What Does rel=”noopener” in WordPress Mean?
If you have ever selected to open a link in a new window, then you have come across the rel=”noopener” attribute. What exactly is it and what does it mean for your website? The purpose of this post is to explain this attribute in length so as to help you understand how this affects your WordPress website.
What is rel=”noopener”?
The rel=”noopener” is a HTML attribute that is added to WordPress links that have been selected to open in new browser tabs. This attribute is often followed by rel=”noreferrer” attribute. The purpose of this is to address the security vulnerability that can be exploited by malicious websites.
There are JavaScript features that enable a new tab to get control of the referring window. If you have linked to an external website which has been affected by malicious code, the website can use the window.opener JavaScript property to alter the original page (in this case your website). This later leads to the theft of information as well as the spread of that malicious code.
The use of the rel=”noopener” helps prevent the new tab from altering your website using the described JavaScript feature. In the same way, the rel=”noreferrer” attribute prevents the passing of referrer information t new tabs.
Simply put, the rel=”noopener” is one of the ways WordPress stays ahead of the herd to keep your website safe. Whenever you add a link and select it to ‘Open in New Tab’, WordPress will add these attributes to the code of the link. The code will look something like this:
<a href=https://example.com target=”_blank”
rel=”noreferrer noopener” aria-label=”This is an external link (opens in a new tab)”>demo link<a/>
Does rel=”noopener” affect SEO?
Although the rel=”noopener” will improve the security of your website, most users avoid using it because they feel it will impact WordPress SEO. This is nothing but a myth. The use of this attribute has no impact on your SEO rankings or the performance of your WordPress website.
Is there a difference between noopener” and nofollow?
It is quite easy to mix the rel=”noopener” with the rel=”nofollow”. It is good to note that these are two completely different attributes. Noopener prevents your site from cross-site hacking and improves security. The nofollow, on the other hand prevents websites from passing SEO link juice to linked websites. The nofollow attribute is considered by search engines when a following a link on your site. No consideration is given to the noopener tag. What is more is that the nofollow attribute is not added automatically by WordPress. You have to add using a plugin.