If you are working with a web designer or developer to launch a new WordPress site and they are not insisting on using a comprehensive firewall designed for web applications, you need to fire them now! As reported by Security Week, this past December 19th, brute force attacks against WordPress sites has doubled over the past few weeks and shows no signs of decline. While this number is alarming since it encompasses more than 700,000 sites worldwide, this is only one of the many forms of attacks and hack attempts that can derail your website.
The Real Consequences of WordPress Attacks
Brute force WordPress attacks use sophisticated programs that can guess usernames and passwords for websites. When a hacker runs such a program on your site, it can “guess” thousands of combinations in seconds. While it may be difficult to understand the concept or the consequences of such attacks, the best way to describe it to you is to compare it to handing over the keys to a physical location for your business to a thief. These hackers gain access to everything that is available for you to run your online business.
Once hackers have found a way to sign into your WordPress site, they can change the login information and prevent you from accessing your site. From there, they can steal sensitive information such as merchant account information and customer details, but they can also wipe out everything you have worked on, meaning your financial investment and your time have been wasted. They also gain access to your email capabilities within WordPress and can further damage your reputation by sending malware or malicious emails to your clients. The consequences are dire and very real.
Protect your Investment and your Business
Don’t let your business fall victim to these malicious attacks. Your web designer or developer should be informing you of the potential dangers and providing you solutions to protect your WordPress site. At a bare minimum, you need to use a web application firewall (WAP), which is not the same as the firewall you use for standard security on your computers. If your designer/developer has your best interests at heart, they will ensure you understand the vulnerabilities and engage the right protections to ensure your site can fend off brute force attacks and malware. As long as sites remain unprotected, hackers will continue to destroy websites. Don’t let yours be next!