Many people are unfamiliar with the various types of WordPress breaches, but it’s necessary to understand them to protect your website as a preventative measure.
A breach means that a hacker has found a security vulnerability in your website, and your data may be exposed for theft. Several consequences can arise from there.
Let’s look into some of the most common ways website security can be compromised and what to expect so you can protect your website.
Malware
Malware is malicious software designed to inflict harm on a computer, network server, website, or application. There are a number of different types of malware including traditional viruses, computer worms, Trojan horses, spyware, or ransomware.
SQL Injection
An SQL injection is used to target database-driven programs, wherein malicious SQL queries are ‘injected’ into the database that allows an attacker to view information they would normally not be authorized to view.
Backdoors
Backdoor security breaches occur through unsecured backends of a website, allowing cybercriminals to gain access to your WordPress instance. This can compromise the data or information saved on the website.
Malicious Redirects
Based on the name, this type of security breach occurs when someone clicks on a URL and is redirected to an entirely different website, typically rife with malicious code. This happens by creating backdoors in WordPress installations using FTP or SFTP as an example. This can expose you, your customers, and hurt your brand reputation.
Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)
Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) is the process of injecting malicious script into a reputable application or website or application. Once this breach has occurred, the cybercriminals can send malicious code to the end-user unbeknownst to them. This will allow the attacker to grab session or cookie data or even re-write page HTML.
DDoS Attack
A distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack is a malicious attempt to disrupt the regular traffic of a targeted server. The objective is to overwhelm the server with multiple requests from various unidentifiable sources, thus overwhelming and shutting down the server.
These are just a few of the most common brute force attacks that occur on WordPress websites. In the next section, let’s discuss the preventative measures you can take to provide your site with the ultimate security.
