Web Security: 3 Common Misconceptions That Put Your Website at Risk

Having a website is a wonderful thing. It is a great business opportunity either for physical or online services. The website receives new people visits, some of them become new customers, and voila – your business scores another point for its growth.

There are quite a lot of things you should be thinking about when maintaining a website, and its protection from cyber threats is definitely one of these things. However, we have noticed that many website owners consider that web security is not that important issue to consider. We at Howtohosting.guide assure you that to be under common delusions related to web security can put your website at serious risk.

A proper mindset can prevent attackers from:

Injecting client-side scripts that directly enable them to access crucial information;
Bypassing every password and accessing the databases of your website;
Bringing your website down via DDoS attacks;
Infecting the server with malware;
Acquiring user accounts and passwords;
And other threats.

It’s essential to be aware of the most common web security misconceptions and take action to prevent them from exposing your business website at risk.

The False Belief: “My brand is unknown, and my website is small”

A widespread misunderstanding among site owners is that web security is only for big, popular websites that have a large amount of traffic on a daily basis. But just because your website is small, it doesn’t mean it is immune to hacking attempts.

Falling victim to a data breach or cyber attack may cost you a lot. Most small to mid-size online businesses that get hacked are forced to discontinue their activities within a few months after the attack. Beyond the financial consequences of a data breach, network security is even a more critical factor to consider because an attack can compromise your customers’ trust.

The battle against suspicious network activity is prevention. This demands a solid strategy to secure your site. Here are a few key points that should be included in any comprehensive data security plan:

Malware protection
Strong password policies
Regular review of network alerts, error reports, performance, and traffic
Regular review of available updates

The Risky Statement: “I have a blog, not an ecommerce project”

Rumors often obscure the truth about cybersecurity in general and web security in particular. Not only e-commerce sites are among hackers’ targets. Even you have a blog that is not collecting sensitive users’ credentials, you still need to consider the actions that will secure it. Long lists of people’s emails and credit card details may seem to be more attractive to hackers, but have you ever wondered what will happen if a cyber criminal successfully accesses your site, server and install malware or redirect all your traffic to its own site? If they figure out that your web security is vulnerable to attacks, they will surely try to compromise it. So you better act now and secure your blog instead of being sorry later.

The Wrong Idea: “I am using one password for each of my accounts”

If you are using the same password for most of your online accounts, then you risk to let cyber criminals hijack and leak the data from all these accounts at once. Even the most robust passwords do sometimes get compromised. That is why it is of utmost importance to follow one of the major cybersecurity rules – use different passwords for different accounts.

It would be best if you made a rule to create and use strong passwords with a minimum of 12 characters for your different online accounts. Use at least one uppercase letter, at least one lowercase letter, and a symbol or a number. By making your passwords as secure as possible, you can keep hackers from taking over your accounts and prevent sensitive information theft. Your site will stay away from nasty compromises if you use multi-factor authentication whenever you see the option available.

You may now wonder how to remember all these different passwords or keep them safe and secure from hackers. Well, a password manager is always the right decision. Password management tools store passwords securely. Many of these tools provide a way to back-up your passwords and synchronize them across multiple systems.

More Web Security Tips to Protect Your Website

Cyber threats are growing in number and complexity every day. One missed vulnerability or postponed update gives hackers the chance to deliver their malware, take private information, and then misuse it for revenue and other malicious activities. That’s why we will offer to your attention a few more tips that can help you keep your site safe from fraudsters and cyber criminals.

Check your website for any vulnerable code

Here we will make a necessary clarification that hackers are attacking the web applications that support your site instead of your site directly. Most sites are powered by a CMS like WordPress, Magento, etc. or a web application. It’s true that popular platforms like these are considered more secure. However, they still have flaws that need to be caught and patched on time.

Also, let’s not forget that every website has its hosting as well as a few installed plugins, widgets, and other apps. All these elements appear to be vulnerable to web attacks from time to time. That is why it is of utmost importance to check all active site apps for any vulnerable code.

For this purpose, you can use an automatic detection tool. We could give you a tip to search for one that covers at least the top 10 common vulnerabilities listed by Open Web Application Security Project® (OWASP).

Install a SSL certificate

Having an SSL certificate is an essential protection layer that provides a secure web experience for every visitor. We consider that every site no matter of the level of its traffic should have an installed SLL. Installing an SSL certificate means that you will make your site more trustworthy and liked by visitors. Every site that provides this web security measure indicates that it is protected against hackers and attacks trying to get financial data. By setting your website to use only HTTPS, you know that the connection between your site and the server is always secure. In that way, you and your site’s visitors will be calm about sending credit card information, personal data, and contact details.

Install WordPress security plugins

Adding reliable web security plugins to keep your WordPress site is a step that worth your time and effort for sure. Such plugins appear to be a convenient web security solution as they have features that protect your site from attackers, spammers, theme detectors, and other hackers. Some of these plugins guarantee that you will receive timely notifications for any potential lousy behavior with full details about it so that you can act immediately and prevent the occurrence of more severe problems.

One of the first protection plugins оn the market is the Security Ninja. It has a bunch of unique features, including a firewall that blocks dangerous and unwanted traffic, malware scans, auto-fix problems, etc. Such a plugin guarantees that your site will be safe and clean. For more website plugins to secure your site, check out our Top 5 Best WordPress Security Plugins to Protect Your Website (2020) guide.