The popularity of WordPress as a platform for bloggers and online entrepreneurs has made it one of the most popular content management systems in use today.
With more than 60 million websites running on this CMS, securing your site is necessary.
Whether you’ve been putting off making these updates for too long or know there are still some vulnerabilities on your site, we compiled our top 10 tips to help ensure you have taken all the necessary steps to keep your website secure!
1) Change Your Admin Username
If you haven’t changed the username from “admin” to something else, do so as soon as possible! This will protect against brute force attacks by hackers trying every username combination until they find theirs.
It’s also a good idea to change your username from the default to something else on any other site you own – especially if they are all running on WordPress.
2) Change Your Password
This should probably go without saying, but just in case… Ensure you use a unique password for each of your WordPress accounts.
Also, make it complicated by including numbers and symbols in your password.
3) Keep All Plugins Updated
Each plugin is updated at different intervals, so it’s important to watch when updates are available!
While some plugins require more frequent updates than others, updating them as soon as possible will help ensure that vulnerabilities found in old versions of these plugins aren’t putting your website at risk.
4) Limit Admin Privileges
Under the “Users” menu in your WordPress dashboard, set users to Editor or lower as soon as you create new content on your site.
This will prevent hackers from accessing your account if they know your username and password.
5) Use Two-Factor Authentication
Add an extra layer of security by using two-factor authentication for logging into your WordPress website.
When enabled, this sends you a text message with a unique number every time you log in, so only you can access your account even if someone has stolen or cracked your password. It’s easy to set up and is offered by most web hosting companies nowadays.
6) Keep Your Site Updated
As mentioned above, updating WordPress core to the latest version will help keep your website secure.
If you’re unfamiliar, WordPress is a platform that helps users create and manage websites through a CMS – content management system. As a part of its structure, once every few months, WordPress comes out with an update to which all users must comply.
7) Watch Out For Suspicious Links
In this day and age, every link should be trusted with careful inspection! Email messages, Twitter posts or any other online communication, ensure links are verified before clicking on them.
Hackers exploit links to redirect unsuspecting victims to different sites to steal their login information, so don’t click anything until you know what it’s connecting you to!
8) Use A Security Plugin As a WordPress Administrator
You can do several things from the backend to keep your site secure.
In addition to making sure that your username and password are difficult to guess, installing a security plugin like Wordfence will help make sure you’re up-to-date on the latest security issues and will protect against attacks in real-time.
9) Keep An Eye On Your Site’s Stats
When hacking attempts at your website, you might only be aware if something goes wrong.
While this is not ideal, keeping an eye on your web server’s access logs helps detect suspicious activity, such as repeated failed login attempts which may indicate that someone has been trying to crack into your site through brute force.
10) Backup Your Website Regularly
Last but not least, make sure to back up your website regularly!
This can be done manually or using a plugin like BackWPup, which will automate your process. If something happens and your site is hacked, you’ll be glad you have a recent backup to restore!
These are just a few ways to secure your WordPress website. These tips will help protect your site from hackers and other online threats.
Stay vigilant and update your site as often as possible – it’s the best way to keep your data (and reputation) safe!