Make secure WordPress sites in simple steps. WordPress is constantly under attack! Yes, you have heard it right, and as a blogger and developer, you must secure WordPress. WordPress powers more than 3% of all websites, so it’s very important to learn how to connect your site.
It is already up by many website developers that WordPress has security issues, but to what extent? How can you strengthen WordPress security? We will show you the 7 ultimate steps to secure WordPress websites.
Is WordPress Secure?
The security breaching incidents of WordPress is already on air. Two major security breaches of WordPress have already on notice in recent years. However, WordPress could become as secure as other CMSs, namely Drupal or Magento, and the responsibility mainly go to the website owners, developers, and WordPress maintenance services providers.
Nobody can ensure your WordPress site security if you fail to take responsibility.
Who Is Attacking WordPress Site?
When trying to prevent WordPress hacking, you require getting ideas about website hackers. Who is showing interest in your site? Who are the possible attackers of the website? Generally, there are three types of entities that attack WordPress sites. A single Bot: A bot is a single program ready by hackers. It looks for known vulnerabilities on WordPress Websites. The boot method is an unsophisticated attack that can attack a small number of sites.
A Botnet: A botnet is a multiple version of a program running on a vast number of machines to hack a large number of websites simultaneously. Most WordPress hacking is caused by a botnet. Human: Human attackers or hackers are interested only in websites with sensitive private data or financially lucrative sites. Unlike the bots, human attackers are very sophisticated as well as dangerous.
Secure WordPress Sites
So here is a list of the ultimate steps to secure your WordPress site.
Activation of the two-step authentication process
The two-step authentication process is adopted by almost all websites where security is prioritized.
We have been using WordPress Google Authenticator Plugin By Henrik Schack for a long time, and it works well. You need to install this plugin on your WordPress websites and then install Google Authenticator App on your smartphone, it’s free, and you can download it from the play store.
Then why is it not for WordPress? The user is asked to put an OTP other than the account password in the two-step verification or two-factor authentication process. The user can receive this OTP via a personal mobile number registered in WordPress. This is an extra layer of security to protect the site from hackers. Many free WordPress two-factor authentication plugins are available to add two-factor authentication in WordPress.
WordPress Update Make Secure Sites In Simple Steps
The CMS experts always recommend updating WordPress at regular intervals. Why? Like any other CMSs, WordPress is also evolving and adding new features, and patching hackers’ possible backdoors.
Hence, you are becoming vulnerable to hackers if you are not updating WordPress. Besides, WordPress offers updates only twice a year, and it takes only a few minutes to update WordPress.
Create Strong Password
To protect your WordPress site, you always have to select strong passwords. Passwords in WordPress are case sensitive, which is good for security. To change your password, go to Users > Your Profile, and under the account management section, click Generate Password button. Copy and save this strong password that WordPress will generate for you.
To create a strong case-sensitive password, you must include alphabets (random) both in upper and lower case. Apart from that, you also need to have special characters and numerals.
The password should have a minimum of 12 to 14 characters. You should not share the password with anyone or write it somewhere easily accessible by others.
This one Gwl#74FLp6@B2J is an example of an ideal password.
Change the “Admin” Username to Make Secure WordPress Sites In Simple Steps
Admin is a WordPress account’s default username, making it easier for hackers. While keeping the default username, the hackers have the privilege of not guessing the username and directly moving for the password. You can change the username manually from the WordPress settings or use a plugin to change the username. It is an easy step (precaution) to hinder the hackers.
If your current username is “admin,” Go to Users > Add New and create a new user account with a unique username and strong password and give this new user the “Administrator” role. Log out of your WordPress account, log in with a new user account, delete the old user with an “admin” username, or change its user role to Subscriber.
WordPress Security Plugins
Using security plugins such as all-in-one WP security is an efficient step to protect the website from hackers. You can easily skip several major security threats as well as malware issues with the implementation of an appropriate security plugin.
If you are confused, which security plugin is the best for your site, we can suggest one. Sucuri is one of the best security plugins used by a large number of WordPress users around the world.
Limit the Login Attempts
By default, WordPress allows unlimited turn for login. However, this is not a good feature considering the security matter. You can use different plugins to limit the number of login attempts. A plugin like LockDown is proved as exceptionally good if you can also use Web Application Firewall (WAF).
Cyber Security is a free and up-to-date plugin to Limit Login Attempts.
Addition Security Question to WordPress login
If using the JetPack plugin, go to Jetpack > Setting > Security tab and enable Brute force attack protection. You can also activate your WordPress.com login to make your WordPress login more secure and straightforward. The addition of a security question is quite an effective procedure. With the help of specific plugins, such as the WP Security Questions Plugin, you can add security questions, which must be up while logging in to the site.
However, try to select a more personal question, which is not easy to guess by the outsiders or people who have limited interactions with you. This trick is only effective when you can select a personal question wisely.
If you have a WordPress website, you must consider its security issues sincerely. Many features of WordPress make it vulnerable to hackers. However, taking several precautions and using appropriate plugins will not prevent the vulnerabilities. Try the suggestions we listed for you. If you like our tips, stay tuned for further updates!
