Secure WordPress, DAMN IT!

secure wordpress

In six years of working with Word Press I have worked lots of websites and a fair share of those have come to me already built on Word Press. Every single one of those sites had security vulnerabilities. Some of them were major, some were minor, but every single one of them put the website at risk of being hacked. So what can you do to help secure your word press? Let’s take a look at some tips.

1. Choose a Quality Web Host

Many people don’t put a lot of thought into picking a web host. Some times their web site hosting is bundled with other business services they already use. Other times the client picks a web host simply because they are the cheapest they can find. Rarely do business owners know the questions they should ask the web host to make sure they are capable and competent of keeping their website secure. You should ask them what software and what versions of that software they run on the server where your website will live. Find out how often they update and backup their server. They should be able to provide this to you in a written document or contract. Check the information they give you against software release information found via Google. If they are not up to date or they don’t have a written backup and recovery plan avoid them like the plague.

2. Keep Word Press and Plugins Up to Date

Word Press and plugins are often updated because of newfound security issues. Keeping your Word Press installation and all of the plugins you use up to date will help you avoid these issues.

3. Delete Unused plugins and themes

Just to make sure they do not contain any vulnerabilities or backdoors into your website.

4. Use a Secure Username and Password

I know trying to remember every single username and password you use for every online account you have can be difficult and it can seem like no big deal to use a password that is common to you, but I highly you always use a strong password and never use ‘admin’ as your username. Choose a username that is a combination of uppercase and lowercase letters. Same goes for your password. You can use http://strongpasswordgenerator.com/ or https://www.cloudwards.net/too… to generate a strong password. Lastly, never store your login information in your web browser or computer. Write them down somewhere and keep it safe.

5. Limit Access and User Accounts

I know you can’t control everyone, but you can control who has access to your Word Press website. Try to limit the number of users and make sure you delete any inactive users.

So Many More…

There a lot more things that can and should be done to secure your Word Press website. Many of them require advanced Word Press and server administration knowledge to be able to edit files like your wp-config and htaccess file. Give us a call. We would love to help you!