The sheer number of attacks on websites and blogs worldwide is massive, and things are only going to get worse.
You can safely assume that if your website or blog hasn’t been hacked yet, then it’s only a matter of time.
On March 11, 2014, technology sites like Cnet.com reported that 160,000+ legitimate WordPress-powered web sites had been hacked.
Thousands of websites and blogs are hacked every year! Could yours be next?
(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 described by security firm Sucuri, hackers had leveraged a flaw to attack unsuspecting WordPress websites and direct a distributed-denial-of-service attack (DDoS) towards another popular website.
Every web site with a vulnerability provides some type of opportunity to hackers. A vulnerable web site not only presents hackers opportunities to improve their hacking skills and win “respect” amongst their peers, but it can also acts as a valuable resource for stealth attacks, distributing malware and participating in information theft.
If hackers can discover a vulnerability, that web site can then be used as a “bot” to attack more valuable websites.
The reality is that hackers are very likely scouring for weaknesses and trying to break into your website or blog as you are reading this page right now. Whether they can hack in successfully or not, will depend on how challenging you have made things for them to continue persisting until they discover how to get access, or give up and decide to look for a less protected target.
How Much Information Are You Broadcasting To Hackers About Your WordPress Site?
If you visit Hackertarget.com and run your website through their WordPress security scan …
(WP Security Scan Product image source: https://hackertarget.com/wordpress-security-scan)
You will see that the scan returns a number of results and details about your website …
(website security check results. Screenshot image: Hackertarget.com)
It should be obvious after using this scanning tool that if you can access all of this information about your WordPress site, then so can hackers.
(Product image: BlogDefender.com)
Being able to see which version of WordPress you are using, which plugins and themes you have installed on your site, and which files have been uploaded to certain directories can all be potentially useful information to hackers, as this informs them about exploitable vulnerabilities, especially in older versions.
Fortunately, there is a simple and inexpensive way to stop broadcasting all of this information about your site and protect against other malicious threats.
Blog Defender
Product Description
The product is a package of WordPress security video tutorials, plugins and tools, plus WordPress security documentation in PDF and DOC formats.
Matt Garrett, the developer of BlogDefender began looking for a way to develop BlogDefender after noticing that a WordPress blog he set up for his mother got hacked into and suspended by the hosting company. This particular blog was not being used and had literally nothing to offer, yet it was still attacked.
Matt only became aware of the event after being informed by his host and noticing that a significant amount of unusual activity had occurred within the server, as well as the addition of several phishing files designed to drive visitors to the site and hijack Paypal account information.
(Product image source: BlogDefender.com)
This example shows that all websites are valuable to hackers.
Blog Defender scans you website for potential security weaknesses …
And then shows you how to easily fix these …
Blog Defender – Plugins
The product suite comes with 3 WordPress plugins:
The first plugin in the Blog Defender product suite provides automated backups …
(Product image source: BlogDefender site)
Plugin #1 “Automated Backups” lets you do automated site and file backups to your server, external servers and cloud solutions using different backup methods (e.g. FTP), automate full or partial backups, exclude tables or files from backups, restore backups, replace URLs (useful when migrating sites to different domains or server locations), do mass text replacements in your WordPress database, perform auto database scans and repairs, and more.
Pro Plugin #2 “WordPress Security” provides WordPress security …
(Screenshot image: Blog Defender)
Plugin #2 “WordPress Security” provides a range of site security functions (see “Features” section below).
The third plugin lets you scan your content and files to see if any of your files have been altered, and fix problems …
(Source: BlogDefender.com)
Pro Plugin # 3 also scans content to see if any malicious URLs have been added to your site, bans bad bots, blocks brute force attacks and detects any content leeching (where people benefit from your work without reciprocating the favor).
Blog Defender – Videos
In addition to the plugins, the Blog Defender WordPress security suite also includes seven videos plus printable documentation that will show you exactly what to do to protect your site from hackers and bots …
(Product image: Blog Defender)
More info:
Benefits
Below we have listed just some of the benefits of using Blog Defender to make your WordPress site invisible to hackers and botnets on your website:
Quick And Simple To Install And Configure
The plugins are very easy to install. Just upload the plugin files to your Plugins folder via your WP dashboard and activate.
Simple And Easy To Follow Training
Blog Defender is a do-it-yourself step-by-step training product that guides you through the website security process and shows you what to do, including how to set things up, and even which plugins you can use for free to get things done inexpensively.
Additional benefits include:
- Secure your WordPress website from hackers, spammers, bad bots, data mining tools and malicious users whose aims is to ruin your business for personal and financial gain at your expense.
- Prevent Your Info Products From Being Freely Distributed – If you are an information product creator (e.g. downloadable e-books, videos, etc.), your work can be stolen and end up as freeware on free downloading sites.
