The sheer number of attacks on websites and blogs worldwide is increasing on a daily basis, and things are only going to get worse.
You can safely assume that if you haven’t been hacked yet, then it’s only a matter of time.
On March 11, 2014, technology sites like Cnet.com reported that over 162,000 WordPress-powered websites had been hacked.
Thousands of websites are attacked every year! Could yours be next?
(Screenshot image: BlogDefender.com)
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 well-known flaw to attack unsuspecting WordPress sites and direct a distributed-denial-of-service cyberattack (DDoS) towards another popular website.
Every website or blog with a security vulnerability can be an opportunity to hackers. A compromised website offers hackers with a valuable resource to launch DDoS attacks, spread malware and use your site to defraud innocent people.
If hackers can find a security weakness in your system that lets them gain any form of control of your website or blog, the blog can then be employed to target other highly-valued sites.
The reality is that hackers are scouring for security weaknesses and trying to hack into your website while you are reading this page right now. Whether they can hack in or not, will depend on how difficult you can make things for hackers or botnets to keep trying until they can discover a way to get in, or decide to look for a less protected target.
How Much Information Are You Broadcasting To Hackers About Your WordPress Site?
If you visit a site like Hackertarget.com and run your website through their WordPress security check …
(Hackertarget – Website Security Check Image source: https://hackertarget.com/wordpress-security-scan)
You will see that the test returns a number of results and details about your website …
(website security check results. Image source: Hackertarget.com)
It should be obvious after using the tool shown above that if you are able to see all of this information about your website, then so can hackers.
(Image source: 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 be valuable information to hackers, as this informs them about any potential security vulnerabilities, especially in older versions.
Fortunately, there is a simple solution to stop broadcasting all of this information about your site and make your site invisible to malicious users and bots.
Blog Defender
Product Description
Blog Defender is a suite of WordPress security video tutorials, WordPress plugins and tools, plus WordPress security documentation in PDF and DOC formats.
Matt Garrett, the creator of BlogDefender developed BlogDefender after noticing that a WordPress site he set up for his mother got hacked into. This blog was almost brand new and so had practically no value to offer, yet it was still hacked.
Matt only became aware of this after being suspended by his host and seeing that a significant amount of suspicious activity had occurred inside the server, as well as the addition of a number of malicious files by whoever had broken into his mother’s site.
(Image source: Blog Defender)
Matt’s experience illustrates the fact that every website has value to hackers.
Blog Defender scans you WordPress installation for security weaknesses …
And let’s you fix these quickly …
Plugins
Blog Defender comes with 3 plugins for WordPress:
Pro Plugin #1 “Automated Backups” in the product suite helps you schedule automated backups …
(Product image: BlogDefender.com)
The “Automated Backups” plugin lets you do secure site, file and data backups to your server, third-party servers and cloud-based solutions using a number of backup methods (including FTP and email backups), perform full or partial backups, exclude tables or files from your backups, restore backups, replace URLs (useful when migrating websites to different domains or server locations), do mass text string replacements in your WordPress database, perform malware scans and blacklist checks automatically, and more.
The second plugin provides your site with security …
(Source: BlogDefender site)
This plugin performs a range of vital file and site protection functions (see “Product Features” section below).
Plugin #3 “WP Scan & Repair” allows you to scan your plugins, themes and WordPress core files to see if code in your files has been changed, and fix any problems it detects …
(Screenshot image: BlogDefender.com)
Plugin #3 “WP Scan & Repair” also scans content to see if any malicious content have been added to your site, bans bad bots, blocks brute force attacks and detects any content leeching (where others benefit from your content without reciprocating the favor).
Video Tutorials
In addition to plugins, the Blog Defender WordPress security product suite also includes step-by-step training in video format and printable documentation that show you exactly how to protect your website from malicious users …
(Screenshot image: Blog Defender)
Go here to learn more:
Plugin Benefits
Below we have listed just a few of the benefits and advantages of using Blog Defender to make your WordPress site invisible to hackers and botnets on your site:
Fast And Easy To Install And Use
The Blog Defender plugins are really easy to install. Simply upload the plugin files to your Plugins folder via your WP dashboard and activate.
