WordPress is one of the best open-source CMS (content management systems) and the most popular in the world. Millions of people build their websites using WordPress. The popularity of CMS also leads to cyber attacks like hacking and malware. That’s the reason it’s necessary to secure your WordPress website. But, How To Secure Your WordPress Website? Once you protect your websites, your User’s information is also safe. There can be many reasons for hacking: Slow Websites, Outdated Plugins, and Themes, Weak Passwords, etc.
Now you must be thinking, why would someone hack my website? What would anyone gain by hacking such a small website? Hackers have nothing to do with the popularity or size of the website. Hackers target websites for various reasons, such as sending spam emails or linking your website to another website for financial gain.
To avoid such scenarios, you need to secure your WordPress website. This article will discuss the various steps that you can take to make your website secure. Security should be the top priority to prevent unwanted cyber-attacks, whether your website is big or small. You can keep your WordPress website safe and secure by implementing the proper security measures.
A strong password alone is no longer enough to secure a website. So how to secure your WordPress website? In this article we will discuss 11 best practice which help you to protect your websites from hacking and keep your website secure.
How To Secure Your WordPress Website Step By Step
Host your website with a secure host.
Hosting is important for your website to improve page speed and security. So you should consider that your website is in a secure environment (hosting). Choosing a hosting provider that offers strong security measures to guard against hacking is necessary. Before choosing a hosting provider, you must do research.
Good hosting can protect and secures your website and data. They also provides automatic backups, updates, and 24/7 live support.
After selecting a suitable hosting provider, enhance security with two-step verification. With two-step verification, you can prevent unauthorized access to your website.
How To Choose a strong password to Secure Your WordPress Website.
Choosing a strong password is important for protect your website. Otherwise, hackers can easily hack your website. Of course, everyone knows this.
How to build a strong password
- Best Secure password must be 8 to12 characters long and a combination of random words, numbers and special symbols.
- Use capitalized words, numbers, and symbols to create a great password.
- Refrain from using easily guessable information such as name, date of birth, phone number or simple words from the dictionary.
- Use only one password for one account.
All these steps ensure that your password is strong and impenetrable.
Don’t use the default username like ‘admin.’
Please: Change it immediately! Of course, every hacker tries with a common name first, so the hacker is already halfway to getting into your website.
Have you already installed WordPress and still entered your name as admin or username? Then change it now. Here I will guide you step by step.
Step 1: Go to your Dashboard and click on User ⇒ Add New
Step 2: Fill out the form with a new username (this time, create a powerful username that no one can guess), the rest marked as ‘required,’ and a strong password.
Step 3: At the bottom of the form, under the ‘Role’ option, select ‘Administrator.’
Step 4: When you have filled everything, click on ‘Add new user’
Step 5: Now log out of your current account and log in again with the new account you just created.
Step 6: Go back to ‘Users.’ Now you see two here: your old one and your new one
Step 7: Click on ‘Delete’ in your old account
Step 8 (Very Important!!): Now you will see a screen asking what to do with the old User’s content.
Select ‘Link all content to’ and then choose your new username for your new account.
If you check to Delete all content, you will lose all pages and blogs!! Now click ‘Confirm Deletion,’ and you’re done!
Change the Login URL to secure your WordPress website.
Apart from your username and password, it is also important to have the URL that takes you to the login screen where you enter your username and password. Most people use the URL given by default.
For example: https://www.example.com/wp-login or https://www.example.com/wp-admin.
Every hacker knows this and tries to log in here first. So it is best to replace it as well.
You can change this very easily with a plugin (iThemes); see below:
Step1: Go to the dashboard and Click on ‘Security’ in iThemes plugin.
Step2: Check and Click on Advanced in the top right
Step3: Now Click on ‘Configure Settings’ on the left under ‘Hide Backend’
Step4: Click on the check mark next to ‘Activate the Hide Backend function’
Step5: Change your URL to ‘login slug’ (get something creative and nice and long)
Step6: Jot down your new URL (you should have received an email) and click ‘Save Settings’.
And finished!
A limited number of login attempts
With the above tips, you are already on your way, but still, a hacker can try to log in all they want if they want to.
Or rather: A hacker can try to hack your website through a Blue Force attack (an automatic hacking computer). To prevent there are a variety of plugins that you can install to prevent this.
If you limit the number of login attempts to 3, the computer cannot attempt to log in infinitely. Make sure you remember your login details because if you get it wrong more than 3 times, you’ll be locked out, too (I’m speaking from experience.).
Update regularly
How do you get information about any updates?
Something needs to update as soon as you log in and see a ball with a number in the top left. Click on that ball and check and update everything. For example, an update may ensure that a security vulnerability is closed. So if you do not update, then hackers can work more easily. Check their website at least once a week for updates. If you wait too long, it can have dire consequences. You can also have it updated automatically, for example, through Installatron. However, major updates, such as the latest version of WordPress, are better done manually after backing up your website first.
Please note that you may lose the changes made to your website after updating your WordPress theme. To avoid this, you can prevent this by installing a child theme.
Scan your website
You need to scan your website from time to time. The Wordfence plugin is also ideal for this. It scans your website daily, and the plugin will let you know if anything strange is found. This way, you are instantly updated with what is happening on your website.
Make regular backups
You should back up your websites regularly to secure your WordPress website. If your website gets hacked despite all these measures, then you can start again with your latest backup.
Install a backup plugin or set it up with your host. For example, with SiteGround, an automatic backup is made every day, and you can back up your website manually. You can also use a plugin for this. For example, consider UpdraftPlus or BackupWordPress. Here you can also specify how often you want backups.
Install security plugins
We have already discussed these topics, but it doesn’t hurt to reiterate:
Install plugins like Wordfence and iThemes to secure your website.
Add IP addresses that often try to log in to the blocklist and ensure not to receive spam comments and unwanted emails. For this, it is best to use the spam filter CleanTalk.
It’s also wise to set up two-step verification so that even if someone does get your password, that person won’t be able to access your website. You can use several plugins to set this up, such as Google Authenticator. You set up two-step verification under User>> Profile.
Use trusted WordPress themes and plugins.
There are so many (free) WordPress themes out there that you don’t always know if it’s safe.
With these tips, it is safe if you are looking for your WordPress theme. Plugins are also a hindrance: there are thousands of them, and not all plugins are secure. Putting too many on your website is easy, but don’t do it. Use only those necessary plugins and check beforehand whether the plugin has a good rating and many downloads. And, of course, make sure the theme and plugins are kept up to date (see point 6). Too many plugins can also make your website extremely slow. Periodically check your plugin list and remove plugins you no longer use. It is safe and better for your website speed.
Install SSL certificate for your website security.
Nowadays, it is necessary to have an SSL certificate. This certificate creates an encrypted, inaccessible link between the browser and the web server. This is important for security and your SEO: Google prioritizes secure websites and will rank websites with a green lock higher than those without SSL. You arrange for an SSL certificate with your host. Nowadays, most good hosts have a free SSL certificate.
If you want to go further, you can make a paid purchase. If you are building a new website or have already created one, it is best to activate an SSL certificate right away. And if you already have a website, you often have to do something extra to activate it. Your website may contain mixed content, so the certificate doesn’t convert everything from HTTP to HTTPS. To solve this, download the plugin Simple SSL and activate it. If all is well, then the problem will be solved. You can tell if your SSL certificate is active by moving the padlock to the left of your URL.
