Five years ago the WordPress community had its annus horribilis. Within ten miserable months the platform earned the unenviable distinction of four major security vulnerabilities. In August came the link injection attacks, exploits so vicious that they compromised user data as if they were opening unlocked doors. Websites swayed like unstable structures and security plugins broke. Next came the spam comment epidemic; then malware distribution; then a bad bout of phishing attempts. After developers stepped in, security experts arrived with solutions. An ecosystem built by open-source collaboration was rebuilt partly by implementing proper rel nofollow noopener attributes across external links.
How to Properly Implement rel nofollow noopener in WordPress
Understanding how to implement these attributes correctly can significantly boost your site's security and SEO performance. When you're working with external links, these simple HTML attributes serve as crucial protection layers that prevent security risks and tell search engines how to handle your link equity.
- Step 1: Access your WordPress editor and navigate to the text or HTML view where you need to add or modify links
- Step 2: Locate the external links you want to modify and identify the anchor tag structure
- Step 3: Within the anchor tag, add rel="nofollow noopener" to existing rel attributes, or create this attribute if it doesn't exist
- Step 4: Ensure the syntax is correct with proper quotation marks and spacing between attributes
- Step 5: Save your changes and test the links to confirm they function correctly while maintaining the new attributes
Many WordPress users find that implementing these changes site-wide becomes much easier when they understand how to customize their site's navigation elements, which you can explore through our guide on modifying WordPress menu structures to maintain consistency across all pages.
What is the difference between nofollow and noopener?
The nofollow attribute primarily serves SEO purposes by instructing search engines not to pass link equity to the linked page, which helps prevent spam and manages your site's ranking power distribution. This is particularly important for user-generated content, sponsored links, or any external links where you don't want to endorse the destination page.
Meanwhile, noopener is a security feature that prevents the newly opened page from accessing your window object through the window.opener property. This stops malicious sites from potentially manipulating your original page, making it essential for links that open in new tabs. When you're working with visual elements on your site, understanding these technical details complements skills like adjusting WordPress typography and color schemes to create both secure and visually appealing websites.
When should I use rel nofollow noopener?
You should use these attributes consistently on all external links that point away from your domain, especially when linking to sites you don't fully trust or control. This includes sponsored content, affiliate links, blog comments, forum signatures, and any user-submitted links where the destination content might change unexpectedly over time.
The security aspect becomes particularly crucial when your site contains multiple external resources, such as when showcasing professional photo editing portfolios that might link to external galleries or photographer websites. Implementing these attributes ensures that even if you're directing visitors to external resources, your own site remains protected from potential security threats that could compromise user experience.
| Attribute | Primary Function | When to Use | Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| nofollow | SEO Control | External/untrusted links | Preserves link juice |
| noopener | Security | All external links | Prevents tabnabbing |
| noreferrer | Privacy | Sensitive referrals | Hides referral data |
Do I need to add noopener to internal links?
Generally, you don't need to add noopener to internal links within your own website since these pages are under your control and inherently trusted. The security risk that noopener protects against primarily comes from external domains that might have malicious intent or compromised security.
This approach helps maintain clean code while focusing security measures where they're most needed. When managing your site's structure, whether you're learning removing unwanted WordPress content or building new pages, keeping internal links simple without unnecessary attributes helps maintain performance and readability in your codebase.
Can rel nofollow noopener affect my SEO?
When used correctly, rel nofollow noopener can positively affect your SEO by preventing link equity leakage to untrusted sites and maintaining your site's authority concentration. Search engines recognize proper implementation of these attributes as responsible linking practices, which contributes to your overall site quality score.
The nofollow component specifically tells search engines that you're not endorsing the linked content, which is particularly important for compliance with search engine guidelines regarding sponsored or user-generated content. Meanwhile, maintaining proper site security through attributes like noopener indirectly supports SEO by reducing the risk of security-related ranking penalties. If you're working on interactive elements like creating WordPress contact forms, implementing these attributes on any external links within form confirmations or thank you pages becomes part of comprehensive SEO strategy.
How do I bulk add rel nofollow noopener in WordPress?
For existing sites with numerous external links, manually adding these attributes to each link would be incredibly time-consuming. Fortunately, several efficient methods exist for bulk implementation, including specialized plugins that can scan your entire site and automatically add the appropriate attributes to external links based on your configured rules.
Another approach involves modifying your theme's functions.php file to automatically output these attributes on all external links, though this requires some technical comfort with code editing. For those managing WordPress on various platforms, understanding PHP environment requirements becomes essential when implementing site-wide changes through code modifications rather than plugin solutions.
Will noopener prevent all security threats?
While noopener provides important protection against specific cross-site scripting attacks like tabnabbing, it doesn't prevent all potential security threats your website might face. It specifically addresses the risk of newly opened windows or tabs accessing your original page's window object, but other vulnerabilities require different security measures.
You should implement noopener as part of a comprehensive security strategy that includes regular updates, strong passwords, and security monitoring. When evaluating your site's overall security posture, tools that help identify WordPress installations and their configurations can provide additional insights into potential vulnerabilities beyond what noopener addresses.
Professional WordPress Services at WPutopia
If implementing technical attributes like rel nofollow noopener seems overwhelming or you want to ensure your entire WordPress site follows best practices, our team at WPutopia provides comprehensive WordPress services. We handle everything from routine WordPress maintenance and theme upgrades to plugin installation and security optimization, ensuring your site remains secure, fast, and professionally managed. Let us handle the technical details while you focus on your content and business growth.
