Anyone testing black SEO recently?

[Logang]

What’s still worth the effort in 2025 and what’s clearly dead?

 

[PBNLegends]

Most black SEO didn’t die, it just became less forgiving.

Anything that relies on scale without context is mostly dead. Mass automation, generic footprints, and recycled assets burn faster than they rank.

What still works tends to be slower, smaller, and closer to looking earned rather than forced. The line between black and grey keeps moving, and many people fail because they don’t adjust.

 

[Ronaldwilson17]

Still testing here. Aggressive spam is mostly dead. Small tests with patience still show some movement.

 

[knightm]

Some black SEO tricks still work fast, but many are outdated now and can easily get your site banned.

I just say, try the grey hat methods.

 

[Drlinks SEO]

Grey seo is the fasted way to rank a website without any risk. Also it will rank for long terms if you can use it propperly.
Some blackhat seo still works but the are not suitable for long term.

 

[Goray Forry]

The fundamental principles, when implemented effectively including genuinely useful content, solid on-page SEO, a good user experience, and distributing content in places your target audience frequently visits . Outdated tactics include mass automation, poorly invested spam links, and copy-paste growth tricks that don't generate real engagement

 

[bartosimpsonio]

The fundamental principles, when implemented effectively including genuinely useful content, solid on-page SEO, a good user experience, and distributing content in places your target audience frequently visits . Outdated tactics include mass automation, poorly invested spam links, and copy-paste growth tricks that don't generate real engagement

Surprised there are only 2 dashes in this AI generated reply

 

[casinorider]

What’s still worth the effort in 2025 and what’s clearly dead?

Talk about controlled link velocity, diversified anchors, casino-safe links.

 

[Zytech SEO]

Most classic black SEO is pretty much dead in 2025 (spam links, auto-generated junk, cloaking). Short-term loopholes may still work, but they don't last. Google is much faster at detecting patterns now, so anything low-effort usually burns domains quickly.

 

[She Hulk]

Black hat isn’t fully dead in 2025, but most old tricks are. Mass spam, auto-blogs, link blasts, and exact-match anchor abuse are basically useless now.

What still gets tested are well-hidden PBNs, smart expired domains, and AI content that’s heavily edited to look and feel real. Even then, results are usually short-term and risky.

Realistically, black hat today is more about controlled experiments than sustainable rankings. If you’re not ready to lose the site, it’s probably not worth the effort.

 

[Cloud Agency]

In 2025, most black-hat SEO techniques are either virtually dead or high-risk; white-hat is now the most sustainable path, with short-term gains but a higher chance of penalties.

 

[Allisongrant]

Expired domains can work, but they're risky.

 

[techwave]

Some things still work in 2025, but the window is getting smaller. PBNs with clean domains and good content still give results if you’re careful. Parasite SEO and strong tiered links also work pretty well. What feels dead to me are spam blasts and low-quality automation - Google catches those fast now. The stuff that still works is slower and needs more effort, but it’s not completely gone.

 

[tabletennisgear1]

Still worth the effort​

• Learning real skills: coding, video editing, design, writing, AI tools, data basics
• School (strategically): degrees still matter if they connect to skills/internships
• Building an audience (slowly): YouTube, TikTok, Twitch — consistency > virality
• Fitness & health: lifting, sports, sleep, mental health = long-term payoff
• AI literacy: knowing how to use AI beats trying to fight it
• Networking: friends, mentors, communities (online & offline)

 

[tirtho]

Some black SEO tricks still work fast

 

[jimbobo2779]

After an almost year long hiatus I decided to get back to working on a site I had let languish for a while. I played around with the headers on the homepage and then started building a PBN on expired domains. Below are my results since starting around October.




There are lots of ways to improve rankings without praying to the SE gods. Go get backlinks, if you can't build "natural" backlinks, build a PBN and make your own.

 

[Herry412]

In 2025, the “black hat SEO hacks” that mostly died are mass automated spam links and keyword stuffing — Google ignores or filters them now. What still works (carefully) is relevance-based outreach, niche placements, and strategies that look natural. In general: quality beats shortcuts, and safety matters more than ever.

 

[lisa2276]

Most black-hat tactics are clearly risky now and don’t last. In 2025, focusing on quality content and user experience is what consistently works long term.

 

[JamesMosher]

PBNs can still work if done very clean, but cheap public networks are useless now.

 

[Emmafitzgerald]

Parasite SEO is still working for some niches, but result don't last long.