It seems like your website has been generating a large number of unwanted pages, which can negatively impact your site’s crawl budget and potentially lead to other issues. Here’s how you can address this problem:
- Identify the Source: To determine which plugin or theme might be responsible for creating these pages, you can start by deactivating plugins one by one and monitoring whether the issue persists after each deactivation. This process can help you pinpoint the plugin that might be causing the problem.
- Review Recent Changes: Think about any recent changes you’ve made to your website, such as installing new plugins, updating themes or plugins, or making changes to your site’s settings. Sometimes, an update or change can inadvertently lead to unexpected behavior.
- Check for Malicious Activity: Unfortunately, unwanted pages can sometimes be a result of malicious activity, such as hacking attempts or malware infections. Use security plugins or tools to scan your website for any signs of unauthorized access or malicious code.
- Review Server Logs: Your web server’s access logs can provide valuable insights into how these pages were generated. Look for patterns or unusual requests in the logs that might indicate the source of the issue.
- Redirect or Block: Once you’ve identified the source of the problem, you can take steps to address it. If the pages are being generated by a plugin, you can disable or remove the plugin. If they are the result of malicious activity, you may need to take further steps to secure your website.
- Remove Unwanted Pages: After addressing the underlying issue, you’ll want to remove the unwanted pages from your website. You can do this manually by accessing your website’s database and deleting the relevant entries, or you can use a plugin or tool to help you bulk delete pages.
- Submit Removal Requests: To ensure that these pages are removed from search engine indexes, you can use the Google Search Console’s URL Removal tool to request the removal of the unwanted URLs. This can help prevent them from appearing in search results and wasting your crawl budget.
By following these steps, you should be able to identify the source of the unwanted pages on your website and take appropriate action to resolve the issue. Additionally, staying vigilant and regularly monitoring your website for any unusual activity can help prevent similar issues from occurring in the future.