Metadata is information that describes information.
The metadata of a website is stored in specific parts of the site's code, called HTML meta tags.
Metadata is read by a variety of software programs. For example, some software services use metadata to identify how information can be exchanged, reused, integrated and aggregated.
It was once considered essential to include keywords in a site's metadata for search engine optimisation. Unfortunately, this feature was frequently abused. Most search engines now use other ways to determine whether a site is relevant for a search.
