In this quick BGOcloud guide, you will read about three key pillars – WordPress hosting + web security and how to get both of them right with the help of top WordPress security plugins. For the purpose of this article, we will also highlight some of the best practices concerning your website’s protection.
So, let’s get started.
The Things You Should Know About WordPress Security
Here’s something to think about for a moment – earlier in September this year, Wordfence, one of the most best WordPress security plugins available on the market today, announced that it has blocked over 4.6 million cyberattacks targeting zero-day vulnerabilities in a single month. So, what does it say about WordPress security and is WordPress secure then?
The answer is yes and no because WordPress security depends on several factors:
- WordPress hosting provider
- WordPress Passwords
- Plugins
- Themes
- Version updates
Being one of the most preferred content management systems (CMSs) that bloggers and business owners use, it definitely positions itself among the top targets for cyber attackers. It simply has so much to offer to both – users and hackers. Just imagine, if you google it, you will find out it accounts for the impressive 43.2% of all websites on the internet for 2022. So, the number of attempts to hijack a not-so-well protected WordPress website is mind boggling.
Important note: WordPress 6.0.2 was released on August 30, 2022. Because it is a security and maintenance release it adds 12 bug fixes on Core, 5 bug fixes for the Block Editor, and 3 security fixes. To avoid any security breaches and keep you’re the data on your website uncompromised, it is highly recommended that you update your sites to the latest version. In an official announcement, it was even pointed out that the WordPress Security Team won’t provide security updates for WordPress core versions 3.7 – 4.0 anymore. As you have may heard, there’s also WordPress 6.1 RC1 available for testing now with the official release set for the following month – 1st of October, 2022.
How Can You Improve Your WordPress Security?
If you’re not sure how exactly to ensure WordPress security, we’ve gathered several best practices to guide you along the way. They include:
- Regularly update your WordPress files and plugins to their latest version.
- Secure admin area by restricting the access to it.
- Always choose a strong password.
- Keep an eye on your computer’s security – make sure that it is completely protected from viruses and malware software.
- Change your username to something different and more complicated than just ‘’admin’’.
Practical How-To: You can make these changes after logging into your cPanel account – phpMyAdmin icon in the Database section. Then, locate your WordPress database and choose ‘’_users’’ table. A list of the registered users in your site will appear. When you find the ‘’admin’’ username you can edit it. Then, locate the ‘’user login’’ field and replace its value from ‘’admin’’ to the new login name you have chosen. After clicking on the ‘’GO’’ button, the changes you have made will be saved.
What Are The Top 5 WordPress Security Plugins You Can Use To Better Protect Your Website?
Now, you may have set a super strong password and restrict the access to the admin panel, but the thing that levels up the security of your WordPress website is a reliable plugin. Below you will find a list of the best ones to install.
- Wordfence – this one has over 4, 000 000 users and targets admin+ stored cross-site scripting vulnerability areas. It can block malicious traffic before it attacks your site, scans for malware, and so forth.
- Sucuri – works great for auditing, scanning of and Security Hardening, Post-Hack Security Actions, and more.
- All-In-One Security (AIOS) – is among our top choice of WordPress security plugins because it ensures firewall protection, file protection, editing, backups, restoration, etc.
- Defender – with more than 70, 000 installs, this security plugin provides 2FA, WordPress core file scanning, Timed logouts preventing from brute force attacks, IP address blacklisting.
- BackupBuddy – it targets unauthenticated arbitrary file access.
Is Your Website Secured With BGOcloud WordPress Hosting Then?
Absolutely and here is how exactly we make sure your website is secured with us:
- CloudLinux OS file system CageFS – Ensures the protection of your sensitive information by encapsulating each of them and thus preventing them from a variety of cyber-attacks.
- Daily backup– Our plans come with a great backup solution based on R1soft highly reliable platform (14 days retention with daily restore points).
- Updates notifications – You receive notifications via email every time here is an available update, and we recommend updating your WordPress and plugins to their latest version.
- Free SSL Certificates– You can easily convert your websites from http:// to https:// with the free Let’s Encrypt SSL Certificates that we offer. They will be automatically generated within 24 hours.
- Secured domains – We offer great benefits for long-term subscriptions. And free (but secured) domains are just one of them.
- 24/7 customer & technical support– Our skillful team is always ready to resolve your issues instantly and efficiently. Just contact us and we will provide you with the assistance you need.
On a final note, we’ve prepared a quick but highly useful guide to Domain Security which you can also read. It offers valuable insights to some of the best practices like:
- Registrar Lock/Domain Lock
- Strong Passwords
- Two-factor authentication (2FA)
- Domain renewals
- Using a VPN
Learn the steps regarding how to secure your domain name.