Keeping your site secure is, of course, incredibly important for your business. Not only does it keep your clients safe online but it also means your website is always doing its job – and helping you to convert!
But where to start? It can be a bit of a nightmare doing anything with a website, especially if you’re not 100% sure what exactly you’re doing.
Fear not! Here are my 5 top tips for keeping your website safe.
1. Enforce HTTPS
The first thing to check is that you have https enforced on your site. You’ll know if it is because you’ll see either a padlock symbol or the word “secure” at the front of your url bar. This means that your site is delivered to the user via a secure, encrypted transfer rather than an open transfer that can be tracked easily.
You can do this through your hosting provider – check with them how they have it set up.
2. Keep it updated
The next priority is to keep all the software that your site uses up-to-date. That means the platform software and any plugins that your site has. The quickest way to leave your site vulnerable to viruses, malware or other attacks is to let software get out-of-date.
Why so many updates? Well, some of them add awesome new functions that help you run your website more easily. But most of them are patches that close up any gaps in security. So pretty darn important!
3. Know what you're installing
You also need to be diligent when adding new plugins to your site. Do a bit of research (or ask your web developer!) and check that the plugin is what it says it is, not a trojan horse. If you’re at all in doubt – don’t add it! It’s just not worth the risk.
4. Lockdown your login
The next step is to make sure that your login protocols are strong. Nearly 10% of websites are hacked simply due to weak passwords. Make sure that:
- You never use “admin” as a username.
- You use strong passwords.
- You change passwords regularly.
It is also a good idea to consider adding two-factor authentication to your site as well. Yes, it makes it slightly harder for you to log in quickly and easily – but it makes it MUCH harder for a hacker. Worth those extra few seconds, right?
5. Back it up
Once your site is on https, up-to-date and has a secure login, you need to make sure that you are backing it up. That way, if the worst happens and your site is hacked or infected, you can restore it quickly and easily. If you don’t have a backup, you could end up having to completely rebuild the site from scratch – expensive and time-consuming!
Check with your hosting provider – a good provider should be running regular malware scans and backups of your site. If not, you might want to consider changing providers or employing someone to manage backups for you.
If you’d like support with ensuring your site stays safe and secure, check out my Site Maintenance package – a great way to get peace of mind!