Keep Your Business Website Safe From a Cyber Attack
I recently had an unfortunate experience of needing to contact my website developer to help clean up a malware attack on my website. Thankfully, I was prepared ahead of time for this type of breach, and my website was not down for too long.
Sound familiar?
As business owners, we have to safeguard our valuable online properties and take the right steps to protect ourselves from viruses and security breaches, especially if you have WordPress installed.
According to Cyber Defense Media Group, 43 percent of cyber attacks target small businesses. They also report that the average cost of a malware attack in 2017 was $2.4 million.
You can greatly improve your security and even prevent an attack from happening with the right tools and steps in place.
Installing a security plugin for WordPress alone is not enough to prevent a security incident that has the potential to harm your business visibility, reputation and sales. You need to have a good hosting company with strong security measures along with connections to a website developer who can help you troubleshoot any potential issues.
If it’s been a while since you’ve taken a look at your website then it’s time to find what’s a potential threat and what’s not in order to avoid becoming the next cybercrime victim.
It only takes a few holes in the cracks to get inside your server and compromise your data. This means you need to be one step ahead of online criminals before they have a chance to gain access.
There are several ways you can protect your website and safeguard your brand.
You may also want to read: How To Protect Your Business From Cyber Crime (By Wade Harman)
Find Out What Your Host Provider Offers
A security breach can come as a nasty surprise for many website owners. That is why it is important to have a long history of logs included with your hosting package. While some may only keep these for shorter periods of time, others may have a more detailed history of the activity going on with your website. Ask your current provider how they capture and track your logs, and whether this is affected by the type of business you have or the region that you live in. This is especially critical to check into if you are running on a shared hosting package.
Conduct Monthly Backups
Do not assume that your website is being automatically backed up by your hosting company. Invest in solid website backup plugins such as BackupBuddy or BackWPUp in order to save your valuable content, images, and installations. It’s important to do these at least once a month. Follow the basic rule of saving your data both online and offline on a separate disk to ensure that you’re completely covered.
Stay Up-To-Date
Each time you log into your WordPress dashboard, it’s a good practice to first take a look at any theme or plugin updates and to keep those updated. Many of these have enhanced security functionality that helps protect your website from malware and viruses. If you are finding a particular plugin is outdated and causing issues then it may be time to replace it in order to close any security loopholes.
Make a Plan of Action
You need to have an action plan ready and available in the case of any security breaches. While we do our best to avoid these, it is still possible to experience an attack on your website. Having the right steps to take in front of you will provide clarity and minimize mistakes. This could be printed or provided as a PDF document with logins, illustrations, and a how-to guide. Include any important contacts such as the website developer and those in charge of handling online security issues.
Check the Daily Activity
Save both time and money by working with a company that provides both website monitoring and development services along with a thorough knowledge of database protection. It’s important to know what type of activity is taking place on a day-to-day basis.
Remember that regularly checking under the hood of your website is ultimately your business’s responsibility, and should be managed by a trusted IT professional. If there is anything that is outdated or has too many spam messages and comments coming in, you’re most likely open to the next cyber attack.
What To Do If You’ve Been Hacked
If you find something has been compromised you should contact your web developer and hosting provider right away to assess the situation. Avoid taking matters into your own hands and rely on expert advice to navigate the problem.
Featured image: Copyright: ‘https://www.123rf.com/profile_nexusplexus‘ / 123RF Stock Photo
Susan Gilbert
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