, we discuss what things go against Google's policies, and which things you must avoid to stay safe.
11 things to avoid in Blogger blogs
1. Hate speech
Hate speech is something which, even though is very common on the internet, isn't appreciated by Google. Promoting racism, and hate against a specific religious or ethnic group is a crime, and is not tolerated by Google.
2. Violence
Google is used all over the world by people from different geographic and demographic groups. Promoting violence on your blog would not be suitable to many people, especially children who are easily effected. Also, promoting violence against a certain group comes under racism, which is also not allowed by Google.
3. Illegal activities
Blogging about any sort of illegal activity, such as drug or alcohol use, is illegal. The general rule is, if you could get into trouble by talking about something in front of a cop, then most probably that thing also comes under this section, and is punishable by a ban.
4. Gore
You must not have images, videos, or other graphical content that contains gore, or that could be disturbing to some people. For example, you can not show a man getting brutally killed by a shotgun, or a horrific accident that resulted in gore/death.
5. Adult content
Google has some strict laws against pornography and adult content. Although Google doesn't directly denounce this stuff, you still need to mark your blog as 'adult' from your Blogger settings, otherwise it won't be treated any differently. Google, however, doesn't allow you to make money off adult content.
6. Child Safety
According to Google, it has 'zero tolerance' when it comes to content that might manipulate or harm children. It is strictly against child pornography and paedophilia, and will immediately terminate the account of any blogger who is promoting such stuff.
7. Copyrighted material
No one likes it when someone copies their content and gets away with it. Google has a pretty effective system of curbing this problem as best as it can. First of all, copyrighted content will result in a lower rank, and the suspension of Google AdSense for that site. Continued plagiarism will result in the deletion of your blog. So be ware! (If you find someone copying your content, you should report it to Google).
8. Violating privacy
Please don't publish someone's confidential details without that person's express permission. Posting other people's credit card numbers, phone numbers, contact information, and other such private information is against Google's policies, and must be avoided.
9. Impersonation
Stealing someone else's identity and impersonating someone is a crime punishable by imprisonment and/or fine. For example, pretending to be someone else, or using their aliases is not OK.
10. Spam
Spam is something not appreciated by Google, or any other search engine for that matter.Google is forever trying hard to keep spam out of its system. It rolls out algorithmic updates regularly, and does not appreciate it when you start spamming.
11. Malware
Virus and malware isn't something users appreciate. That is why Google takes initiatives to keep malware out of its system. If your site is infected by a virus, you should check it out immediately. If you are involved with spreading malware more than once, then you run the risk of inadvertently getting banned by Google.
Please note that there might be a few exceptions to these rules due to educational, scientific or artistic considerations. These exceptions are made when there is a benefit gained by the public from such information. Otherwise, blogs with such content will be banned or deleted. So always play safe. And remember! When in doubt, always ask. We're here to help :)
