Website Security Basic – Essential Rules
In these digital times, when almost everything is online, keeping your websites and servers safe is a must. Website security basic protocols on the other hand protect your websites from potential security issues.
In general, website security is a collection of safeguards and protocols that you take to protect a website or web application. This is an ongoing process as many of the steps you take to secure a website need to be repeated regularly.
Website security measures aim to prevent the disclosure of sensitive data to cybercriminals and to protect your website from malware, spam and other threats. However, ignoring all precautions can lead to hackers stealing sensitive data from your customers, such as B. Credit card information.
Why is website security important?
Website security is important because nobody wants a website to be hacked. Having a secure website is just as important to a person’s online presence as a website host. For example, if a website is hacked and blocked, it will lose up to 98% of its traffic. Not having a secure website can be as bad as not having a website at all, if not worse. For example, a customer data breach can result in legal proceedings, hefty fines, and a ruined reputation.
Website security basic rules
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Keep software and plugins up to date
Countless websites are compromised every day due to outdated software. Hackers and potential bots scan websites to attack them.
Updates are critical to the health and safety of your website. If the software or applications on your site are not up to date, your site is not safe. Take all software and plug-in update requests seriously.
Updates often contain security enhancements and security fixes. The longer you wait, the less secure your website is. Make sure updating your website is one of the top priorities.
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Add HTTPS and an SSL certificate
To keep your website secure, you need a secure URL. If your site visitors are offering to send their private information, you need HTTPS, not HTTP, to send it.
What is HTTPS?
HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure) is a protocol used for security on the Internet. HTTPS prevents interception and interruptions during the transmission of content. For you to have a secure online connection, your website also needs an SSL certificate.
What is SSL?
SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) is another required site protocol. This transfers the personal data of the visitors between the website and your database. SSL encrypts information to prevent others from reading it in transit. It also denies access to the data to those who are not authorized.
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Choose a smart password
With so many websites, databases, and programs requiring passwords, it’s hard to keep up. After all, many people use the same password everywhere to remember their login information. However, this is a serious security flaw.
Create a unique password for each new connection request. Find complicated, random, and hard-to-guess passwords. Then save it outside of the website directory.
For example, you can use a mixture of 14 digits made up of letters and numbers as your password. You can then save the password (s) to an offline file, smartphone or another computer.
Your CMS will ask you to connect and you will have to choose a smart password. Also, avoid using personal data in your password. Do not use your birthday or pet’s name; make it completely unimaginable.
Change your password to a new one after three months or sooner, and then start over. Smart passwords are long and must be at least twelve characters long. Your password must be a combination of numbers and symbols. Make sure to switch between upper and lower case. Never use the same password twice and never share it with anyone.
If you are a business owner or a CMS manager, make sure that all employees change their passwords frequently.
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Use a secure web host
Think of your website’s domain name as a mailing address. Now imagine the web host as “real estate land” where your website exists online.
Since you are looking for land to build a house, you need to search for potential web hosts to find the right one for you.
Many web hosts offer server security features to better protect your downloaded website data. There are a few things to consider when choosing a host.
- Does the host offer SFTP (Secure File Transfer Protocol)?
- Is the use of FTP disabled by an unknown user?
- Is a rootkit scanner being used?
- Does it offer file backup services?
- How well do you keep up to date with security updates?
Whether you choose SiteGround or WP Engine as your host, make sure it has everything you need to keep your site safe.
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Backup your website
One of the best ways to protect your website is with a good backup solution. You should have several. Each is critical to recovering your website from a major security incident.
There are several solutions that you can use to recover damaged or lost files. Keep your website information off-site. Don’t keep your backups on the same server as your website; they are also vulnerable to attack.
Choose whether you want to keep the backup of your website on a PC or a hard drive. Find an off-site location to store your data and protect it from hardware failures, hackers and viruses.
Another option is to secure your website in the cloud. It makes data storage easier and allows information to be accessed from anywhere.
In addition to choosing where to save your website, consider automating it. Use a solution that allows you to schedule backups for your site. You also want to make sure that your solution has a reliable recovery system in place.