Here are some ways to make your website more secure: 

  1. Install SSL 
  2. Use Secure Passwords 
  3. Update Plugins and Extensions 
  4. Use CAPTCHAs for Form Submissions 
  5. Regularly Backup Your Website 

Contact Horton Group today to learn how we can help make your website more secure.  

Install SSL

SSL stands for Secure Sockets Layer, an encryption-based internet security protocol that keeps your internet connection secure and prevents criminals from reading and modifying any information that is being transferred. To start the process, you’ll need to verify your website’s information using the ICANN Lookup too. Next, you can generate a Certificate Signing Request and submit it to the Certificate Authority in order to validate your domain. Once that’s completed, you’ll be able to install the certificate on your website. 

Use Secure Passwords 

According to a 2020 report by Cybersecurity Ventures, more than 300 billion passwords are at risk every year and in 2016, three billion user credentials and passwords were stolen. They also predict that cybercriminals will steal about 33 billion records in 2023 alone.  If someone were to hack into your website by logging into your account, they can inject malicious software and cause a variety of issues such as changing content, stealing private information, and denying access to certain pages.

Here are some tips for making your password more secure: 

  • Use 8 characters as a starting point 
  • Don’t recycle passwords 
  • Use a password manager to keep track of passwords such as 1Password or LastPass. 
  • Use tools like Google’s Password Checkup to see if any passwords or email addresses have been compromised. 

Update Plugins and Extensions 

If you’re using a website host like WordPress, you’ll be able to easily install a variety of plugins to further customize your website. However, if you’re using plugins or extensions that are vulnerable in any way, it can quickly put your website at risk. If they’re out of date, they can also create compatibility errors such as causing certain parts of your website to not load or function properly. To check the plugins that you’re currently using on a WordPress website, you can go to the “plugins” tab on the left-hand side underneath “appearance”. On that page, it will list out all of your plugins and their information. If a plugin is unofficial and closed, it will be displayed in red, if it’s official, it will be displayed in green. It also shows you when it was last updated and who the author is. 

 When you’re looking to install a new plugin, you’ll want to look for one that has been updated within the past year, has a reasonable user base, and has an author who frequently responds to support requests. You can also scan it for malware to ensure that you won’t run into any problems down the line. 

Use CAPTCHA for Form Submissions 

If you’ve ever bought concert tickets online or changed your login password, you’ve likely had to complete a CAPTCHA to finish the process. Standing for Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart, they provide challenges for automated users while creating tasks that are simple for real users. They’re used for a variety of reasons such as maintaining poll accuracy, preventing ticket inflation, and preventing false comments. 

By using CAPTCHAs for your form submissions, you’ll be able to prevent any spam messages from coming through. This is important as they can clog up your newsletter signups and lead to false conversions. It also helps real users feel more secure and reduce the number of forms that are abandoned. 

Regularly Backup Your Website

Regularly backing up your website creates a safety net which is vital if other security measures fail as it’ll allow you to recover any files that have been overwritten or deleted. When backing up your website, it creates a copy of your website files and your database so you can restore it to a previous version if necessary. You can also install a program that automatically backups your website on a weekly or monthly basis so you won’t have to worry about needing to do it on your own. 

Need help making your website more secure? Contact Horton Group today for award-winning web design, SEO, web hosting, and more for your business!