Around 30,000 websites are hacked around the world every day, with small businesses being the target of 43% of these attacks.
When a website gets hacked, it can cause many issues, like stolen data, harm to your business’s reputation and frustration for your users. If you don’t act quickly to fix a hacked website, it can negatively affect your business.
We talked with the team of London web designers at Reactive, about what to do if your website gets hacked. Together, we put together ten simple steps to help you handle a website breach. Whether you are facing a hack at the moment or just want to make sure your website is protected, these tips will help keep it safe.
Turn it offline and inform your visitors
One of the steps to take when your website is hacked is to temporarily take it offline. This will help stop any further damage and protect your visitors from potential dangers. Additionally, you should warn your visitors about the situation by posting a clear message on your site or sending out an email. Keeping them informed will help them understand the risks and ensure they stay safe while you work to fix the issue.
Check for malware
To check for malware on your hacked website, use free online scanners like Sucuri, VirusTotal or Quttera to find known malware and security issues. You can also download antivirus software like Malwarebytes or Bitdefender to scan your server for infections. Additionally, think about using security plugins for your content management system, like Wordfence for WordPress, which have built-in scanning features.
Contact your hosting provider
They have the tools and know-how to help you figure out what went wrong and get your site back up and running. They can take your website offline directly from the server. Sometimes, hosting providers might take down suspicious websites to protect other users sharing the same server. In some cases, the malicious code may be hidden so well that it may be necessary to delete all the files and the data base from your server.
Clean your website or ask for assistance if needed
If you can pinpoint the specific files or code that the hacker injected, go ahead and remove them from your website. But if you are not sure about the dangerous elements, it is a good idea to consult a security expert.
Change passwords
It is important to use strong and unique passwords to keep your website safe. Having different passwords for each account adds an extra layer of security. You might also want to set up two-factor authentication for even more protection. Make sure your password combines letters, numbers, and special characters to make it hard to guess.
Restore from a backup
If you have recent backups of your website, restore them to a clean version from before the hack happened. Also, be sure to scan the backup files for malware before you restore them. We should also mention that performing frequent backups is important for protecting your website from data loss and ensuring you can quickly restore it in case of a hack or other issues. We will discuss this further later in the article.
Monitor website activity
Keeping an eye on your website’s activity is key to spotting any issues early. Look out for things like sudden traffic spikes, strange login attempts, or unexpected changes to your content—these can all be signs something’s off. Activity logs and security tools make it easier to see who’s been on your site and what they’ve been up to.
Website security
Backup your website
Backing up your website regularly makes sure that if your WordPress site gets hacked, you can easily restore it to how it was before. By doing backups, you can avoid losing important information and prevent problems that could hurt your business. This also helps you feel secure knowing your important files and data are safe. Whether you do backups automatically or by hand, they should be a top priority for keeping your site safe.
Update CMS, plugins and themes
Make sure you regularly update your content management system, plugins, themes, and any other software you use. These updates usually come with important security fixes that help keep your site safe. Plus, staying up to date means you’ll get access to new features and improvements. Making updates a regular part of your website routine can help you avoid headaches in the future.
Perform regular security scans
These scans help spot any hidden malware, vulnerabilities, or unusual files that could put your site at risk. By making security scans part of your routine, you can catch potential issues early and fix them before they cause trouble. Many security tools offer automated scans, so it’s easy to stay on top of things without much extra effort.
Website hacks happen all the time, so it is important to keep your site as secure as you can. Prevention is key, but if you do get hacked, the steps above can help you take back control. However it is often a good idea to have a professional handle the hack to avoid making things worse.