Is your WordPress website secure?
Are your customers’ and visitors’ passwords, credit cards, and personal data safe from the increased amount of cyber security attacks?
Hackers are trying their hardest, and it’s up to you to secure your website even harder.
In this article, you will learn why security matters and what you can do to protect your WordPress website.
Why Security Matters
Is your WordPress website secure?
Are your customers’ and visitors’ passwords, credit cards, and personal data safe from the increased amount of cyber security attacks?
Hackers are trying their hardest, and it’s up to you to secure your website even harder.
In this article, you will learn why security matters and what you can do to protect your WordPress website.
In the first half of 2021, there were more than 86 billion password attack attempts blocked, and it is estimated that there are an average of 30,000 new websites hacked every day.
Hackers and various types of malware are relentless in their attempts to gain access to websites and their sensitive data.
The result?
We are currently seeing an unprecedented amount of cyber security attacks.
This issue affects businesses of all sizes, including yours.
In fact, 43%Â of online attacks now are aimed at small businesses, and only 14% of those businesses are prepared to defend themselves.
Many hackers target large companies for a bigger payoff.
However, small and medium businesses provide an easier target for hackers, due to their lack of resources and security expertise.
Thankfully, there are plenty of steps you can take to protect your WordPress website.
âś“. Start Securing By this Simple Steps.
When setting up your WordPress site security, there are some basic things you can do to beef up your protection.
Here are some of the first things you should implement to help protect your website. Implement SSL Certificates.
Implement SSL Certificates
Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) certificate are an industry standard used by millions of websites to protect their online transactions with their customers.
Obtaining one should be one of the first steps you take to secure your website.
You can buy an SSL certificate, but most hosting providers offer them for free.
Next, use a plugin to force HTTPS redirection, which activates the encrypted connection.
This standard technology establishes an encrypted connection between a web server (host) and a web browser (client).
By adding this encrypted connection, you can ensure that all data passed between the two remains private and intrinsic.
Require & Use Strong Passwords
Along with obtaining an SSL certificate, one of the very first things you can do to protect your site is to use and require strong passwords for all your logins.
It might be tempting to use or reuse a familiar or easy-to-remember password, but doing so puts you, your users, and your website at risk.
Improving your password strength and security decreases your chances of being hacked.
The stronger your password, the less likely you are to be a victim of a cyberattack.
When creating a password, there are some general password best practices you should follow.
If you aren’t sure that you’re using a strong enough password, check the strength by using a free tool like this helpful Password Strength Checker.
Install A Security Plugin
WordPress plugins are a great way to quickly add useful features to your website, and there are several great security plugins available.
Installing a security plugin can add some extra layers of protection to your website without requiring much effort.
To get you started, check out this list of recommended WordPress security plugins.
- Wordfence Security – Firewall & Malware Scan
- All In One WP Security & Firewall
- iThemes Security
- Jetpack – WP Security, Backup, Speed, & Growth
Keep WordPress Core Files Updated
Keeping your WordPress up to date at all times is critical to maintaining the security and stability of your site.
Every time a WordPress security vulnerability is reported, the core team starts working to release an update that fixes the issue.
If you aren’t updating your WordPress website, then you are likely using a version of WordPress that has known vulnerabilities.
As of 2021, there are an estimated 1.3 billion total websites on the web with more than 455 million of those sites using WordPress.
Because it is so popular, WordPress is a prime target for hackers, malicious code distributors, and data thieves.
Don’t leave yourself open to attack by using an old version of WordPress. Turn on auto-update and forget about it.
If you would like an even easier way to handle updates, consider a Managed WordPress solution that has auto-updates built in.
Run Frequent Backups
One way to protect your WordPress website is to always have a current backup of your site and important files.
The last thing you want is for something to happen to your site and you do not have a backup.
Backup your site, and do so often.
That way if something does happen to your website, you can quickly restore a previous version of it and get back up and running faster.
If you’ve completed all the basics but you still want to do more to protect your website, there are some more advanced steps you can take to bolster your security.
Never Use The “Admin” Username
Because “admin” is such a common username, it is easily guessed and makes it much easier for scammers to trick people into giving away their login credentials.
Never use the “admin” username.
Doing so makes you susceptible to brute force attacks and social engineering scams.
Much like having a strong password, using a unique username for your logins is a good idea because it makes it much harder for hackers to crack your login info.
If you are currently using the “admin” username, change your WordPress admin username.Hide Your WP-Admin Login Page.
Hide Your WP-Admin Login Page
By default, a majority of WordPress login pages can be accessed by adding “/wp-admin” or “/wp-login.php” to the end of a URL.
This makes it easy for hackers to start trying to break into your website.
Once a hacker or scammer has identified your login page, they can then attempt to guess your username and password in order to access your Admin Dashboard.
Hiding your WordPress login page is a good way to make you a less easy target.
Protect your login credentials by hiding the WordPress admin login page with a plugin like WPS Hide Login.Use The Latest PHP Version.
Use The Latest PHP Version
Like old versions of WordPress, outdated versions of PHP are no longer safe to use.
If you aren’t on the latest version of PHP, upgrade your PHP version to protect yourself from attack.
1 Comment
Your article helped me a lot, is there any more related content? Thanks!