Tips to Secure WordPress Sites & Plugins

Plugins and the extensions are the tools which help to extend the capabilities of any application. With the help of plugins and extensions. You can back up your content automatically at the regular time intervals. Plugins & extensions are even helpful to connect your website to different social platforms. Accordingly, extensions and plugins have very useful features.

This becomes vital to think of the website’s security when using these facilities. If any of these plugins or extensions has a vulnerability, then this can lead to security breach later on in the application. There was the news that the SEO pack which contains all the tools, a plugin for WordPress. It found to have two vulnerabilities that would allow privilege and cross-site scripting attacks. This is the case of already installed. It is a good idea to upgrade to the latest version of the plugin.

Some security tips for Plugins:-

The given below are some security tips whereby you can use plugins and still safeguard yourself from the vulnerabilities that may arise thereof.

Tip# 1: If you are not using a theme or a plugin any longer, it is a good idea to have it deleted. Hackers cannot compromise the sites which don’t contain code.

Tip#2: It is always best for you to procure your plugins and themes from sources that can be trusted. The attractive thing is free themes and plugin. Unfortunately, we do not know what comes along with it. The malware can easily creep in from free plugins and themes and compromise the site’s security.

Tip#3: The passwords should be strong. Although, many malware programs that run automatically trying to guess passwords and break into WordPress sites. So, it’s better to be safe.

Tip#4: It is important to maintain up-to-date versions of all plugins and themes. There are WP plugins that give the latest information on updates that are available. The programs for instance- InfiniteWP, ManageWP, and WPRemote help to update large networks of sites all at once.

Tip#5:  A surefire way for your WordPress website security is including a two-factor authentication login (2FA). With the help of this method, we can add a second layer of security and prevents attacks by hackers. Request for identification proof such as passwords sent to mobiles or answers to secret questions.

Few more tips to secure WordPress Sites & Plugins:-

Tip#6: Do not leave the WordPress admin login to the default one: wp-admin, wp-login.php, etc. Try to change the password to an unusual or a less common one. This makes the website more secure and prevents attacks to the admin URL page. Businesses need to use a number of plugins for better performance of their site and therefore these security tips are essential.

Tip#7: Switching to HTTPs protects the website from eavesdroppers trying to monitor data that is communicated between two parties. If you currently have an HTTP site, it is a good idea to switch to HTTPs with the help of an SSL certification. With the help of SSL certificate, it is beneficial to create an impenetrable link between the web server and browser. The website also gets a better ranking in Google listings if you have an HTTPs website which translates to better security

Tip#8: All WordPress files are to be monitored regularly and actively. As any file that has been hacked can be spotted immediately. Plugins that can track the status of WordPress files and pass on notifications.

Tip#9: it is a good idea to have a regular back-up of your site. By backing up it prevents building up your site from scratch again in case of any transgression. As there have many readymade plugins are available which is helpful to you do this job. So it is better than the trouble that is taken to rebuild the website from scratch.

Tip#10: It serves to keep WordPress as well as its plugins updated. It is common to easier to have a security issue with outdated versions. As it becomes easy for hackers to act if the versions are not patched to the latest updates. Remember to configure plugins during installation so that they automatically update themselves. The WordPress comes with an automatic update feature from version 3.7 onwards.