What Security Features Protect WordPress?
WordPress takes security on their platform seriously, but that does not mean that your organization does not carry a heavy load of responsibility for ensuring that your WordPress site is protected from security vulnerabilities. The following are aspects of your WordPress environment that will need attention in order to ensure that you have taken reasonable measures to protect your site from security threats:
Hosting. A secure server protects privacy, integrity, and the availability of the resources under the server administrator’s control. Select a web host that will discuss security concerns, provide recent, stable versions of server software, and will provide reliable methods of backup and recover.
Website applications. You are primarily responsible for the applications that you choose to install. Understand how websites get hacked to avoid introducing malicious applications to your WordPress environment.
General security. Design for protection by reducing possible entry points available to cyberattackers; configure your system to minimize the amount of damage that could be done in the event of a breach; keep backups and have a plane for backup and recovery; only get plugins/themes from trusted sources, such as those in the WordPress.org repository or well-known companies.
Your computer. Be sure that the computers your organization uses are free from spyware, malware, and viruses. Keep your operating system, software, and web browser up to date.
WordPress. Always use the latest version of WordPress and download it directly from the WordPress website. Use the WordPress dashboard to keep informed about updates.
Web server. Make sure you are running secure, stable versions of your web server and the software on it to minimize vulnerabilities. If you are on a shared server, check with your web host to learn what security precautions they are taking.
Network. Both the WordPress server side and client network sides of the network should be trusted. Update firewall rules on your home router and only access trusted wireless networks to avoid sensitive information being intercepted.
Passwords. Create strong passwords that are difficult for people to guess. Automatic password generators can help you to create secure passwords. When creating a password, avoid permutations of your own real name, username, company name, and website name, as well as words from the dictionary, short words, or numeric-only/alphabetic-only passwords. Enable two-step authentication.
FTP. Use SFTP encryption when connecting to your server if your web host provides it.
File permissions and user privileges. Lock down your file permissions as much as possible, loosening them temporarily on a case-by-case basis. Revoke privileges to database structure and administration actions.
Database. If multiple blogs are being run on the same server, keep them in separate databases, managed by different users. If a cyberattacker successfully cracks one WordPress installation, this makes it more difficult for them to infiltrate your other blogs.
Logging. Logs allow you to see things like them and plugin editors uses, widget updates, and post and page additions. Logs all you to identify the IP, time, and action taken by a user, which could be essential to forensic work on your web server.
Monitoring. Use intrusion detection and monitoring to increase your reaction time in the event of a breach.
1 WordPress, 2021, “Hardening WordPress”