Category: Website Security

WordPress Website Security: 7 Proven Security Strategies

Are you concerned about your WordPress website security and unsure about the necessary steps to take? Look no further, this blog is here to help!

Have you heard that WordPress is used by more than 455 million websites and over a million WordPress theme is available on the internet? This indicates that the web hosting behemoth controls an amazing 35% of the global market share for websites. Each and every month, WordPress is used by at least 400 million people all over the world. As a result of this, it should be clear why there is a rising demand for you to make your WordPress site as resistant to cyberattacks as is humanly possible.

Nonetheless, despite the fact that it is not one of the top 50 SaaS firms, WordPress is one of the most widely used content management systems in the world. But, if the content is susceptible to cyberattacks, what good is it to use a CMS that is considered to be excellent?

In point of fact, 90% of all stolen content management system websites in 2018 were powered by WordPress. On the other hand, just 2% of the data leaks were caused by a vulnerability in the basic security of WordPress. In other words, users were the ones responsible for exposing their websites to a variety of risks, most commonly through the use of insecure plugins.

It is probable that the very last thing you want is for your website to be found amidst the turmoil of a cyberattack if it is powered by WordPress, and this would be the absolute worst-case scenario. Due to the ever-increasing dangers that may be found on the internet today, ensuring your website’s safety should be one of your top priorities when developing it.

To assist you in maintaining the safety of your WordPress website, we have developed a list of the seven most effective tactics and best practices. Continue reading to find out how to keep your website and its data secure.

7 Tips to Help You Maintain WordPress Website Security

To get things started, I’ll provide you with some shortcuts (pardon the pun) that you may implement on your WordPress website in order to make it more secure.

1. Choose a WordPress Host that Offers Security

One of the most important things to think about when it comes to risk management for your project is selecting a trustworthy WordPress host. Because the WordPress host you choose plays such an important part in the overall protection of your website, you simply cannot afford to choose any old hosting service. You need to go with the option that offers multiple layers of security at the server level.

You shouldn’t be in a hurry to choose a host for your WordPress site. Rather, take your time looking into the various possibilities. It goes without saying that you should steer clear of hosting services that are suspiciously inexpensive.

In the end, the fact that they are selling their services at prices that are relatively cheaper than average is almost always an indication of concealed problems. If you are not very knowledgeable about technology, you should probably avoid the temptation to host your WordPress sites on a personal virtual private server (VPS). Finding a host that is capable of successfully addressing security events is the superior alternative. This would be a web host service that you can put your faith in.

You can feel certain that your website will be protected in every possible way if you use the services of a reputable hosting provider and sign up for their plans. You can also investigate the numerous tiers of recurring remote support that all these hosting providers make available to their customers.

Generally speaking, the ideal WordPress host is one that conducts virus scans on a daily basis and provides help around the clock. Check to see if the potential WordPress host you’re considering uses an automatic distributor to remain on top of their customers’ calls; this is one of the most common ways that 24-hour support providers handle their customers’ calls.

2. Ensure that your version of PHP is always up to date.

Your WordPress website will not function properly without the Hypertext Preprocessor, also known as PHP. On the server for your website, you should always utilize the most recent version.

As a general rule, each new release of PHP receives full support for around two years until being replaced by a newer version. Throughout the time span of two years, the developer may become aware of various vulnerabilities in the software that may require periodic fixes and patches.

PHP 7.4 is currently the most up-to-date version of the PHP programming language. Despite this, PHP.net continues to offer support for versions 7.2 and 7.3. In those other words, WordPress users who are still operating PHP versions 7.1 or lower are at a greater risk of being targeted by cybercriminals (Also Read: PHP 101).

According to the statistics provided by WordPress, an astonishing 32 percent of its customers are operating their websites using an outmoded version of PHP. It is terrifying to consider the variety of vulnerabilities in cybersecurity that they consistently expose their websites to. While it is true that business owners and website owners need some time to test the compatibility of their code with new versions of PHP, this is not an acceptable justification for running a website without the appropriate security support.

There is more to consider than just the layout template when developing a responsive website. Using an old version of PHP can have a negative influence, both on the performance and the efficiency of your website, in addition to the security risk it poses. Using the most recent release of PHP on your WordPress website is always the wisest course of action to take. Social platforms have positive as a service (CPaaS) solutions that make it simpler to ask for the assistance you require from service providers when you are unsure of what steps to take in a certain situation.

3. Ensure the safety of your passwords

You might be surprised to learn how many individuals don’t bother to set secure passwords, despite the fact that this piece of advice might come across as patronizing and a little bit like a broken record.

As according to SplashData, the number “123456” was the most commonly used password throughout the entirety of 2018. If that information did not surprise you, the following item on the list was, wait for it, the word “password.”

Using such passwords makes WordPress sites an easy target for hackers, which is something you probably already know without the help of a web expert. Because of this, mobile device management, often known as MDM, is an essential component of most projects. It indicates that you will have a device and team that are only devoted to helping you safeguard your device.

You can contact digital customer support for assistance in choosing a safe password for your site if you are having trouble doing it on your own. If you’re curious what digital customer service is, it’s a system that, rather than using a VoIP phone system, provides answers to your questions using various digital platforms. Some examples of these platforms are text messages, chat messaging, and social networking.

