Spring Cleaning Checklist – Protect Your Site From Potential Threats!
It’s time to shake off the off the winter blues, roll up your sleeves, and clear out the cobwebs in preparation for your spring cleaning. While you are at it, now is also a great time to make sure your website is safe and secure from potential threats.
We’ve put together a list of items to get you started. While we have several measures in place to thwart off attackers and minimize potential threats, here are some things you can do to safeguard your website:
Password Security
We simply can’t emphasize enough how important it is to maintain a secure password for your website. When resetting your password please use the following guidelines:
- At least 8 characters in length
- Alphanumeric character combination
- Uppercase & Lowercase combination
- At least one special character (#, %, $, etc…)
Never use common words found in the dictionary, personal information, keyboard patterns, or often used acronyms. Remember to keep your account passwords up to date and never use the same password for multiple applications.
Update Software and Scripts
In addition to having a secure account password you should regularly look for updates to any software applications or scripts you may be using. Many software providers release security patches that will safeguard your application against any known vulnerabilities that may arise. If you haven’t checked recently for an update we recommend that you take a few minutes to do this, as it could save you some big headaches down the road. If you are unsure or need assistance please don’t hesitate to contact our support team and we can guide you through the process.
Commonly used applications such as WordPress, Drupal, Joomla, or other content management systems regularly have software updates that will help protect your site. Many of these software providers offer automatic updates allowing you to upgrade to the newest version without any technical knowledge.
Website Backups
It is important you keep regular backups of your website & databases to avoid any potential loss in data. Creating frequent backups should be a regular part of your routine especially if you rely on your website for business purposes. If you need assistance on how to create backups or would like to learn more about backup services we offer please contact us and we would be happy to assist you.
Phishing Emails and Spam
Hackers will try to obtain sensitive data from you in very clever ways. Never provide any personal details or account specific data to an untrusted or unknown source. We recommend you do not open any mail if you are unsure of the sender. Also beware of suspicious links which are far too often malicious in nature in order to gain access to your account.
It’s never too late to take the security of your website seriously. While we make every effort to protect you from potential threats there are many things you can do to safeguard your site from attacks. Please take a few moments to do a little bit of spring cleaning on the security of your site. Together we can thwart off attackers and give you a happy hosting experience for many years to come.