What is noreferrer?
Noreferrer is a link type that instructs the browser not to send an HTTP referrer header if the user clicks on the hyperlink. It is built into the 'rel' attribute of a link (a href). Its main functionality is to deter the conveying of referral information to the target site when the link is clicked. This minimizes the risk of sensitive data leakage and ensures the preservation of user confidentiality.
Why is noreferrer important?
Ensuring privacy
The importance of noreferrer lies in its capability to ensure privacy. When a user navigates from one webpage to another, the browser usually sends the URL of the first page to the second. This process potentially exposes sensitive user data. Noreferrer intercepts this transmission, safeguarding user data.
Enhancing security
Noreferrer is a key player in website security. It prevents the exploitation of the ‘window.opener’ vulnerability, a malicious practice where a new page could theoretically manipulate the previous page. By using noreferrer, developers restrict such unwanted intrusions, thus enhancing the security of the webpage.
Preserving data integrity
It also helps to preserve data integrity by preventing referrer spamming. Some sites spam blogs or forums to have their links posted hoping to achieve higher SEO rankings. Implementing the noreferrer attribute, the spamming site would not receive any reciprocal links, thus maintaining the site’s data and SEO integrity.
Types of noreferrer
Strictly speaking, noreferrer is not a context with types or variants. Nonetheless, it can be used with other link type attributes for varying functionalities. Three common combinations with noreferrer are:
Noopener noreferrer
The ‘noopener’ attribute can be employed alongside noreferrer. It prevents the newly opened page from manipulating the referring page using JavaScript while maintaining the functionalities of noreferrer. This combination is generally recommended for optimizing both performance and security.
Nofollow noreferrer
Harnessing the ‘nofollow’ attribute along with noreferrer instructs the search engine to ignore the link. It’s widely used by websites to deter spammers who attempt to enhance their SEO ranking via comments sections of popular websites. This reduces the prospect of spamming.
Noreferrer alone
Lastly, noreferrer can be used solely. The use of noreferrer might be desired when preserving user anonymity is the priority. It may be a choice for sites that are focused on privacy and are not concerned about the performance issue related to ‘window.opener’.
Examples of noreferrer
Usage in blogging platforms
Many blogging platforms automatically add a noreferrer tag to links within comments to protect their site from spammers attempting to increase their SEO ranking.
Use case in social media
Social media sites like Facebook and Twitter employ noreferrer to links. This inhibits their pages from being manipulated by malicious JavaScript and also ensures user privacy.
Application in e-commerce sites
E-commerce sites like Amazon use noreferrer to stop the redirection of sensitive customer information to any other sites, thereby securing customer data.
Handy tips about noreferrer
Use in combination
Noreferrer provides higher security when used with ‘noopener’. When utilized in combination, they aid in mitigating window.opener attacks while preserving the user’s privacy.
Impact on SEO
Noreferrer should be implemented after recognizing its implications for search engine optimization. It could affect the page ranking, given that search engines use referrals to index and rank webpages.
Understanding privacy vs. analytics trade-off
Noreferrer restricts referrer data sharing. While it is helpful in maintaining privacy, it might hinder the website analytics as ‘referrer’ is a key factor in tracing the website traffic origin in analytical tools like Google Analytics.
Conclusion
To summarize, noreferrer is an attribute of HTML5, a significant player in enhancing website privacy and security. It also helps with preserving data integrity by averting potential referrer spamming. Its role in securing data overshadows its minimal negative impacts on SEO rankings or site analytics.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is noreferrer?
Noreferrer is a value of the ‘rel’ attribute in an HTML anchor tag that instructs the browser not to send a referrer header when a user clicks on a link.
Why should noreferrer be used?
Noreferrer ensures user privacy, enhances security, and maintains the integrity of a website by preventing practices like referrer spamming and window.opener attacks.
Does noreferrer affect SEO?
The use of noreferrer can have implications on SEO, as it can affect the page ranking and indexing by search engines that rely on referral data.