Anyone who is attempting to safeguard a digital system should follow the best practice of using a password that is both unique and difficult to guess on average. Although a strong password is a great strategy to protect your WordPress site from intrusion, many users complain that they end up forgetting it after making it too complicated.

You can store the password to your WordPress account in a database that is encrypted on your personal computer, or you can use a password manager that is accessible online. There are various options available to you. This ensures that your passwords in the cloud storage are protected.

No matter whatever option you go with, you need to make sure that the password you use for your WordPress website is both secure and, most importantly, distinct.

4. Ensure that your WordPress website has two-factor authentication.

Two-factor authentication, also known as 2FA, is an additional layer of internet security that required people to authenticate their identity through the use of not one but two distinct methods of authentication. The majority of the time, this will consist of either a code that is texted to the person’s device or emailed to their address or a confidential personal inquiry.

Increasing the level of protection on your WordPress website by implementing a procedure known as two-factor authentication is an efficient approach to do it. It is also helpful for tasks like sharing encrypted files with one another. The very greatest feature is that you get to pick the two authentication modules that you put into use.

A lot of people decide to utilize the Google Authenticator app, which will deliver a one-of-a-kind code to their phone in the form of a text message. The application will, without a doubt, make certain that you are the only person who can get such SMS sent to them.

5. Only install plugins that are safe

Installing plugins that provide users with assistance in enhancing their online activities and distinguishing themselves from the crowd is one of the leading design trends for WordPress websites. Nonetheless, this liberty may at times represent a security risk in and of itself.

According to Wordfence, insecure plugins were responsible for approximately 60 percent of the data breaches that occurred among WordPress users in 2016. Hence, as you can see, operating your site with a plugin whose level of security has not been certified may put your website in jeopardy. As a result, it is in your best interest to install plugins on your website that are both secure and reliable.

If you want to make sure that this is the case, you may start by checking in the “popular” or “featured” category on the WordPress site or getting it directly from the developer. Both of these options are good places to look. Always make careful to read the tiny print to confirm that they have concrete policies about security.

Some plugins even give users access to built-in malware scanners, firewalls, and automated database backups. There is no doubt that this is a very good sign to keep an eye out for. Even after you have installed plugins that are known to be secure, you must always keep them updated. If you do not download the most recent bug fixes, security updates, and version upgrades, you could be putting your plugins in danger and opening a conduit for cybercriminals.

6. Set the maximum number of times a user is allowed to try to log in.

There is no limit number of times that you are allowed to attempt to log in to your WordPress account when it is set up by default. If you are unable to remember your password, you will not be locked out of the website and can continue to try to access it. Even while you might think that this is a benefit if you have a history of forgetting passwords, it actually puts your WordPress sites in danger.

You need to understand that cybercriminals are also aware of this vulnerability, and they take advantage of it. In most cases, they start by compiling a list of common usernames and passwords, and then they add any user data that they have stolen or bought. After that, they go to websites powered by WordPress and employ bots to try hundreds of different login and password combos in a span of less than an hour. There are instances when it is successful and other times when it is not. A forceful assault is the name given to this method of computer hacking.

But, if you restrict the number of times a user can attempt to log in to your site, you can significantly reduce the likelihood that your website will become the target of malicious cyberattacks. If you put your max try limit to three, for example, once that number has been reached, the website will prevent access to that person (or bot) for a certain amount of time.

7. Use SSL to encrypt the data on your website

Last but not least, installing a secure socket layer is among the most effective measures you can do to safeguard your WordPress website (SSL). When you install an SSL certificate on your website, all of the data transfers that take place between your server and the site’s visitors will be encrypted. Also, it will change your website’s protocol from HTTP to HTTPS. An SSL is an absolute must if your organization intends to enhance its approaches to e-commerce.

You see, hackers are able to employ something called a man-in-the-middle attack on HTTP websites, which allows them to examine the data that users to your website transfer to the server. This can lead to data breaches and other consequences of cyberattacks. A website that uses HTTPS encrypts all of its site traffic and data, making it impossible for anybody else to view it.

Happily, the procedure for getting an SSL certificate may be described as being rather basic. It only requires that you buy it from a Certificate Authority and then install it on your WordPress website to complete the process.

Then you will need to adjust your website address such that it displays the prefix HTTPS. Certificate Authorities are capable of helping you with the purchasing and ultimate installation of the program by utilizing the appropriate cloud-based call center software. It is imperative that you acquire an SSL certificate as soon as possible if your website does not already have one.

Author bio

Travis Dillard is a business consultant and an organizational psychologist based in Arlington, Texas. Passionate about marketing, social networks, and business in general. In his spare time, he writes a lot about new business strategies and digital marketing for DigitalStrategyOne.

Website Security Recommendations After Russian Attack

Fight back against increased cyberattacks with these free tools and resources

The WordPress security company Wordfence urged WordPress users to keep an eye out for hacking activity after the Russian attack on Ukraine. It also provided tips to help avoid becoming a victim of state-sponsored cyberattacks.

A new version of the Shield’s Up site recently added more information about possible cyberattacks originating from Russia, according to the United States Government Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).

Secure websites protect search visibility

The security of a website is not considered an SEO issue by most members of the SEO community. Cyberattacks, however, can have a significant impact on a website’s visibility in search results and the ability to display relevant content.

