Website Hardening: 08 Ways to Secure Your WordPress Site

With the number of cyberattacks on the rise, you should take every safety precaution to secure WordPress against hackers.

WordPress is an open-source software with some known vulnerabilities that perpetrators love to exploit. Therefore, website hardening is necessary. 

Because of its popularity, WordPress gets attacked the most compared to other CMS. In fact, WPScan reported that they have over 56,000 (historical and active) WordPress vulnerabilities in their databases.

Before you question whether WordPress is worth it in 2024, we can assure you that it is. Most of these vulnerabilities come from plugins and themes, and only a few percent are from WordPress’s core. To be precise, 94% are from plugins and 4% from themes.

No matter the stats, cyberattacks can be deadly. Therefore, we will show you eight website hardening strategies to keep hackers away!

Without further ado, let’s jump right in!

01. Update Your WordPress Themes and Plugins

As we discussed, most WordPress security concerns arise from outdated themes and plugins. Thus, regularly checking and updating your themes and plugins can help harden your WordPress security.

Take advantage of the WordPress auto-update feature. It automates the update process without you having to do it manually. You can do that by navigating to plugins from your WordPress dashboard.

You will see the Enable auto-update button in front of the plugin’s description. Clicking on the button should enable auto updates.

Also, note that plugins are not the only culprits for vulnerabilities. Be mindful of themes and your WordPress version as well. The study we talked about earlier also states that 7.7% of WordPress users still use version 4.9 or earlier. Regularly check for core updates; they are essential for website hardening. 

02. Add Multiple Layers of Security

WordPress Brute force attacks and other cyberattacks can be performed on the WordPress login page. Therefore, adding multiple layers of security to access your website can help in website hardening.

Multiple layers include protecting your site by adding multi-factor authentication and installing reCAPTCHA. 

Several security plugins, such as All In One Login (AIO Login), can help implement such features. 

Multi-factor authentication requires the user to validate their login attempt using another factor, usually done through the admin’s mobile. Thus, it can help secure your website even if the password is leaked or your email is compromised.

Google reCAPTCHA can help filter bot traffic, limiting the number of bot attacks on your WordPress. You can easily implement Google reCAPTCHA using Password Protected.

Navigate to Password Protected from your WordPress dashboard. Switch to the Security tab and then the Google reCAPTCHA subtab. Using the slider, Enable the feature and fill out the requirements.

03. Limit Login Attempts

To perform a brute force attack, hackers use trial and error to crack a password or login credentials. Unless you use a password as weak as 123456, the hacker would require thousands of combinations before cracking the correct one.

Limiting login attempts helps overcome this problem by temporarily blocking the IP address that attempts to log in using incorrect credentials. 

You can limit attempts using the Password Protected Attempt Limitation feature. 

To enable, navigate to the plugin’s settings and then the Security tab and Attempt Limitation subtab.

Input the number of attempts you want the user to make before being temporarily blocked. In the following input box, enter the amount of time—in minutes—the user must be blocked after a set of incorrect login attempts. 

04. Change Your Default Login URL

Default WordPress login URL is prone to vulnerabilities because it’s easier to reach. You can effortlessly land on a WordPress website’s login page by adding /wp-login.php in front of the domain. For instance, https://examplewebsite.com/wp-login.php will direct you to the Example Website’s login page.

From there, cyberattackers can conduct brute force and similar cyberattacks to gain unauthorized access or inject malicious software into your website’s code.

You can easily avoid that by changing your default login URL.

 ⚠️ Make sure to back your site up before changing permalinks. 

To do so, navigate to your WordPress Settings >> Permalinks.

Scroll down until you find a section titled “Change wp-admin login.” Change the URL by entering your new login URL in the input box.

Save changes, and now you are good to go!

05. Implement a Web Application Firewall (WAF)

A Web Application Firewall, or WAF, is a layer of protection that filters traffic between an application and the Internet. A WAF can protect you from critical cyberattacks such as cross-site scripting (XSS), Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF), and SQL injection.

It filters traffic using set principles and blocks or allows IP addresses, eliminating bot traffic. This infographic from Cloudflare perfectly illustrates how firewalls work.

To install WAF, choose a reliable web application firewall.

You will have to change your name servers for it to work. However, the actual documentation may vary depending on the service provider. We suggest checking out their website for more accurate documentation. 

06. Install Secure Socket Layers (SSL)

Unsecured websites that do not use HTTPS are easy targets for hackers and attackers. Search engines and users dislike unsecured websites. In fact, search engines mark such websites as unsecured and discourage users from purchasing from them. 

Not only that, unsecured sites also get demoted on the search engine result pages, which can seriously impact your business’s revenue and reputation. 

Most domain registrars offer free SSL certificates with the domain. However, if you did not receive one with the purchase, you can use services like Let’s Encrypt to get one for free. 

SSL certificate is essential not only to secure your website from hackers but also for SEO.

07. Regular Backups

Regular backups are super necessary for website hardening. They help WordPress in case of security breaches, failures, or accidental data loss. 

Backups help quickly recover after an attack. In case of an unfortunate event, if a hacker attacks your website, you can easily restore your website to the previous state, minimizing downtime.

Backups can also be helpful in case a theme or plugin glitches. In such a case, your website will shut down with a critical error warning. In such circumstances, backups can save you. You can easily restore your last backup and get your site running quickly.

Therefore, create regular backups for your WordPress. Plugins such as Duplicator and UpdraftPlus can automate this task. 

08. Regularly Perform Essential Security Checks

Regular malware check ups also help harden your WordPress security. They help detect malware early and allow you to take immediate action before the virus spreads. These scans also prevent data breaches and unauthorized access, as malware can help hackers gain login credentials.

Regular malware scanning also safeguards your customers’ security. Malware can give attackers access to customers’ sensitive information, which can lead to fines and reputation loss. 

WordPress plugins like Wordfence or MalCare can help with regular checkups. 

Similar to SSL certificates, search engines also flag websites with malware as unsecured and prevent them from appearing on the result pages. If your website has been flagged, make sure to send a request to search engines to allow your website to be shown in SERPs again. 

You can use the Google Search Console to send a request to Google. You must clearly state what happened and how you eliminated the malware. Additionally, the safety precautions you will take to prevent it from happening again in the future. 

Final Thoughts on Website Hardening

That is how to secure a WordPress site. You do not have to worry about website hardening if you can check every step of this WordPress security checklist—or at least most. 

Implement these WordPress security tips today. WordPress gets millions of cyberattacks every hour. Your website could be the next. 

Take advantage of the best WordPress plugins mentioned in the article. Plugins like Password Protected can help protect your WordPress from hackers and perpetrators.

Website Hardening — Frequently Asked Questions