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How to Secure Your WordPress Site From Malware Attacks

If your website has been compromised before, it will likely happen again. It is simpler to attack a website once it has already been hacked, granted there’s been little to zero defensive measures implemented afterwards. However, you can take steps to protect your website from such harmful attacks.

1. Take frequent backups

Malware detection is a timely process, and if you do not follow it up with the restoration of your website, your website can be lost permanently. This is why it is essential to take frequent backups of your WordPress website. This way, if you detect any malware attackS on your website, you can quickly restore it from your backup. A backup plugin, such as the UpdraftPlus plugin, takes your website’s frequent backups and stores them in external storage space.

2. Scan Your Website For Malware

You should scan your website periodically to check whether your website is free from malware. There are numerous ways to do this. For example, you can scan your website via a website firewall like Cloudflare. You can also use the free Sucuri scanner, which will provide you with recommendations on how to secure your website.

3. Use a Malware Protection Plugin

The level of protection you receive from a firewall depends on several factors. A robust firewall like Cloudflare is more helpful compared to a simple one. However, even a powerful firewall cannot detect every single malware infection. It is essential to take the help of a malware infection scanner to detect malicious files related to malware. You can install the Sucuri Malware scanner or Malwarebytes Antimalware to scan your website for malware infection. You can also use the malware protection plugin to protect your WordPress blog.

4. Update Your Website Regularly

You should always make sure that you have the latest version of WordPress installed on your website. And you should also update the core of your WordPress website and plugins regularly.

5. Use an SSL Certificate

An SSL certificate is a must if you have an eCommerce website or accept payments through your website. If you don’t have an SSL certificate, your website will be a sitting duck for hackers to exploit. Most importantly, your website visitors will not be able to access the secured pages of your website.

6. Avoid Downloading Free WordPress themes or plugins from third-party sites

Most WordPress plugins and themes are available for free and downloaded from the official WordPress repository. This is the safest way to install a plugin and a theme on your WordPress website. However, many sites host malicious plugins for WordPress. So, if you need to download a free plugin or theme, purchase it from a reliable source to stay safe.

Conclusion

WordPress is a powerful platform and is used by millions of websites worldwide. Hackers exploit vulnerabilities in WordPress, and they often target websites that do not have a firewall and a malware scanner. They also target websites that have outdated plugins. If you take the measures mentioned above to secure your WordPress website, your website will be much safer from attacks.

If you’re looking for WordPress hosting in Australia, we can help you. Hosted WP specialises in WordPress hosting and other services. We’re ready to help you with whatever you need, whether it’s hosting, maintenance, malware removal, or more. Contact us today for more information. Together we can have your website running at its best and your brand grow to its full potential.

About the author

David Sullivan
Owner of Hosted WP.

Personal Blog at https://sulli.blog