WordPress Targeted by Hackers
First, it is not just WordPress. All websites on the internet are vulnerable to hacking attempts.
The reason that WordPress websites are a common target is that WordPress is the world’s most popular website builder.
This immense popularity gives hackers an easy way to find websites that are less secure so they can exploit them.
Hackers have various motives for hacking a website.
Most have malicious intentions, such as distributing malware, attacking other websites, and sending spam.
Top causes of WordPress sites getting hacked
1. Insecure Web Hosting
Like all websites, WordPress sites are hosted on a web server.
Some hosting companies do not properly secure their hosting platform.
This makes all websites hosted on their servers vulnerable to hacking attempts.
This can be easily avoided by choosing the best WordPress hosting provider for your website.
Properly secured servers can block many of the most common attacks on WordPress sites.
2. Using Weak Passwords
Using weak passwords
Passwords are the keys to your WordPress site.
Make sure that you are using a strong, unique password for each of the following accounts because they can all provide a hacker complete access to your website:
Your WordPress admin account
Your web hosting control panel account
Your FTP accounts
The MySQL database used for your WordPress site
All email accounts used for WordPress admin and hosting
All these accounts are protected by passwords.
Weak passwords make it easier for hackers to crack the passwords using some basic hacking tools.
You can easily avoid this by using unique and strong passwords for each account.
3. Unprotected Access to WordPress Admin (wp-admin)
The WordPress admin area gives a user access to perform different actions on your WordPress site.
It is also the most commonly attacked area of a WordPress site.
Leaving it unprotected allows hackers to try different approaches to crack your website.
Make it difficult for them by adding layers of authentication to your admin directory.
Password-protect your WordPress admin area.
This adds an extra security layer, and anyone trying to access WordPress admin will have to provide an extra password.
Enforce strong passwords for all users on your site.
You can also add two-factor authentication (2FA) to make it even more difficult for hackers to enter your WordPress admin area.
4. Incorrect File Permissions
File permissions are a set of rules used by your web server.
These permissions help your web server control access to files on your site.
Incorrect file permissions can give a hacker access to write and change these files.
Your WordPress files should have a 644 value as file permission.
Your folders on your WordPress site should have 755 as their file permission.
5. Not Keeping WordPress Up to Date
Some WordPress users are afraid to update their WordPress websites.
They fear that doing so will break their website.
Each new version of WordPress fixes bugs and security vulnerabilities.
If you are not updating WordPress, then you are intentionally leaving your site vulnerable.
If you are afraid that an update will break your website, then you can create a complete WordPress backup before running an update.
This way, if something doesn’t work, then you can easily revert to the previous version.
6. Not Updating Plugins or Theme
Just like the core WordPress software, updating your theme and plugins is equally important.
Using an outdated plugin or theme can make your site vulnerable.
Security flaws and bugs are often discovered in WordPress plugins and themes.
Usually, theme and plugin authors are quick to fix them.
If a user does not update their theme or plugin, then there is nothing they can do about it.
Make sure you keep your WordPress theme and plugins up to date.
7. Using Plain FTP instead of SFTP/SSH
FTP accounts are used to upload files to your web server using an FTP client.
Most hosting providers support FTP connections using different protocols. You can connect using plain FTP, SFTP, or SSH.
When you connect to your site using plain FTP, your password is sent to the server unencrypted.
It can be spied upon and easily stolen.
Instead of using FTP, you should always use SFTP or SSH.
You don’t need to change your FTP client.
Change the protocol to ‘SFTP – SSH’ when connecting to your website.
8. Using Admin as WordPress Username
Using ‘admin’ as your WordPress username is not recommended.
If your administrator username is ‘admin’, then you should immediately change that to a different username.
9. Nulled Themes and Plugins
Malware
Many websites on the internet distribute paid WordPress plugins and themes for free.
Downloading WordPress themes and plugins from unreliable sources is very dangerous.
Not only can they compromise the security of your website, but they can also be used to steal sensitive information.
Always download WordPress plugins and themes from reliable sources such as the developer’s website or official WordPress repositories.
If you can’t afford to buy a premium plugin or theme, then there are always free alternatives available for those products.
Free plugins may not be as good as their paid counterparts, but they will get the job done and, most importantly, keep your website safe.
10. Not Securing wp-config.php WordPress Configuration File
The wp-config.php WordPress configuration file contains your WordPress database login credentials.
If it is compromised, then it will reveal information that could give a hacker complete access to your website.
You can add an extra layer of protection by denying access to the wp-config file using .htaccess.
Add this code to your .htaccess file:
wp-config.php>
order allow, deny
deny from all
11. Not Changing WordPress Table Prefix
Many experts recommend that you should change the default WordPress table prefix.
By default, WordPress uses wp_ as a prefix for the tables it creates in your database.
You get an option to change it during the installation.
Use a more complex prefix. This will make it harder for hackers to guess your database table names.
Cleaning Up a Hacked WordPress Site
Cleaning up a hacked WordPress site can be painful. It can be done.
