Last updated on January 14th, 2025 at 12:47 am
[This article is a part of the WordPress Security series. This series, I share my experience and advice to keep your site safe from hackers, malware, and other digital threats. Whether it’s securing your login or backing up your site, what and how to maintain your site, and tool recommendations.]
I paid no attention to keeping the site secure or updated when I started using WordPress for blogging back in 2018.
Nothing bad happened because I had such little traffic and little content, or I was just lucky. But if it did, it could be horrible because I was completely unarmed.
When I got to work on a college newspaper site, I then realized the stake was much higher. I was paid to keep the site alive and well. Which meant I’d better not mess it up. That was the point where I started to educate myself more seriously about WordPress.
The first thing to understand is the nature of the platform and why it needs much attention when it comes to cybersecurity. And second, what to do about it.
WordPress is often considered more vulnerable to cyber attacks compared to other platforms due to several reasons:
Reason #1: Popularity:
WordPress is one of the most popular content management systems (CMS) in the world. More than 45% of all websites on the internet are fueled by WordPress (Hubspot, 2023). This fact makes it a prime target for attackers because abusing a popular platform allows them to potentially impact a large number of websites at once.
Reason #2: Open Source Nature:
WordPress is open source, meaning anybody can freely edit its source code. While this drives innovation and grows WordPress communities, it also means that anybody can find potential vulnerabilities and either ignore them, secure them, or take advantage of them.
Reason #3: Third-Party Plugins and Themes:
WordPress allows users to install third-party plugins and themes to extend functionality and customize their websites. However, these plugins and themes may have vulnerabilities that can be exploited by attackers. What’s worse is when users don’t keep these tools updated, leaving them open to known security flaws.
Reason #4: Lack of Maintenance:
Some WordPress users may not regularly update their WordPress core, plugins, and themes to the latest versions. This lack of practice can leave websites vulnerable to known vulnerabilities that have been patched in newer versions.
Reason #5: User Error:
Users can get away with creating a website without coding or understanding the technical aspects of WordPress. Although this makes WordPress accessible to more users, it can also lead to security issues if users don’t know how to properly care for their website or keep it secure.
Now you understand why security matters so much for WordPress sites. The next question is what to do about it.
You can reduce security risks and vulnerabilities on WordPress by following WordPress security best practices. Here are some examples:
Practice #1: Keep WordPress Updated:
Regularly update WordPress core, plugins, and themes to make sure that vulnerabilities are patched.
Practice #2: Use Trusted Plugins and Themes:
Select plugins and themes from reputable and trusted sources. Always remove the unused or outdated ones.
Practice #3: Use Strong Authentication and change periodically:
Use strong passwords and two-factor authentication for added security.
Practice #4: Limit Access:
Restrict access to the WordPress admin area and sensitive folders using password protection.
Practice #5: Install Security Plugins:
Use security plugins such as Wordfence or Sucuri to provide additional layers of protection against common threats, e.g., Brute Force Attacks.
Practice #6: Backup Regularly:
Back up your website files and database regularly to ensure you can restore it quickly if anything goes wrong.
Practice #7: Monitor for Suspicious Activity:
Set up a monitoring tool to detect and alert you to any suspicious activity on your website, e.g., unauthorized login attempts or file modifications.
By following these best practices, you can reduce the risk of cyber attacks on your WordPress website.
To me, that sounds like a big relief. But do you ever wish there was a magic button that you could click and all these practices instantly applied to your website? I wish it was that easy, too, because the stuff I mentioned above is pretty overwhelming.
Now, tell me in the comment below:
Would it be helpful if there’s an easy-to-follow checklist that tells you how to make your WordPress site more secure? Would you use that checklist?