How to Ensure Security Of Your eCommerce Site Created In WordPress?

WordPress is one of the most popular and frequently used content management systems at the present date. Approximately 65 million new posts are created by WordPress users every month on WordPress.com according to the data which is proof of its tremendous usage. 

However, due to the excessive usage and open-source principles of WordPress, WordPress sites are more likely to be affected by hackers and security attacks. Most of the WordPress websites are hacked via the loopholes in their hosting platform as per the reports. However, the other causes include weak plugins, less secure themes, and unsafe passwords.

A number of organizations are opting to hire WordPress developers to ensure better security of their eCommerce sites due to the increasing security concerns associated with the same.

However, a lot more can be done to make a website well-protected. If you take good care of a few important aspects, you are likely to obtain a well-secured eCommerce site.

In this article, we have listed a few tips that may guide you to ensure better security of your eCommerce site.

Opting for a high-quality eCommerce hosting service

The selection of an appropriate web hosting service is crucial for the security of your eCommerce site. Go for a dedicated plan rather than going for a shared plan to ensure better security. Opt for a hosting service that provides good backup services in addition to keeping the hackers away. This way your website can easily be recovered after it has encountered a security issue. The selected web host should be working 24/7 to make your website work faster. 

Utilization of HTTPS

Transferring your website to HTTPS is highly suggested to prevent any online scams. But prior to moving your eCommerce site to HTTPS, obtain an SSL certificate to facilitate better security for your customers’ operations. Google utilizes HTTPS as a ranking sign to provide your website a strong SERP ranking and consequently, larger visitants. HTTPS is crucial for user security as it generates a strong link connecting the users’ browsers and your servers to block hackers from hijacking your data.

Selection of a safe eCommerce platform

No matter how secure your host and WordPress installation is, you are not going to achieve the desired goal if you have not chosen the appropriate eCommerce platform. Hence, opting for an eCommerce plugin that gives the user a safe place to perform purchase is equally crucial. Make sure that your selected eCommerce platform provides secure payment gateways, discharges security patches, and covers shipping method extensions. A number of secured eCommerce platforms are available at the present date to fulfil the purpose. These include Magento, Prestashop, and WooCommerce.

Execution of vulnerability tests on the website

Doing periodic weakness scans on an eCommerce website significantly drops the possibilities for potential hacking as well as security attacks. Hence, ensure to perform regular vulnerability investigations on your site. Every eCommerce platform offers several tools that permit you to look for possible vulnerabilities. Opt for a tool that not only scans your website but also keep an eye on your network so that you can come across the risks and concerns that need to be addressed immediately and fixed. Think about the most popular scanning programs including Retina CS Community, OpenVAS, and MBSA for better results.

Performing regular updates

Make sure to keep all plugins and themes associated with your website well updated. Hackers regularly scan for weaknesses that allow them to enter your website. Whenever new issues are found by developers, they release new software updates to get rid of the issues. Hence, instantly updating your website is crucial as you cannot foresee when the hackers will attack your site.

Think of using Automate available from WPMU DEV to ease the process and The Hub to handle all your plugins and themes from one single location. This is very helpful when you aim to administer various WordPress sites for eCommerce or other purposes.

Taking regular backups

Make sure to take regular backups for your eCommerce website as this will aid you to recover your website after a hacking event. Go for a hosting provider that provides automatic backup service as you may misremember to manually backup your data being a human. 

Utilization of WordPress security plugin

Make use of appropriate WordPress security plugin to strengthen your site’s security. These plugins aid in everything right from placing a firewall to handing anti-malware as well as monitoring spam. Moreover, they can incorporate additional security cares in the admin area as well. 

Avoid to save customer’s sensitive data

Saving confidential information of customers can be very hazardous as it combines the chances of losing customer’s trust in case your system is hacked. Hence, saving the sensitive data of customers like their credit card information etc. should strictly be avoided. You can employ the process of tokenization instead to prevent such occurrences. Tokenization creates random numbers known as tokens and saves them on behalf of the customer’s sensitive data. This process also aids in blocking the scams associated with credit cards.

Performing regular checks on integrations

Perform a regular check on the quality of your themes as well as plugins. Make sure to do the periodical cleaning of the plugins and themes associated with your website. You are required to instantly deactivate or delete the things that are not in use anymore to achieve better security of the website.

Conclusion

The security of an eCommerce site is highly crucial to fulfil its desired goals and perform better lacking of which may incorporate dangerous outcomes for your business. Hence, it becomes mandatory to take appropriate security measures to protect the site. Although there is nothing that guarantees 100% security, it is recommended to follow the above-given tips while developing an eCommerce website in WordPress as this may help you to achieve the best possible security for the site.

If you are still not sure how to keep your eCommerce site well protected against possible loopholes and security attacks, hire our eCommerce professionals for the best assistance!