Before delving into how you can protect your site from common WordPress security risks you need to know what they are, right? Unfortunately, there’s never a one hundred percent guarantee of safety.
All one can do is be aware of how a WP site can be attacked, hacked, and messed with. And then incorporate various security protections, along with ways to safeguard your livelihood in case there’s a security breach!
Common Threats to Your WordPress Website Safety
You’ve built this solid, beautifully SEO-ed website investing a ton of time, money, and faith. Then some jerk comes along and destroys it all, leaving you missing out on revenue thanks to a whole lot of downtime online.
It’s frustrating! Knowing what the common threats to your WordPress business site are, can help you avoid succumbing to a hacker on a mission to destroy your site just because they can.
Outdated Plugins & Themes
Updates for plugins and themes are always a good time. New functionality, better quality, and more features – oh boy! However, there’s always a few kinks to work out and no matter how many times these are tested before releases, nothing is perfect. Once it’s out, patches are released to “fix” problems. After they’re released to the public, it kind of opens up a whole lot of opportunities for hackers and scammers to take advantage of the vulnerabilities and break your site.
Leaving WordPress Core Updates for “Later”
In the same vein as plugins and themes, you have to make sure your WordPress Core is updated. Many people put this off because if you hit that update button, a lot can go wrong. However, this exposes your WP site to a plethora of security vulnerabilities.
And hackers love the door you left wide open for them to walk on through, breaking everything they see along their path. Having a maintenance plan with a dependable WordPress team of professionals allows you to focus on other things instead of worrying about major WP updates.
Poor Security and Credentialing
Inadequate authentication, weak passwords and credentials are the prime reasons behind cyberattacks. Hackers jump on these vulnerabilities so they can worm their way into your most precious company systems to access private data, and do their best to cause financial loss and open your organization to legal liabilities.
Brute Force Attacks & DDoS Attacks
Although BOTH attacks are malicious activities targeting computer systems, each one has a unique method, goal, and impact on a business’s systems.
Brute Force Attacks
Attackers utilize automated tools to gain unauthorized access to a business’s network system so they can take over accounts, breach data, and spread malware.
DDoS Attacks
Instead of attempting to gain unauthorized access by “guessing” passwords, Distributed Denial of Service attacks use a network of infected computers or digital devices (botnet) to send a boatload of requests to its target. The reason: to overwhelm a system with a ton of internet traffic so legitimate users can’t access it, resulting in loss of revenue and reputation with massive server disruptions.
Local File Inclusion
Local File Inclusion is a technique where attackers dupe a web application into running or exposing files on a web server. These attacks expose sensitive information, and often lead to cross-site scripting.
Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)
Malicious code is injected by attackers which is then executed by the victim’s web browser, which can lead to a multitude of security risks. It can steal personal data, alter a website’s functionality, or redirect users to malicious websites. A few example of Cross Site Scripting:
- An email that looks legitimate urges the receiver to click on a link which then injects malicious code into a user’s browser.
- A cyber attacker decides to leave a comment on a website that people can see and click executing the malicious code.
Tips on Protecting Your Site Against Common WP Security Threats
Now you know the biggest baddest threats to your WordPress site, great. So…..now what? Now it’s time to be proactive not reactive! Threats to your livelihood are less scary when you’re prepared to deflect, protect, and if something does happen, easily recover! It’s all about reducing your downtime so it doesn’t mess with your income.
Full transparency, the absolute best “tip” to keep your site running like a well-oiled money producing machine: work with skilled maintenance professionals who handle WordPress regularly! We provide business owners with peace of mind, and it’s the best tip we can give you about protecting against not just common, but all WordPress security threats. s on growing your business instead of handling the day-to-day operations. We’re happy to lend a hand!
Use a Password Generator to Create Strong Passwords When Regularly Changing Passwords
Keeping unauthorized access to your site can often be avoided with strong passwords on every one of your WordPress website user’s login credentials. Passwords must be regularly updated. We can all agree everyone defines regularly differently, right? You have to decide what works best for you and your organization, but quarterly changes would be a good place to start. If you’re not great at coming up with great passwords, find a password generator to help you create strong and long passwords.
Perform Regular Website Backups In Case of Data Loss or Hacking
You can take every precaution but there’s no guarantee you won’t be hacked. We live in a digital world with skilled hackers, and there’s always a chance they’ll get in and inject malicious code. It’s fun for them. Ego drives them – and they can be relentless.
A good backup plugin will run backups and you can send them to cloud-based storage, and keep daily ones in storage just in case you have to go back to find clean backups free of malicious code. If you happen to fall prey to a hacker, backups can often save your sanity, and your income.
Use two-factor authentication
Strong passwords are great. It’s the first step to safeguarding your website. You just have to take it further with two-factor authentication. Setting up two-factor authentication can be as simple as setting up your login so you get texted or emailed a “code” to enter after entering your password to confirm it is, in fact, YOU signing in. Just an extra layer of protection.
OR, you can download an authenticator app to your phone, scan a QR code off of your WP dashboard, and when you log into your WP website, you’ll open up your authenticator app to find a code you can enter to prove it is you and not some lunatic trying to break into your site to wreak havoc.
Install a Security Plugin
Nothing is foolproof, but security plugins are a fantastic way to help protect your website from malware and hackers. One of our favorites is Solid Security from Solid WP, which was once called iThemes Security. Knowing which plugins work best, and how to configure them, is our specialty!
Encrypt Your Website’s Traffic with SSL Certificate
One of the most important aspects of a website users look for these days first-and-foremost: safety. Users want to know their sensitive information remains safe. In order to create a safe space for website users, all sites should obtain an SSL certificate, install it on their web server, and of course, configure the website to use HTTPS rather than HTTP.
With the SSL certificate in place, data transmitted between a website and its visitors is encrypted, which makes it more difficult for hackers to steal sensitive information.
Keep WordPress Core and Plugins Updated
New releases come around quite often in the WordPress world. With every new release, hackers will look for ways to weasel their way into your WordPress site and create a royal mess of things. WordPress Core updates replace main software files with the latest and greatest file versions. It can often open sites to security issues and bugs, and man do those hackers love to jump all over it. The good thing is, after a new release, patches are also released fairly quickly, too.
It’s important to not only do the WordPress Core updates, but also be aware of minor updates that include patches to fix security vulnerabilities as well as bugs. The same goes for plugins. Developers can only test so much before launching new plugins, and some plugins may not be compatible with themes, and other plugins. When updates come out, they could break the website in many ways – but with a professional team doing the updates, you’ll never be left to deal with downtime!
Restrict Website’s Admin Area Access to Trusted Users
It’s always best practice to limit admin area access to only trusted users, which can be done with a few security measures like these:
- Requiring client certificates
- Enforcing IP address restrictions
- Multi-factor authentication
- Using a VPN
- Limiting login attempts
- Using cryptographic URL
Enjoy Maximum Uptime
Creating a safe environment for your users and customers requires a plan! A plan that incorporates:
- taking precautions
- being aware of security risks
- having a reliable and trustworthy WordPress maintenance professional team working tirelessly to maintain your website’s uptime
With great online success there’s also a target on your back, and hackers love nothing more than to spend their time wrecking other people’s work FOR FUN. Let’s make it harder for them to have their fun.
Having WordPress professionals in your corner doing the day-to-day work frees you up to work ON your business, not IN your business!
