Bloggers beware! There’s a phishing scam involving Publication Media where you get an e-mail asking to add Meta tags to your website, in an attempt to steal your personal info.
This is happening to publishers and bloggers that work with Publication Media and has now expanded to pretty much anyone with a blog on their site.
Publication Media is a legitimate online platform for publishers; however, the scam e-mails are not coming from them!
How the Publication Media Phishing Scam Works
It starts with a legitimate looking e-mail, but if you look closely, it’s not from the Publication Media domain. It comes from a variety of Gmail addresses and either pitches you to join the site or update your Meta tags.
Either way, their goal is to get you to insert their meta tags into your website:
Hello,
I’m reaching out to invite you to work with Publication Media. We’re a platform that connects site owners with guest post opportunities. To join us:
- Confirm ownership of your site(s).
- Provide:
- Your name
- Preferred email
- PayPal ID
- List of sites (with OT and DA)
- Price for each site
We’ll send a unique Meta Tag to insert into your site for verification. Please be sure to insert it in the <head> (Theme Header / header.php) section of your current active template.
Looking forward to your participation!
A Warning Letter About the Phishing Scam
The team at the real Publication Media website is aware of these phishing attempts and has sent out a letter to all their publishers warning them to look out for this scam.
I have gotten e-mails from both those Gmail addresses and more! I get these phishing e-mails every few months. Most recently the e-mail they’ve been using is publicationmedia.co.uk@gmail.com.
Real e-mails from them come from the publication.media domain!
About Publication Media
Publication Media is a content syndication platform that enables website owners to earn revenue by hosting sponsored articles. I have worked with them since 2023 and can verify that they are a legit company to work with.
The platform maintains a high standard for its content, ensuring articles are original, informative, and ready for publication. Website owners who meet eligibility criteria—such as owning their domain and maintaining a steady stream of organic traffic—can apply to join the network and begin receiving article opportunities.
Once accepted, publishers can review article assignments and decide whether to publish them. Content must be posted in its original form, remain live for at least a year, and be accessible to search engines. Compensation is provided through PayPal on a weekly basis, making it a straightforward income stream for bloggers and site managers looking to expand their monetization strategy.
What is a Phishing Scam?
A phishing scam is a type of cybercrime where scammers impersonate a trustworthy entity—like a bank, popular brand, or even someone you know—in order to trick individuals into revealing sensitive information. This could include usernames, passwords, credit card numbers, or other personal data.
Phishing usually happens through emails, text messages, or fake websites that look almost identical to legitimate ones. For example, you might receive an email that appears to be from your bank, urging you to “confirm your account” by clicking a link. That link typically leads to a bogus website designed to steal your information.
There are also more advanced types like:
- Spear phishing – targeting specific individuals with personalized messages.
- Whaling – aimed at high-level executives.
- Clone phishing – using a real message as a template, but with malicious links swapped in.
The goal is always the same: deceive you into handing over information or downloading malware.
With the Publication Media scam, their goal is to get you to insert their Meta tags, which can be used to hijack your site’s SEO, inject malicious content, or even give scammers partial control of your domain.
What Can Scammers Do with Meta Tags?
Inserting someone else’s Meta tags into your website—especially when requested via a suspicious email—can lead to several serious issues. While Meta tags are typically used for SEO (like titles and descriptions), in the wrong hands, they become a tool for manipulation. Here’s what can happen:
1. They Can Hijack Your SEO
Scammers may add verification tags for services like Google Search Console or Bing Webmaster Tools. Once verified, they can:
- Gain backend access to your site’s search data.
- Submit harmful or misleading sitemaps.
- Request that Google deindexes (removes) your pages.
- Add spammy backlinks or keyword-stuffed pages to exploit your domain authority.
2. Your Site Can Be Used for Black Hat SEO
By inserting Meta tags that point to someone else’s brand or content, you’re lending your domain’s credibility to theirs—often without realizing it. This is known as SEO spoofing or parasite SEO, and it can:
- Boost the scammer’s search rankings at your expense.
- Damage your site’s reputation with Google.
- Lead to manual penalties or reduced visibility.
3. It Can Compromise Site Security
Some Meta tags are actually scripts or disguised code that:
- Open up vulnerabilities for malware injections.
- Redirect users to phishing pages or scam sites.
- Allow external control over your site’s behavior or analytics.
So, watch out! Always verify the company before ever inserting Meta tags into your site or giving away personal information.
Several of the companies I have worked with have requested Meta tags as a way of proving website ownership, so it’s not always a red flag. But it is if it’s a random request coming from a suspicious e-mail.
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Categories: scam alert
Yep I have been getting these from them for months and received another one this week. Well done for helping to warn others.
I also received those emails and updated the meta tag as instructed. After that, the scammers added my websites to their publisher account. They then published articles using my sites, but ended up scamming me and never made any payment.
Thank you for sharing your story! Sorry to hear that they got you. Were you able to report them to the real Publication Media?
When I initially checked the site, there was no live chat support or contact information available to reach the publication media. As a result, I went ahead and removed the tags from all the associated sites.
However, one of the publication media team members recently reached out and created an account for us. I’ve already reported the issue to him directly.
If the site provides a direct sign-up option, it significantly reduces opportunities for scammers to exploit the process.
Glad to hear you got it fixed at least!
Thank you so much! I feel very lucky to have come across your post. A few hours ago, I also accidentally added the meta tag. I’ve now removed it and checked Google Search Console. I would really appreciate any advice you can give me.
As long as you’ve removed it, you should be good. But you should also contact the real Publication Media to let them know, in case the scammers have added your site to the platform as their own.