In recent years, WordPress has become the most popular Content Management System (CMS) on the internet. As of 2021, WordPress powers over 40% of all websites. While WordPress offers many advantages, it is also a popular target for hackers. This blog post will explore the top security best practices that will help you protect your WordPress website from hackers.
Why WordPress Websites are Targeted by Hackers
Hackers target WordPress websites because it is an open-source CMS, which means that anyone can access its code and plugins. WordPress websites are also a popular target because many website owners do not follow basic security practices. Hackers use various methods to gain access to WordPress websites, including brute force attacks, plugin and theme vulnerabilities, and malware.
Top WordPress Security Best Practices
This section will discuss the top WordPress security best practices that every website owner should follow.
Keep WordPress Core, Themes, and Plugins Up-to-Date
WordPress regularly releases updates to fix security vulnerabilities, bugs, and add new features. You should always keep your WordPress core, themes, and plugins up-to-date to prevent hackers from exploiting known vulnerabilities.
Use Strong Passwords and Usernames
Use strong passwords and usernames for your WordPress website to prevent brute force attacks. A strong password is at least 12 characters long and includes a mix of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols.
Secure Your Website with SSL/TLS Encryption
Secure your website with SSL/TLS encryption to protect your users’ data from being intercepted. SSL/TLS encryption also helps improve your website’s SEO ranking.
Limit Login Attempts and Change Default Login URL
Limit login attempts and change the default login URL to prevent brute-force attacks. You can use a plugin like WPS Hide Login to change the default login URL.
Use Two-Factor Authentication
Two-factor authentication adds an extra layer of security to your WordPress website. It requires users to enter a code or use an authentication app along with their password to log in to their account. You can use a plugin like Google Authenticator to enable two-factor authentication on your website.
Essential Website Hardening Techniques
In addition to the top security best practices, as a website owner, you should also implement essential website hardening techniques to protect your WordPress website from hackers.
Use a Firewall
A firewall is a security tool that blocks unauthorized access to your website. It can be either a software or a hardware-based tool. A popular WordPress firewall plugin is Wordfence.
Disable File Editing
Disabling file editing in WordPress prevents unauthorized users from accessing and modifying your website’s code. You can do this by adding the following line of code to your wp-config.php file: define(‘DISALLOW_FILE_EDIT’, true);
Remove Unused Themes and Plugins
Unused themes and plugins can pose a security risk to your website, even if they are inactive. Hackers can exploit vulnerabilities in inactive themes and plugins to access your website. You should always remove unused themes and plugins from your website.
Hide WordPress Version and Plugin Info
Hiding your WordPress version and plugin info prevents hackers from identifying the version of WordPress and plugins used on your website. You can use a plugin like Hide My WP to hide this information.
Use a Web Application Firewall (WAF)
A Web Application Firewall (WAF) is a security tool that monitors and filters incoming traffic to your website. It can block malicious traffic and prevent attacks like SQL injection and Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) attacks. A popular WAF for WordPress is Sucuri.
Detecting and Removing Malware from Your Website
Even if you implement all the security measures, your website can still be hacked. Therefore, it is important to scan your website regularly to detect and remove malware immediately.
Scan Your Website Regularly
You can use a plugin like Sucuri Security or Wordfence to regularly scan your website for malware. These plugins will alert you if they find any malware on your website.
Remove Infected Files and Database Entries
If malware is found on your website, you should immediately remove all infected files and database entries. You can use a plugin like iThemes Security to scan and remove malware from your website.
Implement Website Backups
Implementing website backups can help you restore your website in case of a malware attack. You can use a plugin like UpdraftPlus to create automatic website backups.
Conclusion
In this blog post, we discussed the top security best practices to protect your WordPress website from hackers. We also explored essential website hardening techniques and malware detection and removal methods. By following these security measures, you can keep your website secure and prevent it from being hacked.