The security of websites is an essential part of SEO, as hacking and other security breaches can negatively affect search visibility.

Wordfence recommends higher vigilance

The prevalence of state-sponsored cyberattacks is on the rise, especially on government and infrastructure websites.

In the current situation, there may also be a threat to commercial websites. Wordfence urged publishers to increase their awareness.

At this early stage, Wordfence acknowledged that state-sponsored hacking events have not yet increased, but nevertheless advised publishers to stay alert as the days and hours proceed.

Here are the steps you should take to protect yourself from cyberattacks according to a Wordfence alert:

  • Read up on phishing and social engineering.
  • Using more than one authentication method will ensure you are protected.
  • Developers of WordPress plugins need to be extra cautious so that they are not compromised and used to spread exploits to all their client sites.
  • Be vigilant about your log files so you can spot suspicious activity.
  • Be sure to keep an eye out for new files (and malicious ones) on your website.

Tips on Cybersecurity

The United States Government CISA also published tips and a list of tools and resources that can help organizations prepare to prevent cyber intrusions.

Some of the measures provided by CISA include:

  • Identify and fix known security vulnerabilities in software.
  • Use multi-factor authentication (MFA).
  • Remove outdated software that has no updates available.
  • Replacement of any system that relies on a default/unchangeable password
  • Register for Cyber Hygiene Vulnerability Scanning with CISA -vulnerability@cisa.dhs.gov

Free Resources For Cybersecurity

A comprehensive list of free tools provided on the CISA website can assist in preventing or mitigating cyberattacks.

Below is a partial list of free tools and services:

  1. Cisco Immunet for Microsoft Windows

2. Windows Defender Application Guard

3. Free Protection from Distributed Denial of Service by Cloudflare

4. Secure Socket Layer Certificate from Cloudflare

5. Blocks malware and viruses-infected sites with- Quad9 for Android

6. Quad9– blocks malware and viruses from accessing computers and devices

7. “Project Shield“- provides free protection against DDoS attacks against news, human rights, and election monitoring sites.

8. Vane2– A free vulnerability scanner for WordPress

Consider enhancing your security

Virtually every website is vulnerable to a variety of attacks at any given time.

Due to recent developments in Ukraine, however, the possibility of Russian state-sponsored hacking has increased.

It is important for WordPress publishers to install a trusted security plugin like Wordfence and increase security using the free tools and tips listed above.

References

Review the Wordfence Advisory

The State Of Vigilance – Ukraine Is Being Attacked

Check out the U.S. Government’s Cybersecurity Advisory

Shields Up

Government of the United States of America’s Recommendation Free Security Software

Services and Tools for Cybersecurity

Quick Tips To Make Your WordPress Website Secure

WordPress platform is one of the most popular Content Management System (CMS) that powers more than 30% of websites. As this platform grows day by day, hackers have been watching it and are now beginning to specially target WordPress websites. These hackers do not care what type of content are you providing on your site, they won’t spare you. There are certain security measures that you need to take in order to secure your site. This is a serious concern that needs to address carefully.

To secure your WordPress site there are few things that you need to keep in mind. In this blog, we will share our 10 Best Tips to keep your WordPress website secure.

1. Hosting Company

The first step you can take is to choose the best & most secure hosting provider that provides multiple layers of security. It may be looking good to go with the cheaper hosting service after all saving money on your website hosting means you can spend it elsewhere within your organization. But, we suggest you not take this for granted. It is a good decision for now but after it could turn into a nightmare. The most common threat is that our data could be completely erased or could be stolen by hackers.

Spending more money on the hosting service will make sure that you are adding an additional layer of security that is automatically attributed to your website. Choosing good hosting will significantly speed up your WordPress site. Faster loading of the website means more business.

2. Use Premium Themes

The logic behind using the premium themes is that these are coded by highly skilled developers and are tested to pass multiple checks right out of the box. We highly recommend using the WordPress Premium themes because WordPress premium themes look more professional and have more customizable options than a free theme. Moreover, they also provide great support and you can fully customize the theme according to your needs. Above all, you will get regular theme updates which are beneficial in many ways.

There are many sites that provide you with nulled or cracked themes. These themes are the hacked version of the premium theme. that you probably think it is a good idea to save a few bucks. But don’t be tricked by them. These free pirated themes contain malicious code by the hacker, you could end up destroying your website and database or log your admin credentials.

3. Security Plugins

Well, you can’t be always there to secure your website from hackers or malware. It is a time-consuming task to regularly check up on your website security for malware, until or unless you regularly update your knowledge of coding practices. Even if you try to do that you won’t be able to spot the malware code. Lucky for you there are people who think of that and developed the security plugins.

A security plugin will work 24/7 to scans for malware and monitors your site regularly. These plugins offer security activity auditing, remote malware scanning, blacklist monitoring, effective security hardening, security notifications, and even a website firewall (for a premium user).

4. Unique Password

Password is one of the most important aspects of website security and unfortunately often overlooked. To secure your website it is essential to use a complex password or one that is auto-generated with a variety of numbers and special characters. If you are using simple passwords like series of numbers or letters then you are at risk of being exposed because it’s an easy guess for the hacker. You immediately need to change your password right away to avoid any loss of data.

