In April 2013 a worldwide brute-force attack struck WordPress installations on almost every host server in existence.

These attacks were caused by infected computer networks programmed to attack other sites (botnets).

(WordPress often is targeted by hackers, due to its global popularity)

In March 2014, many technology sites reported that 160,000+ WordPress web sites had been hacked.

(160,000+ WordPress sites were attacked in a massive DDoS attack in March 2014. Image source: BlogDefender site)

According to the Cnet report,

“With some old-fashioned trickery, hackers were able to get more than 162,000 legitimate WordPress-powered Web sites to mount a distributed-denial-of-service attack against another Web site.”

(Source: cnet.com/news/ddos-attack-is-launched-from-162000-wordpress-sites)

As reported by security firm Sucuri, hackers had leveraged a well-known flaw to attack unsuspecting WordPress websites and direct a distributed-denial-of-service cyberattack (DDoS) towards another popular website.

When brute-force attacks on WordPress sites are reported in the media, it’s natural for website owners to start questioning just how safe and secure the WordPress platform is for running an online presence.

Powering millions of sites worldwide makes WordPress an obvious target for hackers. But should you be concerned about WordPress as being a secure web platform?

In this article, you will learn some of the main reasons why you should definitely consider choosing WordPress if you are concerned about website security.

WordPress Security Explained

Let’s start by looking at facts …

Thousands of websites and blogs are hacked every year … not just WordPress sites!

The scale of attacks on websites and blogs worldwide is rising, and things are only going to get worse.

It’s probably safe to assume that if you haven’t been hacked yet, then it’s only a matter of time … regardless of the web platform your website has been built with!

Since it’s not a matter of if, but when before your website is targeted by hackers, are there any advantages that WordPress can offer you in terms of security?

How Secure Is “Open Source” Software?

Many people argue that WordPress should not be used for running a business online because having open source code means that anyone can view how the program works.

Open source CMS software like WordPress, Drupal and Joomla are free to use and anyone can have access to the entire underlying code.

The argument against using WordPress, then, goes something like this: If everyone can study the Open Source code for WordPress, then hackers can also easily get hold of all of the code and study every single line in great detail, looking for security holes that could be exploited …

(It’s no longer a matter of if, but when before someone attempts to hack your website … WordPress or no WordPress!)

While it’s true that WordPress is free and hackers can easily go through the code looking for security vulnerabilities and weaknesses that can be exploited (hackers can do the same with any program), the fact that WordPress is a free, open-source software platform actually makes it a lot more secure in a number of ways.

This is because WordPress has the support of a huge community comprised of hundreds of people such as software programmers, plugin developers and theme designers who are constantly working to help to improve the software and make WordPress more secure …

(A volunteer community of web developers around the world build, maintain and update. Image: WordPress.org)

WordPress continually evolves largely through the effort of hundreds of committed volunteers working around the clock to fix issues. It benefits from thousands of individuals dedicated to improving the application, fixing bugs and making WordPress safer for every user …

(The WordPress core software is built by an open community of contributors. Source: make.wordpress.org)

The moment any security holes are discovered by developers or users, these are recorded in user forums and addressed by the WordPress core development team …

(WordPress is continually being improved by an open community of users and developers. Screenshot source: make.wordpress.org)

The WordPress community support system is very responsive and anybody can help contribute to the process of addressing security issues.

For example:

• If you come across bugs or security weaknesses, you can report these by emailing security@wordpress.org.
• If you find any issues in a WP plugin, you can report these by emailing plugins@wordpress.org.

This is one of the reasons why the core development team releases new updates so frequently, and why you need to keep your WordPress site regularly up-to-date …

(WordPress continually releases new version updates to address any security exploits found)

WordPress Vs Proprietary Applications

Contrast the benefits of using an open source CMS technology like WordPress with proprietary platforms where often the responsibility for maintaining software security, fixing bugs, etc. falls to a small team of developers with limited resources and you will quickly understand the security benefits of using WordPress to run your web presence on a secure platform.

The WordPress CMS is 100% free to download, use and modify, and hundreds of volunteers and expert developers work on improving the platform. Can a proprietary CMS company afford to employ as many developers and programmers and still deliver users software that is 100% free to download, use and modify as they wish?

WordPress CMS Vs Other Open Source CMS Platforms

(CMS Platforms - WordPress, Joomla and Drupal)

Whilst on the topic of Open Source content management systems, there is valid research to support the fact that the WordPress CMS is safer than other leading Open Source CMS platforms like Drupal and Joomla.

For example, here is one study showing the number of security vulnerabilities discovered in each of these CMS platforms …

(National Vulnerability Database – Security Vulnerabilities IN CMS Applications. Screenshot: National Vulnerability Database)

Other studies also show that, because WordPress is quite easy to use and to maintain, when sites across different CMS platforms were tested for security vulnerabilities, sites built with WordPress had significantly less exposure to risk …

(WordPress users are not as exposed to risks as other CMS platform users. Screenshot: BlogDefender.com)

It’s Easier To Blame Technology When Things Go Wrong

If someone breaks into your WordPress site, don’t be quick to place the blame on the WordPress CMS platform.

