Designers and bloggers alike adore the flexibility and functionality afforded by WordPress: unfortunately, many hackers and spammers likewise try to test the platform and push users to their limits in regard to security.
The importance of beefing up your WordPress site’s defenses are three-fold..
- Giving yourself peace of mind and protecting your intellectual property
- Ensuring that your site looks professional and runs smoothly (for example, avoiding any potential spam comments or bulky plug-ins that slow down your site)
- Preventing any sort of downtime on your site, which could ultimately hurt your bottom line and good standing with Google.
Securing your WordPress site goes far beyond the realm of changing your password and calling it a day, though. The following five tips represent quick-fixes that will keep your site safe.
- Make Sure Your Network is SecurePerhaps it’s a no-brainer, but you can’t possibly hope to protect your site from threats if your network is exposed.
Something as simple as a network scanner could mean the difference between business as usual and your site experiencing major downtime. Especially when working remotely or from a new location, scanning your network is an absolute must.
- Rethink Your Login
The main point of entry into your WordPress account may indeed be the most vulnerable aspect of your site. To give yourself an extra layer of defense between hackers and your log-in, take the following measures..
- Change your WordPress username from the default “admin”
- Alter your WordPress login path, which provides protection from brute-force attacks
- Make sure to mind your password: something lengthier with unique characters and separated by numbers is always a safe bet
- Be Mindful of Multiple Users
Sometimes the biggest holes in your security have little to do with you but rather other people posting to your WordPress account.
Beyond the aforementioned steps, make sure that your guests have secure passwords and understand not to leave themselves logged in for prolonged periods of time. Ideally, you can assign your guests credentials (such as username and password) yourself so you don’t have to worry about someone else potentially screwing up your site’s safety.
- Backup Your Site
It’s better to be safe than sorry when it comes to backing up your on-site files and content.
Although solutions such as Google Docs may be a fine second home for your blog content, also consider a site-wide WordPress backup as a way to sort of freeze your site in time in case something goes wrong.
- Don’t Play With Plug-Ins
Considering that out-of-date and scammy plug-ins are often the main offender for many users’ security woes, take special care whenever you install a new feature onto your site. For example, make it a point to..
- Regularly update any and all plug-ins, which can be done manually in a matter of seconds upon logging in
- Be wary of any plug-ins you aren’t familiar with or come from third-party recommendations
- Remove any plug-ins that you’re no longer using, both for the sake of organization and site speed
Rather than leave your site vulnerable to “what-if” scenarios, take the steps to make sure your site is as secure as possible. Luckily, these must-do’s will keep your site under lock and key without taking up a ton of your time.