5. Disable File Edit Option

When you set up your WordPress there is a code editor option on your dashboard. This editor is used to modify the code of your theme & plugin. You can access it by going to Appearance>Editor or Plugins>Editor. It is a good feature as long as you are the only one using your site dashboard. It can dangerous because if hacker get access to your WordPress admin panel, they can inject malicious code to your theme and plugin. Some the corrupted code is so subtle you may not notice anything is wrong until it is too late. So when you are about to make your website live we suggest to disable the file edit option. You can do by simply paste the following code in your wp-config.php file in your WordPress folder.

define(‘DISALLOW_FILE_EDIT’, true);

6. SSL Certificate

The Single Socket Layer also known as SSL is a protective shield for all kind of websites. It is initially used to make your site more secure by encrypting the information before it is transferred between their browser and your server. It is recommended for all the sites that carry an sensitive information like passwords, or credit card details. Without it all of the information between the user’s web browser and your web server are delivered unsecured way. By adding the SSL you making your site more secure and your data less likely to be stolen.

Recently Google also recognized importance of SSL certificate and said that site with SSL certificate a more weighted place within its search results. Well nothing good comes for free and SSL certificate also have price range around $70-$199 per year. Moreover, almost every hosting companies provides free SSL certificate which you can install on your website.

How To Password Protect Your WordPress Site

Need a password protection system for your WordPress site? If you’d like to add password protection to your website, there are many different ways to go about it, whether it’s protecting your whole WordPress site, just a piece of content, or even part of a public page.

The strategy works wonders in a world where privacy is important, as establishing your own private Internet space is a very valuable thing to do. Your entire WordPress website can be password protected in order to create such a private website. As many methods as possible will be covered in this post.

Why Should Your Website Be Password Protected?

Creating a secure working space for your team to share data could be beneficial, A place for you to keep track of your ideas while you work on a project you cannot share, Or, share content with your family without worrying about your data being sold to third parties, etc.

No matter what reason you are wanting to have a private website, WordPress offers the most secure, affordable, and simplest solution.

Top Password Protecting Plugins for Websites

Password Protected

Putting passwords on your site is really easy with Password Protected, one of the top free plugins for word-protecting your entire site, with more than 200,000 active installs. Plugin installation is quite simple.

This is a complete website security solution, but it doesn’t include multimedia protection. Key Features:- Sites are password protected by using a single password, Admin access can be set, An easy use setup process, Feeds can be accessed.

Password Protection for WooCommerce

Password protection is a feature of this plugin, which is unique to the protection of online stores. Using this plugin, you can password-protect your entire store so that sales can only be made to people who know your password.

The Password Protection For WooCommerce plugin completely secures all of your store’s items and web pages. Key features:- Create a login page that’s customized, Multi-password creation capability, Password protection for WooCommerce stores and products.

Password for Access Category

There is also a free service called Access Category Password that helps protect websites with passwords. In contrast, this plugin is designed to protect only specific categories on your website.

A password is required to access all posts in a specified category when the plugin is enabled. Key Features:- Customizable password form, A password protection option for categories, Providing non-password protected access to users.

Getting Started With Password Setup

As a part of this demonstration, we’ll use the free Password Protected plugin.

Here are the steps:-

>> 1. Install Password Protected Plugin

Click Plugins >> Add New on the WordPress dashboard.

Look for a plugin that supports password protection. Then click Activate.

After that,

>> 2. Choose how to secure your website

You need to configure the plugin after the installation.

Go to Settings >> Password Protected plugin page to configure the plugin.

To activate password protection for your website, select the Enabled box next to it.

You can then allow logged in users and administrators to view your website without entering a password.

Make sure you set a custom password, too.

Save your changes by clicking Save after you’re done

>> 3. Check The Plugin

Go to your website in a private window in your browser. A password entry screen will now appear.

In essence:- Cookies are used by the Password Protected plugin to secure websites. Caching plugins should be made exceptions for plugins that do not work on your site. Find out if your hosting provider has built-in caching.

The options for password-protecting WordPress are numerous, whether you want to restrict access to your entire site, part of your content, or something in the middle.

Adapt your approach to fit your needs.

How to keep your business’s website safe and secure

Internet security is a huge concern for businesses, no matter what size your company is or what industry you operate in. As long as you have a website, you are exposed to some level of risk. There are a number of different types of cyber-attacks that you can fall victim to, from ransomware to malware, but luckily there are also a number of different steps you can take to help reduce that risk. Here’s a list of some to get you started. Take a look and see which ones you can implement today.

Keep all your software updated

Whether you use WordPress or another content management system, you should always keep your software up to date. While those notifications may seem to pop up at the most unhelpful times, updates often include security fixes, so it’s best not to ignore them. Hackers can exploit weaknesses quickly, so the sooner you plug those holes, the better.

Use remote browser isolation

This might be one fix you haven’t heard of. Remote browser isolation vendors offer a service whereby cyber threats are neutralized through the use of a virtual remote browser. All code is isolated on that browser. Then the endpoint receives harmless pixels. The best part is that there is no change to the experience of the end-user, meaning there’s no need for complicated training or changing your online behavior in order to reduce risk.

