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Reasons Why Cybercriminals Want to Hack Your Website
You might think there is nothing worthy on your website to make it a target for hackers. Many owners don’t care about the security of their website simply because they believe it is not big enough to get attacked. But in reality, 43% of all data breaches happen to small businesses. In most cases, hackers are interested in your servers rather than the customer’s data or website layout. And can further use your web servers to mine Bitcoin, send spam and phishing emails, or include them as part of a botnet.
Steps to Secure Your Website from Hackers
New digital threats constantly appear as cybercriminals become more and more creative with ways to steal your data. That is why securing your website from hackers should be a continuous process rather than a one-time activity. But even with a few simple steps described below, you can significantly boost your security and protect your website from attacks.
1. Install Software Updates
Keeping all your software up to date is an important step in website security. Since attackers are trying to exploit the known bugs and vulnerabilities before the vendors patch them with software updates. So you should install the latest updates for all website software. This includes CMS, plugins, themes, firewalls, antivirus, etc.
2. Create Strong Passwords
Almost everyone is aware of the need to create complex passwords. Nevertheless, many neglect this valuable protection tip. Check if your website admin area and server passwords meet the best security practices. You should also enforce password requirements on the signup form if visitors have an option to create accounts on your website.
3. Implement Two-factor Authentication
Even the most secure passwords can get cracked if you put enough time and effort into the process. Therefore, enabling 2FA (Two-factor authentication) is crucial, as it brings an additional layer of security to the login process. It requires a user to verify via another device or token in addition to entering the username and password. Enabling two-factor authentication ensures that no one else can access your website.
4. Secure Endpoint Device
The endpoint device is the desktop computer, laptop, or smartphone used to manage the website and its content. Access to such a device allows hackers to log in to the website and servers easily. Protecting your computer and other devices is equally important as managing website security. Install an antivirus on your Android, use VPN, get rid of junk files, and regularly clean up your Mac and Lenovo PC. Even the most essential steps will ensure your computer is safe and protected.
5. Use HTTPS
Using HTTPS protocol on your website is recommended as it brings an additional layer of security, such as TLS or SSL encryption. This ensures that all the requests are protected, and users access the content they expect to see. So the requests won’t be intercepted or modified in transit. Adding HTTPS to your website will also influence the trustworthiness and credibility of your website. Nowadays, all users are familiar with the difference between HTTPS and HTTP, so most will opt-in to visit the more secure website.
6. Install a Firewall
Over time, hacking of a website has transferred from manual to automatic way. Now, cybercriminals use bots and scripts to find vulnerabilities and hack into websites. Once you install a firewall, the firewall checks all incoming requests. So, if the firewall identifies that a specific request is suspicious or comes from a malicious IP address, it gets instantly blocked. That is why installing a firewall is an effective way to protect your website from hackers.
7. Limit Number of Login Attempts
Most brute force attacks are executed using bots that send thousands of requests simultaneously to one website. Deny entry after several failed attempts (usually after 3) to secure your website from this kind of hacking. This is a practical way to effectively protect your website without using too many resources, as some firewalls and WordPress plugins already come with such functionality integrated.
8. Backup Your Website
Many believe that taking a backup is an additional step that can be neglected without severe consequences. But in reality, this is the most reliable and most-efficient way to recover from failures and cyber-attacks. Even though a backup can’t directly secure your website from hackers, it will protect all your data and hard work from getting vanished. Make sure you set up automatic daily backups of your website. It is also a good practice to back up your data before major website changes or updates.
Final Words
The Internet is not only full of business opportunities, but it also contains many cybersecurity risks and threats. That is why protecting your website from hackers is important in keeping your site running smoothly. Instead of a one-time action, it should become a regular website maintenance habit. Even small changes can significantly improve the security of your website. So, install the latest software updates and firewalls, create strong passwords, use HTTPS, make a backup, and follow other ways to secure your website from hackers efficiently.