WordPress is a popular content management system (CMS) used by millions of website owners around the world. However, with its popularity comes the increased risk of hacking attempts and security breaches. Here, we’ll discuss some tips and best practices for securing your WordPress website and how using a web application firewall like Wordfence can greatly enhance your site’s security.
Keep your WordPress site updated
Keeping your WordPress site updated is critical for security. This includes updating the WordPress core, themes, and plugins. These updates often contain security patches that fix known vulnerabilities. It’s also important to use the latest version of WordPress as older versions may have security flaws that can be exploited by hackers.
This is a core service of Bluegrass Web Works. We manage your site to ensure that updates to the WordPress core and plugins’ are rolled out in a timely fashion. If there is a security update needed we can get those within hours of release, to keep your site safe and secure.
Use strong passwords
Using strong passwords is one of the easiest and most effective ways to secure your WordPress site. Avoid using easy-to-guess passwords such as “password” or “123456”. Instead, use a combination of upper and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. You can also use a password manager to generate and store strong passwords.
Install a security plugin
There are several security plugins available for WordPress that can help protect your site from attacks. These plugins can help with tasks such as monitoring for suspicious activity, blocking malicious IPs, and scanning for malware.
Limit login attempts
By default, WordPress allows unlimited login attempts which can leave your site vulnerable to brute force attacks. Brute force attacks involve hackers trying to guess your password by attempting multiple logins. You can limit login attempts using a plugin or by editing your .htaccess file.
Backup your site regularly
Backing up your WordPress site is essential in case of a security breach or other catastrophic event. You can use a plugin or your web host’s backup service to backup your site. Make sure to store your backups offsite and regularly test your backups to ensure they are working properly. Bluegrass Web Works uses a distributed backup solution. Meaning we store your backups in multiple locations. This ensures that if one cloud storage is not available, we access another if a restore of your site is needed to recover from an exploit, crash or hack.
Use SSL encryption
Using SSL encryption is an important security measure for any website, not just WordPress. SSL encrypts data between your website and your visitors’ browsers, making it harder for hackers to intercept sensitive information such as passwords or credit card details. You can obtain an SSL certificate from our complete selection SSL Certificates for all types of sites.
Use a web application firewall
A web application firewall (WAF) like Wordfence is a security solution that protects websites from malicious traffic and cyber attacks. Wordfence offers several benefits, including malware scanning and removal, firewall protection, login security, real-time threat intelligence, performance optimization, and detailed reporting. Using a WAF like Wordfence can greatly improve the security and performance of your WordPress site.
Remember that security is an ongoing process and requires regular maintenance and updates to ensure your site remains secure. By following these tips and best practices and using a web application firewall like Wordfence, you can greatly improve the security of your WordPress site.
You can add Wordfence Premium when you choose your hosting package, or you add Wordfence Premium to your site now, if you are hosting with us, and we will setup, install and manage the configuration going forward.