Be wise with your passwords

Although this may seem like a very obvious piece of advice, you’d be surprised by how many people still write their passwords down, share them with friends and coworkers, use the same one for every website, or use ones that are easy to guess such as ‘password’ or ‘123456’. The best tip is to create a strong, unique password for every website you use. It should be a mix of uppercase and lowercase letters, plus numbers and special symbols. Using something that only has meaning to you also helps. If you find it hard to remember all your passwords, use a password manager – then you only need to remember the one password for that program. Multi-factor authentication (where possible) is another great way to add an extra layer of security to your accounts.

Use a VPN

Very simple yet effective, a VPN, or Virtual Private Network, masks your IP address and hides your location, serving as a sort of online shield to protect your data. In addition to reducing the risk of cyber-attacks, it can also be very useful for providing safe remote access to your business’s network for employees – even when traveling abroad. It’s especially reassuring when using public WiFi, which is notorious for being easy to hack.

Install SSL

SSL, which stands for Secure Sockets Layer, is a computing protocol that uses encryption to make your website more secure. It’s what changes the ‘http’ at the beginning of a URL to ‘https’, and is a sign that you can trust that webpage. If you have forms on your website where people fill in private information such as bank details, then you should absolutely be using SSL encryption. It prevents anyone else from seeing or accessing the data that is entered. There are many different types of SSL certificates available, so take a look and see which one is best for your company.

Back up regularly

Just like with documents, making regular backups of your website is always a good idea, as it enables you to restore it quickly if you are unfortunate enough to experience any problems. The most important time to back up is before you make any big changes to your website. You can do this manually or use a plugin or extension that will do the job for you automatically.

Hire an expert

Of course, it’s possible to take all these steps yourself and be confident in your internet security, but for true peace of mind, it’s always worth calling in the experts. They can perform regular and comprehensive audits of your cybersecurity, monitor for threats and malicious activity, and be ready to fix any problems that may occur instantly. It might be more of an investment, but it’s worth it in the long run for the extra protection that you’ll gain.

Things To Do When Your WordPress Site Is Hacked

Generally, people think that hackers only attack new and weak websites but it not true their main attraction is old stablish and popular websites.

let’s first see how to identify the signs of a hacked site after it we look at what you should do if your site gets infiltrated.

Most incidents of hacking occur as a result of data breaches, where hackers are able to access the sensitive website or company information, such as passwords and usernames. Cybercriminals can gain entry through individuals or through software systems.

Indicators that your website is hacked

  • If you cant login to your website.
  • If suddenly the site traffic rate goes down.
  • If unwanted bad links appearing on the website, especially on the footer
  • If your site’s homepage is malformed.
  • If suspicious or unsolicited user accounts appear which may also hijack the admin role.
  • If your website gets slower than normal then normal speed.
  • If unknown scrips and code running on your server.
  • If you will face difficulties in send and receive emails.
  • If you will see unwanted scheduled tasks.
  • If Suspicious add appears in the popup.

If you will face any of the signs above, it means your website is hacked. It is easy to feel helpless, desperate and frustrated at this point, but you can remain calm and fix the problem.

You can try the bellow things to get over the hack.

Contact your hosting company

Generally, good hosting companies are helpful in such situations. Such has been released in the past with tech-savvy and experienced staff, and so they can help you quickly.

If your site is on a shared server then it is possible that the hacker can use another website on the server to access your site. In this case, the hosting company can help you with how the hacking started and spread. They can also tell you where your site’s weakness is.

To make sure your site is secure, and to ensure that your site has hacked then dont worry you have a supportive hosting team and they will help you.

If you’re not sure which hosting is good because they all offer different options at different costs, then our post will be helpful for you on the best WordPress hosting.

Hire a professional

If your site is hacked, you need to clean it up quickly and you dont know how to do that then you should consider contacting a professional for help. An infected site usually deteriorates as time progresses, which is why you should seek help from an expert to fix the problem and make the website secure.

Restore the site’s previous version

If you’re diligent about storing backups of your WordPress website (We highly recommend a backup of your site and store it on any vault services), you’ve had a chance to restore it. If you store site backups and suddenly got hacked then dont worry just use your backup and restore the site on the last version.

When restoring old backups always keep in mind that the entire site will revert to the last version. This means you will lose your earlier changes that you have made in the site like new images and gallery and post. However, an old and clean website is better than a hacked one.

After successfully restoring an older version of your site, remember that your site is not hack-proof yet. Therefore, you should move fast to add a layer of security and escalate potential malicious activity and common cybersecurity threats.

Check your site’s user permissions

You need to log into your website’s dashboard and you should check that all WordPress user’s permissions. Confirm that only you and your team can access the administrator accounts and no other one can interfere with your site. If you will find any suspicious user then immediately delete it.

If you want to monitor user access and behavior on your website, we have recently written about the WordPress Security Audit Log plugin and how it can improve user accountability on your WordPress site.

Change all passwords associated with your website

Make sure that you have changed all passwords that you used to access cPanel, WordPress dashboard, FTP client, MySQL database, and any others that you can give to an outsider on the website.

If you have changed passwords with new and secure words that will give headaches to some of the best hackers. To achieve this, consider using a password generator or a complete sentence with spaces, letters, symbols, and numbers as your password.

Final thought

Please try all the above suggestions to secure your website. Site security is the most important factor and difficult job as well. You need to always keep an eye on every point to secure the site.

