How to Make Your Website Secure: 7 Free and Quick Tips

Securing your website is essential for protecting data and sensitive customer information. With the rise in cybersecurity threats, preventative measures are crucial to save time, and money, and protect your brand’s reputation. This is especially important for e-commerce sites and those on popular platforms like WordPress. Here are seven ways to secure your website for free:

Why Website Security Matters

Website security involves methods and protocols to defend websites against cyber threats. Implementing security measures is critical for protecting businesses from cyberattacks. Blocking potential threats helps organizations:

Protect sensitive data Websites often store personal information like names, addresses, phone numbers, and financial details. Compromised data can lead to loss of customer trust, legal issues, and financial losses.
Avoid business disruption Attacks can cause website outages or slow performance, resulting in business disruption, especially for e-commerce businesses.
Comply with regulatory requirements Many businesses must adhere to regulations like HIPAA, PCI, and GDPR. Non-compliance can result in heavy fines.
Improve SEO and website visibility Search engines penalize infected or unsecured websites. Securing your site can boost your SEO.
Avoid loss of sensitive information
Avoid fines for failing PCI compliance
Avoid poor SEO performance
Avoid damaged business reputation

Poor website security can lead to loss of sensitive information (credit card numbers, personal data), interruptions to website operations, fines for non-compliance, poor SEO performance and a damaged business reputation.

7 Free and Quick Tips to Secure Your Website

Secure Website

Here are actionable steps you can take to improve your website security:

Tip 1: Install an SSL Certificate

SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) creates an encrypted link between a web server and a browser, securing data exchanged between visitors and the website. Having an SSL certificate is a must, especially for e-commerce stores, to protect customers’ payment information.

How to get an SSL certificate: You can obtain one from a hosting provider, domain registrar, or certificate authority (CA). Many hosting companies offer free SSL certificates in their hosting packages. For instance, HubSpot’s Content Hub provides a free standard SSL. If your hosting provider doesn’t offer a free SSL, you can get one from CAs like Let’s Encrypt.
Free SSL Certificate in HubSpot Prioritize user experience with a built-in SSL. Get a free SSL without plugins. Design, secure, and promote in one platform. Give users and browsers confidence.
Why it’s important: Google favors sites with an SSL and ranks them higher. SSL encrypts the data transmitted between your website and the web server, making it harder for hackers to decipher.

To ensure your WordPress website is fully HTTPS secure, enable an SSL certificate in your hosting account. Most hosts offer free and premium options. For example, SiteGround provides an SSL manager where you can install a free Let’s Encrypt certificate. Ideally, enable the SSL certificate before installing WordPress.

Tip 2: Update Your Site Regularly

Outdated software can make your website vulnerable to viruses and cyberattacks. Regularly check for updates or set up auto-updates, as these updates often include security patches.

WordPress updates: Many hosting providers offer managed hosting, which handles updates for you. WordPress also has a built-in option for auto-updates for the core software, themes, and plugins.
- How to enable auto-updates on WordPress:
  - For the WordPress core, go to Dashboard > Updates and click on Enable automatic updates for all new versions of WordPress.
  - For plugins, go to Dashboard > Plugins > Installed Plugins. Click on the Enable auto-updates link next to each plugin.
  - For themes, go to Dashboard > Appearance > Themes. Select a theme and click on the Enable auto-updates link.
Third-party extensions: Be cautious when installing third-party extensions or services. Check reviews and developer authorization to avoid installing vulnerable components.
Why it’s important: Keeping your website software up-to-date is crucial for security. Updates correct problems and security flaws in the software, making it less vulnerable to cyberattacks. Run these updates as soon as they are released to protect your site.

Tip 3: Use Strong Passwords

Using simple, easily guessable passwords makes it easy for hackers to access your website.

What makes a strong password:
- A combination of alphabetical and numerical characters
- Uppercase and lowercase letters
- Special characters
- Minimum of eight characters
Password managers: If you have a hard time coming up with strong passwords, let your browser suggest one for you. You can also use a free password manager like Dashlane to manage passwords across devices.
Two-Factor Authentication (2FA): 2FA adds a security layer by requiring an extra verification step beyond passwords, such as a code sent to a user’s device. This makes it harder for hackers to access websites, even if passwords are stolen, and helps thwart cyber threats like brute force attacks and phishing.
- How 2FA works: 2FA binds your password with a text code, facial or retina recognition, or fingerprint scan. Anyone trying to access your website needs to solve both puzzles. You can set up 2FA for free for a limited number of users with providers like DUO.
Why it’s important: Strong passwords are a simple, free way to protect your website.

Tip 4: Back Up Your Site Regularly

Regularly backing up your website is essential in case of malicious attacks, hardware failure, or natural disasters. Backups allow you to quickly restore your website. Without a backup, you run the risk of losing all of your data, customisations, and settings.

What to back up: You can create a backup of your website’s core files, media, non-media content, and databases.
How to back up: You can create backups manually, with a tool, or through your hosting provider. Most tools and hosting providers allow you to schedule and automate backups. For example, Nexcess includes 30-day backups in all its WordPress-managed hosting plans.
Backup plans: For small websites, choose a backup plan from your hosting provider. Some provide automatic data backups for free or for a small fee. Larger, complex websites require more storage space, and you can purchase cloud storage to have your data available anytime, anywhere.
Why it’s important: Scheduled backups enable you to restore your website quickly in the event of an attack or system failure, minimizing downtime and data loss. Automatic backups eliminate human error and ensure that critical data is regularly backed up without manual intervention.

