Hide a page from Google

[sgoree]

I have a password protected page for my site that has member information on it. I just found out that if you google search for a members name it will take you straight to that page that I THOUGHT was under lock and key. How can I hide that page so that search engines will not pick up on it?

www.hillcresthuntingclubinc.com

[Tom Finley]

Re: Hide a page from Google

It is likely because the page is cached on the member's browser--meaning the login information is still available to his browser. Anyone else would get the login request. Clear your browser cache to see if this is what's happening.

[sgoree]

Re: Hide a page from Google

I know what you are talking about but this is different. I had a member that did not even have his password yet and just googled his name and got to our members only page because his info is on there. I have got to figure out how to stop this quick. You can google the member's name, then scroll down near the bottom to see a listing called members only; that is my page.

[Vasili]

Re: Hide a page from Google

You need to have in place an updated and accurate robots.txt and sitemap.xml files to comprehensively instruct the bots to observe the parameters you preset for their caching routines.

In the robots.txt file you specifically configure the 'allow' and 'disallow' rules for page views (find instructions HERE), and these page-specific instructions need to be mirrored in the sitemap.xml file as well (find an outline HERE).

Protecting casual/Visitor access is one thing, preventing cached views is another.

[sgoree]

Re: Hide a page from Google

Ok, I have done the site map and I have cleared my cache and I still get the same results. If you could/would, google the name Skip Royster and see if you get our members only page?

[Vasili]

Re: Hide a page from Google

Once cached, you cannot remove a page from public view .... not how any SE works.
Sounds like you did not complete the equation by having an accurately defined robots.txt file created to compliment and enforce your properly edited sitemap.xml file.

You need to have all the efforts in place before you publlish a final page version: for instance, if you had actually written out a Web Plan, you could have basically published blank pages as placeholders, so the sitemap could be generated and the robots.txt file could be properly configured having all the pages and links in place... and the SE's would then only cache a blank page (if they somehow got around the Rules files).
After this first site "read" by the SE's, then you would go ahead and populate your pages with whatever content is necessary and simply re-publish them, knowing that once the Rules are in place and the SE's had only the opportunity to cache a blank page, your pages are indeed fully protected.

You can't "un-shoot" a bullet ....

[sgoree]

Re: Hide a page from Google

I understand, now! thank you for the expination. This is the first time I have tried a page like this, thus my mistakes! I supposed deleting the page and then republishing it would not work either? I hate to take it down perm. but I don't know what else to do and I have to do something.


Thank you for all of your help.

[Vasili]

Re: Hide a page from Google

Whatever content you had on the cached version will be up there until the SE's decide that it will in fact give greater import to your "Rules" and cache only active pages and focus only on those pages that "promise" to have better information, based on the tight relevancy and construct compliance that is evident. Too bad, so sad.

As long as you have a copy of it in your BV folder, you can always re-publish it if needed in an emergency. Can't have it both ways, you know .... something has to bend to obey the Rules of how the WWW works!

Keep it fun, no matter what you decide to do!