Best Practices Of WordPress Security For 2019

As the world is migrating to the internet, it has become more than what it was until a years ago. What started as a simple network to inter-connect a few systems is now a colossal web center-piece of interconnected networks, devices, and users. But, as the internet is taking shape as the centre-piece for the world – business, education, networking, storage, etc. Internet security is becoming a serious concern.

Every day, search engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing blacklist thousands of websites for signs of malware and security threats. Today, we do so many things online – shopping, managing finances, trading, running a business and even for storing sensitive information. But for a hacker, all these are rewarding targets.

WordPress And Security

Over the past decade, WordPress has grown as one of the most popular platforms to develop websites. From contributors using it for their blogs, to businesses using it for their business profiles; WordPress is the people’s favorite for creating websites. However, apart from taking care of the website ranking and focusing on the audience, the one other thing that is very important is security.

For any website owner or developer, protecting their website from security threats is a primary concern. Having a website on a popular platform like WordPress offers you a great collection of benefits, but also puts you on the radar of hackers. Now, the bigger question is – How can you continue reaping the benefits of the platform while safeguarding your website/ portal or blog.

Why Would Someone Attack Your Website?

No matter if you think your blog small or irrelevant, for the hackers, it is merely a target. A target that they can use for their advantage. A hacker can benefit from your website, your traffic and the audience in numerous ways.

  1. Redirect the traffic to other URLs so as to boost the incoming traffic for those websites.
  2. Gather sensitive information about the users or to spread malware while using the credibility of your website as a cover.
  3. They can use your services for spamming and spreading illegal information while protecting their true identities.

All these not only affect your website ranking but also your reputation and revenue.

If the websites are so prone to security threats, one might question the integrity and security of the WordPress platform. To answer that – WordPress in itself is secure and keeps up with the standards to safeguard against attacks at best. However, it is the responsibility of the website administrators to keep up with the best practices and prevent themselves from such threats.

Professional SEO experts like Joel House Australia SEO emphasize the importance of internet security. And, resort to employing the best practices for implementing security protocols for their WordPress clients.

What Are The Best Security Practices?

  1. Keep your core WordPress platform updated
    Like all other software and applications, the WordPress community is constantly upgrading, building better features and fixing bugs. Using an outdated platform puts you at high risk, as those loopholes might expose your website to threats. Thus, make sure to update your core application on a regular basis.
    Furthermore, you should avoid uncovering the version of your WordPress application or any plugins you are running. This can prevent the hacker from violating your vulnerabilities.
  2. Secure administrative and user login from brute force attacks
    One of the common practice among unauthorized users is using brute force attacks – using login credentials to gain unauthorized access. You can protect yourself with some robust security practices like the following
    • Disable the default setting for unlimited login attempts – This would prevent hackers to use password generators or key serializer for guessing passwords.
    • Two-factor authentication has become quite a popular choice for added security.
    • Along with WordPress’s password analysis tools, you can use a complex password generator to enforce users to use robust passwords.
    • Customizing your URL
      By default, the admin section of a WordPress website can be accessed by appending ‘/wp-admin/’ or ‘/wp-login.php’ to the base URL. Customize it to prevent from being exposed to the outside world.
    • Force log-out users that are trying to access restricted sections of the website. Also, it is a good practice to end idle sessions – so as to prevent attacks.
    • Provide user accessibilities cautiously and secure the core application files like ‘wp-config.php’, ‘.htaccess’ etc. away from client accessible directories.
  3. Encrypt your data with SSL certificates
    Alongside the basic web protocols providing the first level of protection, you can secure your data with additional security protocols and encryptions. Implement an SSL certificate to secure data during transit between the server and your clients. This would prevent the hackers from tapping into the channel or spoofing the info. SSL encryption is extremely important when sharing sensitive information or processing financial transactions.
    However, different SSL categories are there to satisfy website security’ requirement like single domain, multiple domain, etc. For example, if you have no. of domains, then multi domain SSL is quite inevitable choice for your website and domains. This single certificate can secure multiple domains.
  4. Don’t forget about backups and secure hosting
    Even if you have built a fortress around your website, you cannot sit back carefree. The hackers are really smart and might figure out a weak spot. So, as a precautionary measure, maintain backups for your website periodically. Giving you an assurance to kickback online in case something happens. These days you can opt for secure cloud services like Azure, Google Cloud, etc. to maintain multi-location backups as well.
    Furthermore, you could even use these for hosting your websites. These proprietary cloud solutions use multi-tier security, thus securing your host.
  5. Prevention against SQL injection
    SQL injection attacks are among the most commonly used attacking strategy. Basically, the attacker embeds SQL queries within the requests which when processed by the server can lead to database modifications. A recommended mitigation for this is to change the database table prefix from the default ‘wp-’ to something unique.
    Also, it is a good practice to monitor user activities and requests for any malicious patterns. There are a lot of tools and security plugins that you can use to achieve it. If your website allows users to upload files, it would be advised to store them separate from your core application. And also, restrict upload of executable files and scan each upload resource with a robust firewall and malware scanner.

Web security is a vast pool and with a lot of aspects to consider. Though securing a WordPress website is not limited to the above best practices, these will help you establish a primary level security perimeter around your application. Opting for a professional perspective help lay down a robust infrastructure. Just like you invest in engaging your audience with your content, safeguard your investment by laying focus on its security.

