WordPress is one of the most popular platforms to host a website. Out of all the websites on the internet, around 30% of them are hosted on WordPress. Because WordPress is such a popular platform for business owners to use, this also makes it an easy target to hack. In a study on hacked websites in 2018, almost 90% of those hacked were hosted by Wrodpress. There are many simple explanations as to why a WordPress website could be hacked. Making sure your amazing website is secure and up-to-date is just a few ways to keep hackers from targeting you next.
Backing up your website is a good idea no matter how strong your protection is from hackers. In the event that something does happen, consistently backing up your website’s data and information allows you to spend less time rebuilding it.
WordPress has a host of amazing themes and plugins to make your site easier for your customers to use. However, this area is where your website can be most vulnerable. Not all themes and plugins are the same. Take an audit of these and see how secure they are from hackers. Do the programmers guarantee security with that plugin? Does the company that created it have badges or seals to promote trust? If not, it’s time to find a safer alternative soon.
Having a strong password is more important than having one that is easy to remember. Smartphones and even certain browsers have the option to create a strong, albeit difficult to remember, password option. If those long cryptic passwords have you sweating bullets, use something that is familiar to only you. Use a mix of lower and upper case letters, symbols, and numbers. The more variety you have, the better your website will be projected.
If you worry about remembering difficult passwords, use trusted password storage like Lastpass.
Make it a point that your website is using the most recent updates from WordPress. By doing this, you’ll have less of a chance of being hacked. The longer you delay in downloading those updates, the easier it becomes to get in your website and dismantle everything. This goes for any themes and plugins, too.
If you come across a security issue, report it to WordPress as soon as possible. The faster they know about the security threat, the faster they can remedy the situation. Don’t think of it as a waste of time to sit down and send off a report to WordPress support. Doing so will help you avoid an even bigger headache of having to recover whatever might be left of your business website.
Making sure your entire online business is safe from online attacks guarantees a smooth running and successful business. These tips are so easy to do that there’s no reason to allow a great website to be a sitting duck!
If you find you’re needing help with securing your website, send us a message today! We are happy to keep your business safe and give you peace of mind.
