Having a secure website isn’t just about preventing website hackers from gaining access to your site, but preventing specific damage from the result of your site being compromised. Web hacking might be a little more serious than many people think, as it has been found that most websites are not fully secure. Recent studies show that Web 2.0 sites are the primary choice for web hackers, which makes up for 19% of all website hacks.
Not only do website and blog owners have to be fully prepared to deal with the possibility of defending themselves against a web hacker, but they have to take action to be sure that the content within their sites are safe as well. While this is a major concern to many, there are other issues surrounding your website’s security that you should be aware of as well.
Website owners need to be cautious when working with web applications, especially when data is being transferred from one place to another. Web hackers can easily gain access to this data and use it to hijack user sessions, alter page content, insert a website virus, and also for phishing purposes. All of these harmful attacks can permanently damage your websites’ reputation and tarnish your brand.
Why a Secure Website is Important
There are many ways in which web hackers and nasty automated programs can access your website and damage your business brand and reputation. The key to website security is being prepared to fight these harmful attacks and keeping your customers information safe and secure.
There are specific properties in relation to your website or blog that you should make a point of securing – any breach of security involving any single one of these properties can cause severe irreversible damage. Automated email grabbers are something every website owner should be aware of, especially if your site has a subscription service. All of your customer’s email addresses can easily be snatched up by automated email grabbers if the proper encryption isn’t used to protect them. This process is used by spammers to easily gain access to email address, and emails with harmful attachments will be sent to these email addresses.
There is a variety of different avenues a web hacker can access your website and compromise its content and sensitive information. The following is a list of web applications that all web owners need to protect:
- Shopping Carts.
- Order Forms.
- Login Pages.
- Web Content.
- Financial Information.
- Email Addresses.
- Important Files.
These web applications are commonly neglected as most website owners assume that these are secure applications that will never be compromised. As a result, the security of these applications has been severely overlooked, and web hackers are increasingly taking advantage.
Things you can do to Protect Your Properties
As a website owner, and owner of a popular brand, you have the ability to limit the possibility of web hackers accessing and destroying your customer data, property and your reputation. A website monitor is beneficial, but having a secure website starts with you, the website owner. There are many ways you can arm yourself and your website to battle the intrusion of a web hacker. Here are a few suggestions to help you make your website more secure and safe for your customers.
- Create strong passwords for access to your site and its applications.
- Keep an eye out for SQL injection issues and problems.
- Keep your anti-malware software up to date and operational.
- Constantly test your web services for vulnerabilities.
- Manually test your applications for any suspicious activities within your site.
- Acquire website security monitoring services which scans for malware and web hacking.
All of these should be done on a regular basis in order to keep a functional secure website. With the help of website scanners and security monitoring services, the process of protecting your website from web hacking is no longer daunting. This can help you to focus on other core issues within your website such as taking care of your customers, your content, and ensuring that all of your web applications are running smoothly and safely.
Being a website owner these days isn’t just about setting up a website and promoting a product or service. As a website owner, you now need to be much more educated on the types of security threats that can affect your website and your customers. Most site owners tend to put their website security well below other aspects of their web business. In order to protect your customers, and your brand, the proper steps should be taken in order to keep your website a safe and enjoyable experience for all.
To keep your site safe and secure, a website monitor that scans your website for any suspicious activity is necessary. This type of program has the ability to identify all types of threats, and immediately notifies the website owner of the necessary steps needed to fix the issue. This is a fast, efficient, and affordable way to continue protecting the integrity of your website and the reputation of your brand.
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