Really Simple And Easy To Follow
Blog Defender can be used as an easy-to-follow do-it-yourself step-by-step training product that will guide you through the website security process and show you what to do, including how to set everything up, and even which plugins you can install for free to get the job done inexpensively.
Some additional benefits include:
- Secure your website from hackers, spammers, bad bots, data mining tools and malicious users whose aims is to exploit your site for their own personal and financial gain.
- Protect Your Info Products – If you are a digital product creator (e.g. downloadable ebooks, video training, etc.), your product can end up as freeware on free downloading sites.
- Avoid Getting Closed By Your Web Host And Banned By Search Engines – When a site has been hacked, expect to go through a whole lot of frustration and heartache. It can take days to uncover the problem and sort through any issues these have caused. Your, site can be suspended by your webhost, or even blacklisted by search engines. In addition, hackers can spam your contact list and steal your personal and financial information, you could end up being fined or even charged with fraud, and a whole lot more.
Features
Blog Defender provides many unique features to WP users.
The product helps you fix the following security areas:
- Host Security Advisory
- WP Plugin Security Audits
- Theme Security Audits
- Anti Brute Force Security
- Anti Cross-Site Scripting
- WP Database Security
- Nefarious Traffic Blocking
- Hide WordPress ‘Tell Tale’ Signs
- Anti-Comment Spam
- Monitoring Files
- Link Monitoring
- Known Offender Blocking
- Automating WordPress Updates
- WordPress Security Audit
- Tighten Server Security
- Kick Out Policy
- Reputation Checking
- And More …
Blog Defender provides a logical process for securing your website, addressing hosting security, using scanning and detection tools to quickly identify risky themes and plugins, and then implementing website-wide security using the tools and plugins provided.
(Blog Defender security process. Image source: BlogDefender website)
Testimonials From Users
Below are some of the testimonials and feedback plugin users have written about the Blog Defender product suite:
“You are literally walked through the process!” Nikki Stephens, www.nikkistephens.com
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“Sure wish I’d had this before I lost over a dozen blogs just recently!” Kathe Lucas – www.wackycentral.com
Useful Tips
According to Matt Garrett, the plugin developer, no sites using Blog Defender have been hacked since Blog Defender was first released.
The product developer also states on his site …
“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 developers can currently access. The latest release of Blog Defender creates an easier security solution that doesn’t need constant attention, won’t cost a fortune and it’s as good if not better than many premium 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 risk-free, thirty day, 100% money-back guarantee.
Software Cost
Blog Defender is normally available with a personal license only for use on unlimited sites. When we last checked, however, it was also being sold with Developer rights, allowing users to secure client sites as well.. Cost = $47.00.
Please Note: The cost to purchase the product depends on whether there are any promotions or limited-time special offers. The pricing above was correct at the time this article was published. This may not be the actual price set by the product seller when you visit the product website and there may be additional upsells or one-time offers after your purchase.
Check the plugin’s website for the latest pricing:
Additional Plugin Information
For installation instructions and tutorials, FAQs, support help desk, contact details and more, visit the Blog Defender website.
Get This Product
No matter what type of business you run or plan to run online and how small you think your web presence is, website security is something you cannot afford to ignore.
WordPress is a very secure platform, but neglecting basic maintenance tasks like updating your WordPress software, WordPress plugins and WordPress themes, tightening file and data security and taking other necessary precautions can have disastrous consequences.
Blog Defender helps you learn what’s going on in your site and where the vulnerabilities are, what hosting companies can and can’t do if your site is hacked or compromised, what security features to look for in a webhost, and which tools can make the process of securing your WordPress website easier.
For more information, check out the plugin here: Blog Defender WordPress Security Plugin
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