Best VPN Services For WordPress Users

Do you need a VPN service for WordPress? Lots of people rely on Virtual Private Networks to protect their privacy and keep them safe. They protect personal and private information and can mask your location, helping bypass snooping and restrictions. According to research by BestVPN.ie, 31% of VPN users use VPNs to protect their anonymity while browsing online.

There are hundreds of VPNs available nowadays and each claim to offer the best service and speed. You need to find which service is actually the fastest on the market. You can confirm your speed using online tests like this.

Here are the best VPN services for WordPress users.

1. IPVanish

IPVanish is among the best VPN services in the world. Their service is super easy to use and works with all popular devices, browsers, and operating systems. Beginners have no trouble getting started, and advanced users have lots of features to enjoy.

IPVanish doesn’t keep logs, has over 500 servers, and boasts high speeds, making it a top quality VPN for people who want great quality at great value. IPV costs a little more than some other VPN services, but there’s no denying you get what you pay for.

2. ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN is another high quality VPN service, with services available in 94 countries. They adhere to the top standards of the industry to ensure that your data and information is encrypted for high security.

Thanks to their apps that work on desktop, mobile, and other devices, you’ll have no problem using this service. ExpressVPN allows you to change your IP and switch servers with a single click. The main features of the service include P2P connections, zero-logging of internet activities, file sharing, and more.

3. Overplay

Overplay is a top quality VPN service for keeping personal information and online activity secure. They have servers in over 50 countries, with a network that encompasses more than 650 servers. Overplay provides instant, unlimited server switching, letting you jump to a faster server in a matter of seconds. They also have a quick connect feature that suggest servers to connect to for high speeds.

Overplay works great on all devices, comes with P2P features, and offers the choice between SmartDNS with or without VPN encryption.

4. NordVPN

NordVPN is for people who want better than average protection. They provide double encryption by encrypting already-encrypted traffic for you. If this is an important feature you want, then this could very well be the best VPN for you.

Outside of their dedication to security, NordVPN boasts over 1,000 servers in over 60 countries and has a fantastic kill-switch feature. This feature will automatically close applications and prevent internet traffic from flowing if you get disconnected from the server. Not everyone on WordPress is going to be on the hunt for that level of security, but it’s good to know you have options if you need them.

5. Private Internet Access

Private Internet Access is considered by many to be a great choice for VPNs. You can have up to five devices connected at once, including phones, unlimited encrypted bandwidth, Wi-Fi encryption, peer-to-peer connections, and there are no traffic logs. They don’t record what you do while connected, giving you privacy and peace of mind.

6. VyprVPN

VyprVPN is one of the most robust VPN services available. They boast the best AES-256 encryption available on the market right now, which is why they deserve a spot on any list of the top VPN services for WordPress. With over 700 servers and 200,000 IPs across 70 locations, they have a fantastic range of services for users to get past censorship. Their services include having a cross-platform client that works with anything, Chameleon Technology, zero logging, 24/7 support, and their own DNS service called VyprDNS.

7. TorGuard

Last but not least we have TorGuard. TorGuard is fast and reliable and keeps no logs of user activity. There’s a range of different options and packages so you can tailor your protection to your needed level of privacy and security. TorGuard allows up to five connections at once, with servers in over 50 countries, and incredible customer support. One thing that helps TorGuard stand out, especially for WordPress users, is their business VPN service. If you need a VPN for your business, then TorGuard is hard to beat. They also provide Deep Packet Inspection bypassing, which allows you to use their services in locations and countries that actively block VPN services.

You might be interested in – The Best VPNs for Mac

How To Add Google reCAPTCHA In Contact Form 7

Many people are using “Contact Form 7” and also many install it every day. Contact form is a secure plugin but they still people get spam because they don’t know what is Google reCAPTCHA  and how to add it in Contact Form 7. In this post, we will give you step by step instructions for Google reCAPTCHA Integration with Contact Form 7.

Contact Form7

Contact form 7 is the most popular plugins for creating lead generating forms. It is easy to integrate and equally easy to use. Contact Form 7 is also used with many themes that have integrated contact forms because those forms do not require customization and high-level options.

Features of Contact Form 7

Here are some features of the Contact Form 7.

  • It provides customization options to fit your needs.
  • Simple and easy implementation and integration process.
  • It also supports Google reCAPTCHa for security.

Google reCAPTCHA

reCAPTCHA is a free service offered by Google that protects your website against spam and abuse. Basically, reCAPTCHA uses an advanced risk analysis engine and adaptive challenges to keep away automated software from engaging in abusive activities on your site. It allows valid users pass through with ease while stopping spamming activities.

Let’s start to Google reCAPTCHA integration in contact form 7

Just go to Contact > Integration from your left admin sidebar.

Setup New Integration

Now click on “Setup Integration” button.

You’ll see the reCAPTCHA integration box with two input fields. For these fields, you need keys to connect through Google API.

Create New Keys

Now you need to create new keys for your site, to create these keys we need to go Google reCAPTCHA page.

You can visit this Link Google reCAPTCHA

After the opening Google reCAPTCHA page, you have to click on the Admin console button.

Now sign-in with your official email, to access Google reCAPTCHA dashboard.

After reaching to Google reCAPTCHA dashboard, click on the “+” button to generate the keys.

