25 Simple WordPress Security Tricks to Keep Your Website Safe in 2021

Web security is essential from the viewpoint of keeping it safe and secure from bad actors attempting to access sensitive information. While that is known and understood, how do you secure a website built on WordPress? There isn’t one or two ways to secure your WordPress site, but a whopping 25 ways to do so. BrainMine, the leading website development company in Pune, runs through each one.

25 WordPress Security Tricks for Website Security

• Choose Good Hosts

Work only with trustworthy, safe, and high-quality hosting. Usually, the higher you invest in this regard, the better the results you reap. However, you can also go for some budget options that take website security as seriously.

• Do Not Allow File Editing

If your users have admin access to your WordPress site, they can edit installation files, including themes and plugins. However, if you disallow file editing, users will not be able to make any edits. It includes hackers as well. Enter the below to disallow file editing, add – define(‘DISALLOW_FILE_EDIT’, true); to the wp-config.php file.

• Safeguard the wp-config.php file

The wp-config.php file has vital information about WordPress installation. It is also the most important file in your site’s root directory. Protecting the file refers to securing the core of your WordPress blog. To protect, take your wp-config.php file and move it to a higher level than the root directory.

• Set Directory Permissions with Utmost Care

Set the directory permissions to 755 and files to 644 to protect the entire file system, including individual files, directories, and subdirectories. You can do so via the File Manager inside the hosting control panel or through the terminal (connected with SSH) – make use of the chmod command.

• Block Hotlinking

Hotlinking is another user taking a photo from your website and stealing your server bandwidth to display the image on his website. You can block hotlinking by using manual techniques. However, the simplest of all is to use a WordPress security plugin.

• Disable Directory Listing

If you create a new directory, without putting an index.html file in it, visitors will get a complete directory listing of everything there in the directory. You can prevent it by adding the below line of code in your .htaccess file.

• Options All -Indexes

Set Up Website Lockdown and Block Users

Put up a lockdown feature for multiple failed login attempts. It will help you solve several problems concerning forced attempts. So, in case a hacker tries to hack the website with repetitive incorrect password entries, the site will get locked, and you will receive a notification for unauthorized activity.

• Secure the Website Against DDoS Attacks

DDoS attacks attack your server’s bandwidth. The attacker leverages multiple programs and systems to overload your server. The attack does not endanger site files. However, it can crash the website for a long time. In this regard, consulting a website development company in Pune can prove helpful.

• Set Multi-Factor Authentication

A multi-factor or two-factor authentication involves login details for two different components. As the website owner, you decide what those two are. So, it can be a regular password and then a secret code, OTP, question, etc.

• Use Email to Login

An email ID proves a better alternative over a user ID from the website security perspective. It is because usernames are easier to guess than emails. Additionally, WordPress user accounts are created with unique email IDs, which are unique identifiers to log into a website.

• Rename Your Login URL

The default WordPress login page is easy to access. If hackers know the direct URL of your login page, they will try and trespass with the help of their Guess Work Database.

When you use email IDs instead of user IDs, you can replace the login URL and prevent a significant number of direct attacks. You can change the login URL with the WPS Hide Login plugin.

• Change Your Passwords Regularly

This one is a no-brainer. Keep changing your passwords regularly. Ensure you do not set up obvious passwords like your birth date, name, etc. Create a complex password with uppercase, lowercase, numbers, and special characters.

• Use a Password Manager

Use password managers to generate quality and complex passwords and store them inside secure storage so that you don’t have to remember them.

• Set Auto-Logout for Idle Users

Your website security can be compromised if users leave the wp-admin of your website open on their screens. Anyone can fidget with the system and change the password. One way to avoid it is to set auto-logout after the system has remained idle for a particular time.

• Secure the wp-admin directory

Breach of the wp-admin directory can lead to significant damage to the website. So, set up a password for the wp-admin directory. It will help you access the dashboard by submitting two passwords to protect the login page and secure the WordPress admin area.

• Encrypt Data with SSL

SSL (Secure Socket Layer) ensures secure data transfer between user browsers and the server. It makes it difficult for hackers to breach the connection or steal information. Accordingly, you must implement an SSL certificate.

• Be Careful While Adding User Accounts

If your website and admin panel are used by multiple users, your website becomes more vulnerable to security threats. To avoid it, you can use Force Strong Passwords to ensure your users create strong and secure passwords

• Change the Admin Username

Never choose admin as the username for the main administrator account. By doing so, you, in fact, simplify the first step for hackers, leaving them with the only task, which is to crack the password. Use a username that’s difficult to guess and that the hackers might not have even dreamed of.

• Keep Monitoring the Files

Use plugins like Wordfence to monitor the changes to your website’s files. It will help you enhance web security.

• Change the WordPress DB Table Prefix

If you use the default prefix wp-, your website may become vulnerable to SQL injection attacks. However, you can prevent them by changing it to say, for instance, wpnew-

• Create Regular Backups

Never forget to create regular backups of your website data, no matter how well you secure your website from attacks. Partner with an expert company that helps you do so.

• Set Database Passwords

Set strong and secure database passwords, comprising lowercase, uppercase, special characters, and numbers. You can use LastPass to generate and store random passwords.

• Monitor Audit Logs

In the case of a multi-author website, you will have authors contributing content and changing passwords. However, you wouldn’t want or allow them to change themes and widgets, as you will reserve those rights only for the admin. In situations like these, monitoring the audit log proves helpful here. You can know the changes everyone is making.

• Update WordPress Security

Update everything from plugins to themes regularly to keep your WordPress website secure. WordPress sends automatic updates to its users. So, you get an email notifying you of the update and information concerning your dashboard fixes. Additionally, you must update plugins regularly when you get an update link for a particular one.

• Remove the WordPress Version Number

If attackers know your WordPress version, they can prepare an attack against your website. To remove the WordPress version number, add the below function to your functions.php file.

function wpbeginner_remove_version() {

return ”;

}

add_filter(‘the_generator’, ‘wpbeginner_remove_version’);

Conclusion

The above tricks involve several technicalities. Dealing with them and ensuring comprehensive WordPress website security requires you to partner with a website design company in Pune. BrainMine, precisely, proves helpful in this regard. For details, call +91 8446477774 or write to info@brainminetech.com.