Common WordPress Security Exploits

Common WordPress Security Exploits

Many websites are using WordPress, as it is the most famous Content Management system available on internet. WordPress has emerged these days and has WordPress security exploits/ vulnerabilities.

Here are some WordPress Security Vulnerabilities, you can strike them from the list of hacks, and you can also fix them using these steps.

  • Default Admin User Account:

There are more chances for your websires to get hacked, if you have created administrator account with “admin”. You must enter WordPress admin user account login, when you are installing WordPress.

When you are using admin account, it becomes easy to guess the username of your website. Hackers can crack your website passwords and can directly work on it. By doing this you have make it easy for the hacker to do his work, you can solve this problem by creating a new account with administrator privileges. Delete the account or reduce the privileges by logging in to new account.

  • Brute-Force Login Attempts:

In this type, the hacker tries to login by different user names and passwords combinations to get the login credentials. The hacker doesn’t have to enter the username and passwords manually as it is automated attack. 

Even if there are multiple logins attempts, WordPress will not limit the number of logins by default. The website goes down as hackers keeps trying to log in until he is succeeded. You will create a problem for yourself if you are using shared hosting.

This issue can be resolved by using Plugins, that limit the logins attempts, if user failed to login. For instance, Loginizer Plugin can be used to solve this problem.

  • Cross-Site Scripting:

XSS attacks are popularly used to steal the website data and user’s data. A JavaScript code will be injected to your website in some specific pages, which steals the visitor’s data and end it to attacker.

This JavaScript code is injected if you have enabled user generated data like, comments. Allowing limited tags for instance, italics and under line, is not a problem, but the problem arises when you allow additional tags, which create chances for your website to be under the XSS Cross-Site Scripting  attacks.

  • Access to Sensitive Files:

Many important files for instance, wp-config.php and install.php files, where as wp-config.php file contains configuration details, related to WordPress. This information is very important, and no one should have access to this. To make it secure change the default to 755 to 644.

You can use Plugins to check file permissions, you can also login to cPanel and go to File Manger, the directory permission should be changed from 755 to 644 for all files.

  • Malware:

A malicious code injected to your website is called Malware. Any operation to wipe-up all your website’s data can be performed by the attacker using this malicious code. If you are having this malware, you don’t have to worry about it. You will see a notice when you will open websites on Chrome or search engines like Google.

  • WordPress SQL injection:

PHP is important server-side language use to develop WordPress. Data is stored in MySQL like users, contents and pages etc. For communicating with data bases, SQL language is used. SQL injections in all database driven applications, WordPress is also sensitive for SQL injection attacks.

 Proper privileges should be assigned to the database user on the database, to stop SQL injection attacks. File permission on the configuration file should be checked. Plugins, themes and WordPress Core files should be updated. Factors involved in SQL injections like servers database version is up to not or not, you cannot do something, if you are using shared hosting

  • Default Prefix for Data base:

You will have options while installing WordPress, to enter database prefix for tables. The major security risk for your WordPress websites is when you install WordPress with “wp-” table prefix, which made a lot of guess work and easy for hackers. A direct target to your WordPress user table and other important tables like post tables etc. to get list of users.

You can solve this issue by changing the table prefix from “wp-“to something else of your choice, to make your website more secure.

Conclusion:

Using the above-mentioned steps, you can solve the many problems of your website as they are helpful to solve them.  

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