Now you need to fill the form to register your site on Google reCAPTCHA.

  1. Lable – You can set label as you like.
  2. reCAPTCHA Type – Select the reCAPTCHA version, you can get more information about reCAPTCHA version here.
  3. Domains – Add your site domain name, where you want to use keys.
  4. Owners – It’s by default added your sign in email, you can also change it if you want.
  5. reCAPTCHA Terms – Click to accept the reCAPTCHA API use terms.
  6. Alerts – Click to accepts alerts information, it will give you information about any problem related to your reCAPTCHA configurations.

After submitting this form you will get your reCAPTCHA site key and secret key.

Now Copy your Keys and paste into the reCAPTCHA integration form of “Contact Form 7”.

After insert both keys the google reCaptcha will be displayed on your contact page at the bottom.

Thanks for the reading our post if you like our post then please comment & share your feedback with us.

It will be appreciated.

8 Best WP Backup Plugins in 2019

The news of website hacking and data loss by hackers or through other malicious software is very common nowadays. That is why the most trending discussion in Information Technologies world is Web Security. Do you know 96% of applications we are using have vulnerabilities which can result in your website or data get vanished forever? Hackers are developing sophisticated tools and techniques and its growing day by day. Therefore, to keep your website and data safe, you need to take backup of everything which is important. Here we are sharing some WordPress plugins for your website that can save you from loss by taking backup and then recover your data or website when required.

Check out this awesome list of 8 Best WordPress Backup Plugins in 2019:

1. UpdraftPlus

More than 1+ million active WordPress users bestow their trust upon the UpdraftPlus WordPress backup plugin. get back data from data loss due to hacking or server crashes by backing it up with this amazing plugin. You can back-up the files on clouds service like Google Drive, Dropbox, Rackspace Cloud etc.

UpdraftPlus also has a premium version with add-ons to clone websites, database search and replace and multi-site support, and several other features. The premium version also allows you to access to priority support.

More Info

 

2. VaultPress (Jetpack Backups)

VaultPress has been there in for very a long time. The working and focused seem to entice the WordPress users. It accomplishes the job of back up your data in a secure environment, while other WordPress plugins provide an extra feature, It’s just concerned with back up and security. With VaultPress you are protected against malware, accidental damage, and host outages.

All The Personal and Premium plan are limited to 30-day backup while Professional plan is unlimited. The Professional and Premium plan also offer automated security against malware and infiltration with the Professional plan also offering threat resolution.

More Info

 

3.BoldGrid Backup

This BoldGrid Backup Plugin will backup your entire WordPress sites with just a couple of clicks in your WordPress dashboard. this plugin allows you to easily create your website backups and also restore your site after it crashes, and you can use it to move your site when switching host. You can set up automatic backups or manually create backups with a single click.

This plugin allows you to Download and Upload backup using protected links, which makes transferring a website data from one host to another an much easier process. you can stores up to 10 backup archives on your dashboard and more in remote storage locations.

More Info

 

4. BackWPup

BackWPup is a WordPress free plugin that allows you to create complete WordPress backups for free, and store it on the cloud, FTP, email, or on your computer. It is very simple & easy to use and allows you to set up automatic backups according to your sites update frequency.

Restoring WordPress sites backup is very simple. The BackWPup Premium version comes with support and the ability to store backups on Google Drive, and some other more features.

More Info

 

5. Duplicator

With over 1+ million active installs Duplicator plugin successfully gives all WordPress users the ability to move a site from one location to another and also serves as a simple backup utility. Duplicator handles by this plugin as are zero downtime migrations. Duplicator creates a package that bundles all the sites and WordPress files into a simple zip file.

Also, Duplicator lets you make your own pre-configured sites to eliminate work instead of configuring your favorite theme. The underlying logic to move WordPress, backup WordPress and transfer WordPress.

More Info

 

6. BackUpWordPress

BackUpWordPress is easy to use because it does not require any setup configurations on your end. on activation, it backs up your files automatically out of the box. The plugin can work on Windows servers and Linux. It also enables you to exclude the files you do not want to back up. this plugin team also help for translating the plugin into more languages.

this plugin is hosted on GitHub, if you want to help out with testing or development then head over to it. It will back up your entire site including your site database and all your files that suits you. Try it now to see how’s it is work.

More Info

 

7. WP Database Backup

This plugin helps you to create Database Backup + Restore Database Backup easily on a single click. Both automated or manual database backup options are available, it also stores database backup on safe online places like Dropbox, Email, FTP, Amazon S3, Google Drive etc.

With the WP Database Backup plugin, you can restore and create backups in just a single click. it downloads the backup file directly from your WordPress dashboard and super easy install also save database backup file in small zip format on local server And Send backup file to the destination in zip format.

More Info

 

8. Backup and Restore WordPress

With the WPBackItUp Backup Plugin, you are protected against malware, hackers, host outages, and your own mistakes. It creates a backup of every setting, comment, post, revision, theme, plugin, media file and upload with a single click. Just a little bit clicks and you will have a complete backup that safeguards all of your site content.

WPBackItUp generates a small size backup of your entire website no matter how large a site data you have. Your backup can be easily and quickly downloaded right from your WordPress admin dashboard.

More Info

 

We hope this list will prevent you from all kind of website or data loss.