Tip 5: Train Your Staff

Even the best cybersecurity measures can be undermined by untrained staff members. Employees can make innocent mistakes that create openings for attacks and viruses.

Cybersecurity awareness training: Train your employees to recognize suspicious activity and avoid clicking dubious links or emails from unknown senders. Phishing attacks can trick employees into giving unauthorized access to sensitive data.
What to teach: Run a cybersecurity awareness training program to guide your team on how to protect company and customer data.
Why it’s important: Your employees might be the best in their field, but they can still make innocent mistakes that open the gates for attacks and viruses.

Tip 6: Scan, Scan, Scan

Regularly scanning your site helps detect issues or threats before they cause serious damage to user experience or brand reputation.

Free website malware scanning services:
- SiteLock Free Website Scanner
- Quttera
- Astra Security
- SiteGuarding
- VirusTotal
- MalCare
Hosting providers with scanning services: Besides using independent security software, you can opt for a hosting company that provides malware and virus scanning services. This is suitable for non-ecommerce websites. Namecheap and Hostwinds are ideal hosting providers for all types of web applications since they have a built-in scanner for malicious activities. WPX and WP Engine are also excellent for WordPress sites.
Why it’s important: A website scanner checks your website files for security issues, such as vulnerabilities and malware. It’s best to invest in a professional website scanner to thoroughly scan your website’s files for malware and vulnerabilities.

Tip 7: Use Security Tools

Utilize free tools to enhance your website’s security.

Sucuri: Sucuri is a cybersecurity company that helps secure websites from issues like malware, spyware, trojans, denial-of-service attacks, and hackers.
SiteGround Security: SiteGround Security is a free security plugin for WordPress with premium features to protect websites. It prevents brute-force attacks, compromised logins, data leaks, and malware. The plugin is easy to install and comes with comprehensive monitoring and weekly security reports.
Qualys: Qualys is a cybersecurity company providing security to cloud-based applications and servers. It helps identify security risks and protect web applications and IT servers.
UpGuard: UpGuard is a network security company specializing in securing sensitive data from organizations. It provides services like third-party risk management, attack surface management, and managed security. It monitors data from vendors to prevent data leaks.
Detectify: Detectify offers similar services to UpGuard but provides an AI risk monitor that inspects your website for over two thousand security exposures.
ImmuniWeb: ImmuniWeb is a Swiss-based security company that uses machine learning and AI to track malicious activity or vulnerabilities for SaaS-based applications. It inspects websites using standards like PCI, DSS, GDPR compliance, HTTP headers, and CMS-specific tests for WordPress and Drupal sites.
Web application firewall: A web application firewall (WAF) monitors traffic to your website server and blocks malicious traffic, preventing hacking attempts. WAFs can block attacks like cross-site request forgery (CSRF), cross-site scripting (XSS), file inclusion, SQL injection (SQLi), and distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks.

Conclusion

Securing your website is crucial, whether it’s a content-based site, e-commerce platform, or membership site. By following these seven free and quick tips, you can significantly improve your website’s security posture:

Install an SSL certificate.
Regularly update your website or enable automatic updates.
Use strong passwords.
Create regular backups or use automated backup services.
Train your employees to tackle phishing and cyberattacks.
Use anti-malware software.
Leverage free security tools.

Also, consider choosing a hosting provider with built-in or integrated third-party plugins for automated recovery and backup, automated updates, and regular anti-malware scanning. Look for features like an SSL certificate, CDN, auto-scaling, and enterprise hosting options. Consider a fully managed hosting provider like HyScaler for dedicated customer support, advanced caching, and higher reliability.

Remember, website security is an ongoing process. Stay informed, stay vigilant, and take proactive steps to protect your website and your visitors.

FAQs

Q. What is website security?
A. Website security refers to the methods and protocols used to defend websites against cyber threats and aims to protect and secure a website and its data. Implementing website security measures is critical for businesses because it helps protect sensitive data, avoid business disruption, comply with regulatory requirements, and improve SEO and website visibility. Many best practices fall into technical measures, coding and design, access control and user management, and backup and recovery plans.

Q. What is HTTPS?
A. HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure) is a protocol that enables an encrypted connection between a web server and a web browser, ensuring that any data exchanged between a visitor and a website is secure. Implementing HTTPS with an SSL certificate is essential for protecting sensitive information, especially on e-commerce sites, and helps to give users and browsers confidence.

Q. How do I know if a website is secure?
A. To determine if a website is secure, look for a padlock icon in the address bar, which confirms that the website has a valid SSL certificate and uses HTTPS encryption. This means that any data exchanged between your browser and the website is encrypted and cannot be intercepted by hackers.

Q. Why is website security important?
Website security is crucial for protecting sensitive data, such as personal and financial information, which helps maintain customer trust and avoid legal issues. It also helps businesses avoid disruptions from attacks like DDoS, meet regulatory requirements like GDPR and HIPAA, and improve SEO and website visibility, as search engines penalize unsecured sites.

How to Make Your Website Secure: 7 Free and Quick Tips

Why Website Security Matters