Google’s John Mueller recommends focusing on data in the Search Console links report when determining which backlinks to disavow.
This topic came up in a recent Google Webmaster Central hangout when a site owner asked if the data contained in Search Console is “enough” to go on when purging bad links.
Here is how the question was phrased:
“Google Search Console shows incoming links. Is it enough to disavow the bad ones that are shown in there in order to get rid of the bad links?”
In response, Mueller says that the links shown in Search Console are the ones that are worth focusing on.
However, Mueller did suggest that it may be worth looking deeper into this data in certain circumstances.
For example, if you notice a pattern of links that you’re not familiar with then it may be worth looking to see if there are more of those types of links.
Does that mean using a third party tool? Mueller was not specific, but the key takeaway is you cannot go wrong disavowing only the links found in Search Console.
See the full question and answer below, starting at the 8:06 mark:
“In general those are the ones that I would focus on. Sometimes if you’re aware of link building that was done in a significant way then the Search Console links can give you an idea of the general pattern, but then it’s still worth looking to see if there are more links that you can also include there. But, for the most part, the data shown in Search Console is really the links that you should be focusing on.”
