5 Tips to Secure your WordPress Site

It's estimated that WordPress runs 30% of websites and is the most widely adopted Content Management System (CMS). However, as WordPress has grown in popularity, hackers have begun to target it directly.

You are not an outlier, regardless of the type of material you offer on your website. You could be hacked if you don't take the necessary safeguards. You should verify the security of your website on a regular basis, just like you would for anything else tech-related.

Follow the steps outlined below to keep our WordPress site safe:

1. Use a Complex Password

Using strong passwords is essential for website security, but it's easy to forget about them. Use a complex password, such as "password", instead of a simple one like '123456'. This password is not only simple to remember, but it's also ridiculously simple to guess. A skilled hacker can simply guess your password and gain access to your account with little effort.
If possible, utilize a password generator to create one for you that uses random numbers, incomprehensible letters, and special characters such as % or.

2. Change your WordPress login page's URL (WP-Login)

Logging into WordPress is as simple as visiting yoursite.com/wp-admin, which is the default login location. If you leave it as it is, you open yourself up to a brute-force attack to crack your account and password. It's possible that if you allow people to sign up for subscription accounts, you'll get a lot of spam. Change the URL for the admin login or add a security question to the registration and login pages if you want to keep this from happening!

3. Hide your website's configuration files (wp-config.php and .htaccess)

The procedure of hiding your site's.htaccess and wp-config.php files is a complicated one, but if you're concerned about security, it's a smart idea to do so to keep hackers out.
For this reason, we strongly advise only experienced developers to use this method, as you must first make a backup of your site before moving forward with any changes. Your site could become inaccessible if you make a blunder.
There are two steps you must take after your backup in order to conceal the files:
First, add the following code to your wp-config.php file:

<Files wp-config.php>
order allow,deny
deny from all
</Files>

Replace wp-config.php with .htaccess to hide the aforementioned file.

4. Keep your WordPress version updated

Updating WordPress on a regular basis will help keep your website safe. Developers make a few adjustments with each new release, including security fixes. By using the most recent version, you can avoid being a victim of hacker attacks that take advantage of known security flaws and exploits.
The same reasoning apply to updating your plugins and themes.
WordPress downloads minor updates on its own by default. The WordPress admin dashboard is where you'll need to go for big upgrades.

5. Install an SSL Certificate

SSL (Single Sockets Layer) has been more useful for a wide range of websites. Prior to the advent of HTTPS, SSL was required to protect a website for specific types of transactions, such as processing payments. Google, on the other hand, has now realized the significance of SSL certificates and gives them a higher ranking in its search results.
SSL is required for all sites that handle sensitive data, such as credit card numbers or passwords. Data between the user's web browser and your web server is transferred in plain text without an SSL certificate. Hackers will be able to decipher this. In order to make your site more secure, you should use an SSL certificate to encrypt important information before transferring it from one computer to another.
SSL costs, on average, between $70-$199 per year for websites that accept sensitive information. SSL certificates are optional if you accept no sensitive information. A free Let's Encrypt SSL certificate is available from nearly every web host.