Site reputation abuse
Site reputation abuse is publishing third-party content on a trusted site mainly to borrow its search ranking, against Google's rules.
Site reputation abuse is when a well-ranked website hosts content from someone else mainly so that content can borrow the site's standing in search. A news site that runs a third party's coupon pages, or a health site hosting a "best casinos" page, are the classic cases.
It's against Google's spam policies, which Google now calls its site reputation policy. It matters for AI search because many AI answers draw on search results, and pages Google demotes are less likely to be read.
What counts and what doesn't
Google's test is purpose. Third-party content breaks the policy when it's placed on the host mainly to rank better than it would on its own site.
Plenty of third-party content is fine. Google lists wire stories and syndicated news, forums and comments, opinion columns, clearly labelled advertorials, and properly marked affiliate links among the things that don't count.
Why brands should care
It's tempting to buy space on a big site and publish there. A sponsored guide to "the best coffee subscriptions" on a famous magazine's site looks like a shortcut into the pages AI platforms read.
If the guide has nothing to do with the magazine's own work, and exists to rank, it's the kind of page the policy targets. Google can demote that section of the site, and your investment goes with it.
For example, Kestrel Roasters is offered a paid list article on a big lifestyle site, in a section the site's own editors don't touch. It turns that down, and instead sends samples to the site's food writer, who reviews Kestrel alongside two rivals in a regular column. That's editorial coverage, which the policy doesn't target.
In AnswerOrbit
We never recommend posts that hide who you are, or links you pay or trade for. The Pages tab in Sources shows each page's type, and the Gaps tab suggests a way in for each source that names your competitors and not you, such as reaching out to the site or getting listed in a directory.