Some are calling 2013 “The Year Of The Hack”; it’s more important than ever to take the necessary steps to ensure your site is secure. Since 2008, almost half a million WP sites have been reportedly hacked and this number is sure to rise as WordPress gains more in popularity. Close to 19% of the world’s websites are powered by WordPress. By not keeping all of the plug-ins and themes associated with your site up to date, you could be potentially leaving it vulnerable to an attack.
Tips to reduce the risk of being hacked:
- Keep software and all plug-ins updated
- Remove all plug-in and add-ons not in use
- Make security a priority when choosing a web hosting company
- Use proper file permissions on your server
- Use strong, varied passwords and don’t store them locally
- Regularly scan your PC for malware
We are in an era where everywhere you turn, you hear stories of the latest hack, and it’s no secret that WordPress has received plenty of bad publicity regarding the topic. Recently, stories about hackers laying a massive, global siege on WordPress sites across the Internet have been everywhere. The main focus of these hacks was exploiting the default “admin” accounts and over 90,000+ IP addresses were involved in the attack. From this, companies scramble with their tail between their legs trying to patch up the security holes they swore never existed.
It should be made a general rule when owning a WordPress site to continuously stay current on the latest updates. Hacking aside, there are several additional benefits to keeping your website fresh and up to date. To put it another way, think about a car; you know the over-all cost of maintenance it is far less than fixing a problem should it occur. Keeping your website up to date, like your car, will be far less expensive in the long run and will give you more “mileage” out of your site.