How to Secure a Website Using Dedicated WordPress Hosting?

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Security has always been one of the primary concerns for any organization or individual hosting their website or application on a server. Since the digital boom, cyberattacks and threats have also risen. To counter this, one must follow updated and the latest security measures to prevent any such incidents.

This is why dedicated WordPress hosting has become the first choice for many organizations to host their applications and business-sensitive information.

Although hosting your website on dedicated WordPress hosting offers many benefits, such as robust infrastructure, scalability, dedicated resources, unlimited bandwidth, concierge support, and more, like anything, it also has some disadvantages.

• It might come as a surprise that 1 out of every 10 small businesses falls victim to a cyberattack annually.
• In the latest Facebook breach, approximately 540 million accounts were compromised.
• The largest recorded DDoS attack reached an astounding 1.3 terabytes per second.
• Furthermore, over 60% of small businesses cease operations following a cyberattack.

This is why security for dedicated WordPress hosting has become a top priority for now than before.

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For More details please Read: 🚩 Why WPOven is highly secure WordPress Hosting?

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Plus, we have also provided a comprehensive post on “How To Protect Your WordPress Site: Ultimate WordPress Security Checklist” to ensure complete security for your website.

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For more details, you can refer to our dedicated post on ” How to Backup WordPress Site in 5 Minutes? “.

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Common security threats to websites on dedicated WordPress hosting and How to protect against them?

You might be surprised to know that WordPress is itself highly secure but what makes it more vulnerable to threats is not following its security measures properly. Hackers always keep an eye on infiltrating or intruding on your WordPress website to harm if not secured properly.

It is found that one of the most common reasons for these attacks is an outdated WordPress version, which becomes vulnerable and insecure to attacks. So, if your website is running on an older version of WordPress, it is more vulnerable to cyberattacks.

Apart from that, corrupt WordPress plugins, poorly coded themes, and WordPress core can also contribute to these threats. 

Here are some of the most common security threats to websites on dedicated WordPress you might face:

1. Backdoors

• Backdoors pose a significant threat to websites hosted on dedicated WordPress hosting.
• They serve as hidden entry points for hackers to infiltrate a website’s files or database, theme files, and FTP access from unsecured computers.
• Backdoors allow attackers to bypass normal authentication methods, granting them unauthorized access.
• The worst part is the infected or malicious files may resemble just like the original WordPress files and it becomes difficult to identify and remove.

Solution: You need to keep running security audits regularly, keep your software updated, use strong authentication passwords (2-factor authentication is best), Run antimalware or virus scans regularly, restrict file permissions, implement WAF, and do not forget to do regular backups.

2. Denial of Service (DDoS attacks)

• These attacks are notorious for overwhelming a website server or network resources which leads to slower website speed and performance.
• Due to these types of attacks, legitimate users are unable to access the website and hence affect not just overall website traffic but also resources and revenue.

Solution: For complete details about DDoS attacks and how you can mitigate them, please read “A Complete Guide on DDoS Attacks (Denial of Service Attacks)“.

3. Cross-site Scripting (XSS):

• In this particular type of threat, the hackers or attackers can inject malicious scripts into web pages that are visited by other users.
• These malicious scripts can be executed in the victim’s browser and potentially steal critical information, hijack user sessions, or deface websites.

Solution: To prevent XSS attacks, you must use plugins from trusted and legitimate sources, keep your WordPress and plugins updated, Do Regular security audits, Implement strict input validation and sanitization techniques, etc.

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Read: 🚩 Most Common WordPress Errors

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4. Malicious Redirects

• Malicious Redirects is just like normal redirection you do but it involves unauthorized change to a website’s URL or navigation paths.
• Legitimate visitors will be redirected to harmful or fraudulent websites without their consent and can caught in phishing, SEO spam, or Malware distribution.
• Hackers generally make targets in corrupt or outdated plugins, themes, or server configurations to inject malicious code or make changes to the existing code that performs redirections.
• It can cause some serious impact on your business and your potential customers may lose trust in your business.

Solution: Regularly audit your security settings, keep WordPress core, plugins, and themes updated, Implement Website monitoring and alert, use always HTTPS connections, Implement WAF, and also utilize IDS (Intrusion Detection System).

5. Brute-force Login Attempts

• In Brute-force login attempts, hackers often utilize automated tools or scripts that systematically try to identify weak passwords or try various combinations of usernames and passwords to gain unauthorized access to the website’s admin area.
• After gaining access to the backend of the website, hackers steal personal and business data, delete important website files, and perform other malicious activities.

Solution: Always implement strong password policies, Limit Login attempts, Monitor Login logs, implement 2-factor Authentication, Rename Login page, and also deeply WAF (Web Application Firewall).

6. Pharma Hacks

• In Pharma hacks, attackers inject links or content that promote pharmaceutical products that are typically related to medications, supplements, or other health-related items.
• Hackers can target any type of website and often use it as a strategy to boost the Search engine rankings of illicit pharmaceutical websites.
• Hackers often exploit outdated files by injecting malicious codes that display ads to legitimate visitors and often promote illegal drugs like Viagra.

Solution: Always monitor your website files, audit your website content for suspicious injected website links, Install Security plugins, Deploy Web Application Firewalls, and perform Website backups regularly.

7. Phishing

• Hackers use phishing emails to trick users into clicking on a link that exposes their passwords. The email looks like it’s from a trusted source, but it is not.
• Hackers can use your server and WordPress installation to send out malicious emails to their victim’s email list.
• It is difficult to identify if your website is infected by phishing scripts, but regular scans can help avoid this issue.

Solution: The best thing you can do is to educate your User about the dangers of phishing attacks, use HTTPS connections, Implement Multi-Factor Authentication, Implement Email filtering, and Encourage users to Report suspected phishing.

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Conclusion

From the above post, you have now figured out how important security is on Dedicated WordPress hosting, what challenges you might face, and how you can mitigate them with proper strategy and planning.

But for an individual, all these tasks can be very daunting. Especially if these security measures for the WordPress site are not followed thoroughly, it can turn out to be a nightmare.

This is why here; Managed Dedicated WordPress hosting comes into play. These hosting services are a special type of service providers that not only provide hosting services alone but complete managed solutions as well. So, it is always recommended that you choose a Fully Managed WordPress dedicated hosting for a complete peace of mind experience.

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