- Avoid Getting Blocked By Search Engines – When a website is hacked, you can expect to go through a whole lot of frustration and heartache. It can take days to uncover the problem and sort through the issues these have caused. In the meantime, your, website or blog could get suspended by your host, or even deindexed by search engines. Additionally, hackers can spam your contact list and steal your personal details or financial information, you could be fined or even charged with fraud, and much more.
Features
Blog Defender hide your website from hackers and malicious bots.
The product provides fixes for all of the following security areas:
- Host Security Advisory
- WP Plugin Security Audits
- Theme Security Audits
- Anti Brute Force Security
- Anti Cross-Site Scripting
- WordPress Database Security
- Nefarious Traffic Blocking
- Hiding WordPress ‘Tell Tale’ Signs
- Anti-Comment Spam Blocking
- Monitoring Files
- Track Links
- Known Offender Blocking
- Automating Core WordPress Updates
- WordPress Security Audit
- Tightening Server Security
- Kick Out Policy
- Online Reputation Checking
- And More …
Blog Defender uses a logical sequence of steps to help secure your web site, addressing potential hosting security issues, using scanning and detection tools to identify risky WP themes and WP plugins, and then helping you implement site-wide security using the tools and plugins provided.
(Blog Defender WordPress security process. Screenshot image: BlogDefender.com)
User Feedback
Here are a couple of the testimonials that plugin customers have written about Blog Defender:
”This is probably one of those times you ask yourself ‘do I really need this product?’ Let’s face it, on the surface it’s not going to immediately put more money in your pocket or even add some cool new gizmo to your site… The truth is yes you do and you need it now. I’ve been in the online business for 10+ years and had my fair share of hacked sites which have cost me time and money (lots of it)…I’ve also seen a good number of people have their reputations and entire businesses left in tatters when their sites have been hacked. Right now is the time to act, because when it’s too late, well basically you’ll be screwed (and you’ll regret the day you passed over such a great opportunity to protect yourself for so little). And by the way, if you think your web host will come to your rescue think again, you’ll be on your own, paying to put things right and suffering the cost of lost sales and business. This is a seriously good product and if you rely on WordPress to make you money online then it’s nothing less than essential. Buy it, follow Matt’s expert advice and don’t end up another victim!” Simon Hodgkinson, www.hodgkinsonpublishing.com
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”In the past month alone, I’ve had 3 niche blogs hacked, costing me hundreds of dollars in lost sales – all of which could have been avoided if I followed the steps in this training. I can tell you, there’s nothing worse than spending months building up a blog, adding posts every few days, and then finding it all gone in an instant. The great thing about these ‘over the shoulder’ videos is that you get to see exactly how to do everything, so it doesn’t matter if you’re technically challenged. Just copy what you see on the screen, and then relax knowing your blogs are safe. (Just one of the tips in the first video alone could probably have prevented my blogs getting hacked) I even noticed one or two tips in there that help with SEO too … so following these videos could even bring your blogs more traffic!” Richard Legg – www.richard-legg.com
Plugin Tips
According to the plugin developer, Matt Garrett, no Blog Defender-protected websites or blogs have been hacked since Blog Defender was first released.
The product developer also states on his site, however …
“With the volume of attacks nowadays … we probably won’t hold forever, so we’ve been busy creating even tougher WordPress security.”
Cybersecurity is is a constant game of cat and mouse and all security solutions are only as good as the information and tools that developers presently have access to. The latest release of Blog Defender creates an easier WordPress security solution that doesn’t need constant attention, is quite inexpensive and it’s as good if not better than many web security products or services currently being offered at a higher price.
Support
The product is well-supported, can be used by both Mac and PC users, is compatible with the latest WordPress release and is backed by a no-risk, thirty day, full money-back guarantee.
Product Price
Blog Defender is normally available for personal use only on unlimited sites. When we last checked, however, it was also being sold with Developer rights, allowing users to secure client sites as well.. Price = $47.00.
Note: Pricing details of the product can vary, depending on whether there are any promotions or limited-time special offers. The pricing above was correct at the time this content was published. This may or may not be the actual pricing set by the plugin developer when you visit the plugin website and there may be additional upsells or one-time offers after purchasing.
Check the plugin’s website for the current price:
Additional Info
For help documentation and tutorials, FAQs, customer help desk, contact details and more, visit the Blog Defender website.
Get This Product
No matter what kind of business you run or plan to run online and how small you think your web presence is, website security is something you simply cannot ignore.
WordPress is a very secure platform, but neglecting simple maintenance tasks like updating your WordPress software, plugins and themes, tightening file and data protection and taking other necessary precautions can expose your site to malicious by hackers and bots.
Blog Defender helps you learn what your responsibilities are as the website owner, what hosting companies can and can’t do if the security on your website is compromised, what security features to look for in a webhost, and how to avoid major security risks without investing in expensive solutions.
For more details, visit the plugin website here: Blog Defender Security Plugin
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