Website Security Enhancements in the Redesign Process

Reading Time: 6 minutes

Given the dangers of the Internet, website security enhancements should be at the forefront of your redesign. Otherwise, you risk leaving loopholes for hackers to exploit.

These breaches can make your website unavailable or result in damaging information modifications. Such issues will destroy your reputation. And you’ll lose data and lots of money.

StrongDM notes that website attacks cost 95% of small and medium businesses around $826 to $653,587. Still, Statista reports that 2023 had the highest average data breach cost at $4.45 million.

Now, can you imagine that 30,000 sites face attacks daily? That means that yours could be next every 2.88 seconds.

Luckily, this guide provides a website security checklist to ensure your redesign addresses the top security threats. Discover why passwords should be the first thing you assess.

How to Improve Security While Redesigning Your Website

A redesign is a great time to assess your website’s security. It lets you see what elements need an update or whether you’re missing key security features, like anti-malware software.

Although there are many ways to fortify your site’s security while redesigning, here are the top ones:

1. Assess Your Passwords and Include Multi-Factor Authentication

Weak passwords account for eight out of every 10 hacking-related breaches. So, the most important website security component is checking and updating passwords when necessary. 

Before, many cybersecurity experts recommended changing passwords every few months. Some even suggested shorter timeframes.

Take Crowdfire, for example, who once stated, “Keep changing your password every 4-6 weeks.”

Today, there are varying opinions. More individuals believe regular updates are unnecessary. Instead, security experts recommend using strong, unique passwords, and a password manager.

Image source

A redesign is the perfect time to assess whether all your passwords are solid and unique. Password tools like Google Password Manager, LastPass, 1Password, or Bitwarden can help you do this.

Change the weak and reused passwords. If you don’t want trouble remembering strong passwords, automate the process with tools like Google’s password generator.

Additionally, enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) for more protection. This process involves adding facial recognition, a one-time password, fingerprint, QR code, or push notification.

MFA can prevent:

• Unwarranted access by 99.9%.
• Account theft by 63%.
• Successful security breaches by 80%.

Tip: If everyone knows your passwords and can access your data, your details are more likely to leak. So, limit passwords to select team members.

1. Include/Verify the Validity of Your SSL Certificate

Confirming the validity of your SSL certificate is as easy as checking your URL. If it commences with “https” rather than “http,” you have an SSL certificate. Next, click the “view site information” icon, followed by the padlock one, for more details like validity duration.

If you lack a valid certificate, install one signed by Certificate Authorities (CA) or sign one yourself.

Keep in mind that self-signed certificates result in warning messages as browsers consider their sources untrustworthy. So, self-signed certificates are only okay when dealing with closed groups and non-sensitive information.

Often, CA-signed certificates are the best, especially for e-commerce sites or those with large traffic.

A credible certificate indicates that you are the site’s owner. It secures user data and makes your website appear trustworthy. It also prevents attackers from generating a knock-off of your site.

1. Upgrade Your Content Management System

There are two main instances when your CMS needs an upgrade:

• If your vendor no longer supports your current CMS or sends an expiration notice.
• If you experience excess security and maintenance tasks.

CMSs receive regular updates to address bugs and security concerns. Although minor updates occur often, the most significant ones happen every few years.

Typically, the oldest versions don’t receive these upgrades. So, using an outdated CMS makes your website more vulnerable to attacks.

Updating your CMS to the newest version provides the latest security patches. It also improves the user experience and functionality while reducing the number of plugins needed.

If you make multiple adjustments, such as new code and content restructuring, it can be challenging to assess the impact of a CMS upgrade on performance. So, consider monitoring the effect of your new CMS before introducing other things.

1. Update Plugins

Many attacked websites have old plugins that lack vital security updates. Hackers can exploit these vulnerabilities and breach your site’s defenses. Hence, updating plugins improves your security by reducing the areas that can grant site access.

Data shows that outdated plugins create 52% of security weaknesses on WordPress sites. Hence, it’s unsurprising that 86% of attacked WordPress sites have old plugins and themes.

WordPress plugins become outdated if authors don’t test them with the CMS’s three recent core updates. Additionally, the risk of vulnerabilities increases if a developer doesn’t update a plugin for a while.

To determine whether your site has plugins with newer versions, analyze installed ones. Those that need an update will display the message, “There is a newer version…”

Image source

Alternatively, schedule and check for plugin updates with tools like Smart Plugin Manager.

Also, consider alternatives to old and untested plugins with no recent updates. You can find these by looking at a tool’s update history in the WordPress plugin directory.

If the performance of any plugin on WordPress’ latest versions is unknown, you’ll see this warning:

Image source

However, just because you see this alert doesn’t mean a plugin is unsafe. Sometimes, a developer tests a tool but doesn’t update their readme file immediately. WordPress requires the readme file to remove this warning and highlight that a plugin works fine.

A simple way to verify if a plugin with the test warning is bad news is to look for the following:

• Poor ratings and reviews on a plugin’s page.
• