#CyberSecurityKe: 5 Simple Ways To Prevent Your Website From Being Hacked
What do hackers really do when they gain access to your website?
Once they gain access to your site through security loop holes like weak passwords and lack of SSL certificates, they usually put malicious codes in your website and what the code does will depend on the hacker’s objective.
To prevent this from happening, one can take numerous precaution measures. The following are some of the actions you should take into consideration:
1. Installing a security socket layer (HTTPS://)
HTTPS is basically an Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) to a secure communication over the computer network (HTTPS)
What this does is complete guarantee to users that they are communicating to the server they ensure no intruder is tapping on the content under transit thus making your users browsing the website more secure while submitting their crucial credentials such as passwords, credit cards details among many others.
2. Regularly updating your software.
Websites in the current world are built using Content Management systems (CMS)- within which, we have many sections that need update in regard to security measures starting from Plugins and themes. This should not be taken lightly as they plays a major role is website based security.
update plugin to prevent website hacking
3. Using Parameterized queries
SQL attacks are done mainly from the URL parameters and web form field with the aim of gaining access and manipulating your database.
SQL injection
This can be prevented by using parameterized queries, most web languages have this feature which is easy to implement.
4. Tightening your network security
Computer users in your office may be inadvertently providing an easy access route to your website servers and network channels.
To secure this, ensure that:
- Logins expire after a short period of inactivity.
- Passwords are changed frequently.
- Passwords are strong and NEVER written down.
- All devices plugged into the network are scanned for malware each time they are attached.
5. Installing web application firewall
This can be either a hardware or software set between your website server and data connection which basically reads every bit of data passing through it.
web application firewall to prevent cyber attack
With the current technology, hackers are used to using password dictionaries which can generate relevant passwords to your account name and eventually penetrate to your website. That said, here are some tips on creating and managing strong passwords.
- Make the effort to figure out a truly secure password (or use HostGator’s password generator).
- Make your password long.
- Use a mix of special characters, numbers, and letters. And steer clear of potentially easy-to-guess keywords like your birthday or kid’s name.
- Make sure everyone who has access to your website has similarly secure passwords.
Bonus Tip* Make Administrators’ Directories Tough to spot
Hackers can use scripts that scan all the directories on your web server for giveaway names like ‘admin’ or ‘login’ and focus their energies on entering these folders to compromise your website’s security. Most popular CMS’s allow you to rename your admin folders to any name of your choice. Pick unique sounding names for your admin folders that are known only to your webmasters to greatly reduce the possibility of a potential breach.
Have you been hacked? If yes, what measures have you put in place to ensure you never suffer such loss and inconvenience?