Every website owner should be extremely concerned about WordPress security. Every day, Google adds more than 10,000 websites to its blacklist for malware, and every week, it adds 50,000 for phishing.
The best practices for WordPress security must be followed if you take your website seriously. To assist you safeguard your website against malware and hackers, we’ll give all the best WordPress security advice in this tutorial.
There are several things you can do to make your site secure even though WordPress core software is incredibly secure and is routinely audited by hundreds of developers.
We have a number of doable actions that you can take to secure your website from security flaws.
1. Keeping WordPress Up to Date:
Regularly updating WordPress core, themes, and plugins helps to patch security vulnerabilities and protect against known exploits.
How to Update Your WordPress Version
Important: Your WordPress website will be placed in maintenance mode while it is updating to the latest version. Your website will return to normal once the update is complete.
- Log into your WordPress Dashboard.
- Go to Updates, located under Dashboard.
- Look for a notification that says, ‘An updated version of WordPress is available’.
- Click Update Now.
- Your WordPress website will be updated shortly.
2. Strong User Authentication:
Enforce strong passwords and consider implementing two-factor authentication (2FA) to add an extra layer of security to user accounts.
When passwords are insufficient, strong authentication is a method of verifying a user’s identity.
Before granting access to digital assets, the majority of businesses want verification. Before you unlock the gates, you may request that users enter a password or answer a brief survey. An authentication step is anything you perform to verify authorization.
Security is prioritized with strong authentication methods. To make sure that your users are who they say they are and can only access what you have considered proper, you put a few extra barriers to entry rather than making it simple for anyone to navigate your systems and access resources.
Consider this simplified strong authentication process using an SMS One-time Passcode (OTP):
- Step 1: Password
The person creates and memorizes a unique set of numbers and letters used to access the system. - Step 2: Possession
After typing in the correct password, a secondary string of letters and numbers is sent to the user’s registered smartphone. - Step 3: Access
After tapping in the second set of details, the user can get into the system.
Logging on via this method takes time and a few extra steps. But we live in a world where apps contain confidential, personally identifiable information we must protect.
Passwords alone are not enough, as the only security measure standing in the way of total compromise is a string of input characters. Today’s security threats require much more robust protection measures.
3. Secure Hosting Environment:
Choose a reliable and secure hosting provider that offers robust security measures, such as firewall protection, malware scanning, and regular backups.
4. Plugin and Theme Security:
Only use reputable and trusted plugins and themes from reliable sources. Regularly update them and remove any unused or outdated ones.
How to Update Plugins and Themes
Important: Any customizations you have made to theme or plugin files will be lost once they are updated.
- Log into your WordPress Dashboard.
- Go to Updates, located under Dashboard.
- Look under Themes and Plugins for available updates.
- Check the box next to each plugin you want to update.
- Click Update Plugins to begin updating your plugins. The update will take a few moments to complete.
- Check the box next to each theme you want to update.
- Click Update Themes to begin updating your themes. The update will take a few moments to complete.
5. WordPress User Roles and Permissions:
Assign appropriate user roles and permissions to limit access to sensitive areas of your website. Grant the least privileges necessary for each user.
WordPress Admin can define the capabilities that users have access to on your website using the user roles and permissions options provided by WordPress. In addition to increasing security, this allows you more control over your website. To assist you in choosing how to configure your WordPress website for growth, we’ll examine each of the user roles in this article. We’ll also cover a number of methods for editing them and including your own.
6. Limit Login Attempts:
Implement measures to prevent brute-force attacks by limiting the number of login attempts and temporarily blocking IP addresses with suspicious activity.
Password guessing is the most prevalent kind of brute force attack. In order to access your website, hackers utilize automated software to continuously guess your login credentials.
WordPress by default allows users to input their passwords as many times as they like. By employing programs that randomly enter combinations until they find the appropriate login, hackers may try to take advantage of this.
7. WordPress Security Plugins:
WordPress security is a pretty broad topic, so when I say “WordPress security plugin”, that can encompass a range of different features.
Utilize security plugins specifically designed to enhance the security of your WordPress website. Examples include Wordfence, Firewalls, SecuPress, Jetpack and iThemes Security.
8. Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) Certificate:
SSL was developed to address this issue and safeguard user privacy. SSL makes sure that anyone who intercepts the data can only see a jumbled mess of characters by encrypting any data that travels between a user and a web server. The credit card number submitted by the customer is now secure and only accessible by the purchasing website.
Install an SSL certificate to enable HTTPS encryption and ensure secure data transfer between your website and users.
9. Regular Backups:
Set up automated backups of your WordPress website’s files and database. Store backups in a secure offsite location for quick restoration in case of any security incidents.
10. Website Monitoring and Auditing:
Monitor your website for suspicious activities, unusual file modifications, or unauthorized access. Regularly audit your website for security gaps and vulnerabilities.
Testing and confirming that people may engage with a website or web application as planned is the process of website monitoring. Businesses frequently employ website monitoring to make sure that a website’s uptime, performance, and usefulness meet expectations.[
