7 Tips for the Best Website Security
As a business, your website is most likely your customer’s/client’s first impression of you. Not only should your site look and feel professional, but it should also be extremely secure. Website security is necessary to keep your data as well as the data of your customers safe. Best security practices don’t end once your site is developed and launched. A secure website is maintained and frequently updated to prevent lapses. Every business, large and small, can benefit from brushing up on website security tips on a consistent basis.
Secure Hosting Services Lead to Strong Website Security
During the site development process, it’s essential to choose a server host who implements strong security practices that will keep your site safe. Ask your server host about things like SSL encryption, network monitoring, and how they back data up. Do your research before picking your hosting company. Look for reviews online to see what other businesses say about hosting service companies. You want to feel secure knowing that your hosting company will provide your site with the necessary security to keep your business and customers safe.
Implement Strong Password Policies
Chances are, your website has a lot of people logging in daily. Between your employees and your customers, your site will accumulate a lot of usernames and passwords. To keep data safe, set up your website so that people have to frequently change their passwords. Business Insider recommends changing passwords every few months. That way, if a password has been hacked or leaked, it will be changed relatively quickly. In addition, reinforce security by making users come up with complicated passwords that include numbers, letters, and special characters. The more complex the password, the less likely it is to be leaked. Another tip for additional password security is to implement two-way authentication practices. If a user logs in from a new device, a code is sent to their phone number. They must enter this code in before they can log on. The additional authentication step prevents hackers from successfully getting into accounts.
Find a Trusted Payment Gateway Provider
Customer credit card data should never be stored on your site. Storing credit card data is where trouble can occur. If your site is hacked, hundreds of thousands of customer credit card numbers could be stolen. Instead, use a trusted third-party payment gateway provider. PayPal is an excellent option for small businesses that can’t afford to pay the charges associated with setting up a payment gateway on their site.
Protect Your Site From Spam
Everyone hates spam! Not only does it make your site look less professional, but it can also threaten the security of your site. If your site has sections for customer reviews or comments, monitor these as they come in to ensure you aren’t getting spam comments from bots. In addition, use reCAPTCHA technology when people are purchasing on your site. This is when they have to look at a series of pictures and, for example, select each image containing a bus before being able to check out. reCAPTCHA prevents situations like fraudulent purchases where a bot uses numerous stolen credit card numbers to see which go through.
Assign Appropriate Roles
So far, we have discussed keeping your site secure from outside hackers and intruders, but what about security within your company? While we’d like to think that all of our employees are loyal, unfortunately, there is occasionally a bad apple. For example, a disgruntled employee could log in to the back end of your company website and steal sensitive data before quitting, then release the data. In order to protect your company, assign very specific roles with certain permissions. For example, the CEO will have access to everything once they log in, but the HR manager only has access to employee time cards and external job applications. By setting these strict permissions, you significantly reduce the risk of an internal website security breach.
Find Trusted Third-Party Consultants
Most businesses work with various third-party consultants when it comes to keeping their website up and running. This team of consultants could include website developers, email service providers, a marketing firm, a payment processing company, and more. Most of these people will have access to your site and thus some sensitive data. This is why it is crucial to create a team that you trust. Make sure you are surrounded by third-party consultants who are professional, well-known in your industry, and have good reviews.
Keep Your Website Updated
Did you know an outdated website is at more risk of a security breach? It is essential to update your website and any associated plugins or apps regularly. Many businesses like to go through this process once a month. The update process ensures that any problems on your site are resolved and that everything is as secure as possible. If your business works with a website developer, they will most likely be in charge of maintaining your site and ensuring everything is up to date. Large companies choose to do this process internally within their IT department.
Website security is never a sure thing, but there are many processes businesses can implement to help the site be more secure on a daily basis. From finding a processional and secure hosting server to implementing strong password policies, there are many factors that go into making a site safe. If you are in the website development process, take the first step and find a secure host that you can trust. At Host for Web, we have hosted millions of websites, helping them be as safe and secure as possible. For more information about our services, check out our different hosting options and contact us today.