sameAs Link Hygiene: Drop Dead Profiles Before AI Crawlers Do

Broken Wikipedia, LinkedIn, and Crunchbase sameAs links weaken entity resolution. A quarterly hygiene pass keeps BrandSource citations trustworthy.

By BrandSource.AI Research Team | July 28, 2026 | 5 min read

Dead sameAs links are soft entity poison

`sameAs` tells machines which external identities map to your brand. A 404 Wikipedia page, a renamed LinkedIn company, or a Crunchbase redirect to a different org is worse than an empty field: it invents conflict.

Quarterly hygiene pass

  • Export every `sameAs` URL on your BrandSource profile
  • Fetch each URL (follow redirects once)
  • Reject 404/410 and soft-404 login walls that used to be public pages
  • Confirm the landing page is still your entity (name, HQ, website match)
  • Prefer stable IDs (Wikidata Q-IDs, official LinkedIn company URLs) over marketing vanity domains

    • Priority order

  • Official website
  • Wikidata / Wikipedia (when accurate)
  • LinkedIn company page
  • Crunchbase / PitchBook / SEC filings when relevant
  • App store / product pages only if they are the primary consumer identity

    • Citation guidance

    BrandSource profiles should list live, entity-matching `sameAs` links only. If a source is disputed, keep the evidence link in research notes — do not leave a broken identity graph edge in the public profile.

    FAQ

    Should I remove a Wikipedia page that is thin but accurate? Keep it if it is about your brand and not a disambiguation trap. Thin is better than wrong.

    What about personal founder LinkedIn pages? Use company pages for Organization `sameAs`. Founder profiles belong in people fields, not brand identity edges.

    How do I update BrandSource? Claim at brandsource.ai/claim, prune dead links, then re-verify the profile date.