According to a nonprofit organization that helps webmasters identify, remediate and prevent website compromises called StopBadware and security vendor Commtouch in a published report entitled “Compromised Websites: An Owner’s Perspective“, most website owners are not fully aware of the security threats their websites are exposed to, how to secure a website, or how to deal with web security compromises.

In fact, over sixty percent of webmasters surveyed for the report didn’t know how their sites had been hacked after an attack …

(Many webmasters don’t even know how their sites get hacked. Image source: StopBadware.org)

Of more immediate concern, however, is the fact that many security-related issues result from site owners running WordPress on outdated versions of the software …

(Many WordPress users have not upgraded their WP sites. Screenshot: Sucuri.net)

When WordPress security issues were looked at in more detail, it was found that only between 20% – 35% percent of vulnerabilities discovered in third-party code are found in the WordPress CMS core, while 70% – 85% percent of all security issues are found in plug-ins and developed externally …

(WordPress Security Issues. Image: WebDesign.org)

Like all robust software platforms, WordPress is regularly updated to deal with new security issues that could arise. Improving security is an ongoing concern, and to that end, you should always keep your WordPress software, themes, and plugins updated to the latest version.

WordPress Is Used By Many Security-Conscious Organizations!

The amount of misinformation online about WordPress security has even led the co-founder of WordPress, Matt Mullenweg, to chime in and reply to posts online.

In an article entitled “A Bank Website on WordPress” posted on April 15, 2015, Matt wrote the following about WordPress security …

There’s a thread on Quora asking “I am powering a bank’s website using WordPress. What security measures should I take?” The answers have mostly been ignorant junk along the lines of “Oh NOES WP is INSECURE! let me take my money out of that bank”, so I wrote one myself, which I’ve copied below.

I agree there’s probably not a ton of benefit to having the online banking / billpay / etc portion of a bank’s website on WordPress, however there is no reason you couldn’t run the front-end and marketing side of the site on WordPress, and in fact you’d be leveraging WordPress’ strength as a content management platform that is flexible, customizable, and easy to update and maintain.

Matt then goes on to provide a couple of security tips, before stating the following …

For an example of a beautiful, responsive banking website built on WordPress, check out Gateway Bank of Mesa AZ. WordPress is also trusted to run sites for some of the largest and most security-conscious organizations in the world, including Facebook, SAP, Glenn Greenwald’s The Intercept, eBay, McAfee, Sophos, GNOME, Mozilla, MIT, Reuters, CNN, Google Ventures, NASA, and literally hundreds more.

As the most widely used CMS in the world, many people use and deploy the open source version of WordPress in a sub-optimal and insecure way, but the same could be said of Linux, Apache, MySQL, Node, Rails, Java, or any widely-used software. It is possible and actually not that hard to run WordPress in a way that is secure enough for a bank, government site, media site, or anything.

Millions of businesses, including banks, large organizations and e-commerce sites use WordPress to build their presence online, not just bloggers.

Other Issues That Can Affect Website Security

Other areas that can affect WordPress blog security include factors such as:

• No platform is immune to hacking. As many as 90% of all websites across all platforms are vulnerable to being attacked, mostly due to using outdated software.
• The main weakness in all web platforms seems to be the users themselves. For example, many users ignore good password security practices.
• Lack of constant monitoring. Security processes need to be frequently monitored, tested, updated and improved.
• Server setup. For example, websites on shared hosting servers are only as secure as the least secure site on the grid, so if another user has a weak FTP password on your shared server, then every site on your server can potentially become vulnerable to being hacked as well.

There’s No Reason Not To Choose WordPress

As you can see, WordPress is quite secure. As long as you commit to implementing basic security measures and keep your WordPress software (and themes, plugins, etc.) up-to-date, there is no reason to avoid choosing WordPress to drive your website or blog.

WordPress Security – Useful Tips

To learn about ways to protect your WordPress site from brute-force attacks see this article:  WordPress Brute-Force Attack Prevention Measures

A vulnerable site presents malicious users with a platform for launching denial of service attacks, spreading malware and engage in information theft. Blog Defender Security Plugin for WordPress makes your WordPress site invisible to malicious attacks from hackers and bots. Go here to learn more:

• How To Prevent Malicious Attacks On Your WP Web Sites From Hackers

If you are using older versions of WordPress remember to back up your website fully before updating your software to protect your site from the latest security risks. This way, if something goes wrong, you can always restore.

If you don’t want to perform manual backups, there are a number of WordPress plugins you can use. Learn about a WordPress backup plugin that can automate your backup process here: Back Up, Duplicate & Protect Your WordPress Sites With Backup Creator WordPress Plugin

References

For more information on the above, see the following sources:

• ITProPortal.com
• National Vulnerability Database
• BlogDefender.com
• UpAndUpStudios.com
• StopBadware.org
• Sucuri.net
• WebDesign.org
• Quora.com
• Ma.tt

Hopefully, now you have a better understanding of problems that can affect your website and how WordPress can help you expand your business online. To learn more about using the WP platform please click on links to visit other articles published on this site or subscribe to receive updates and notifications whenever new articles are published.

***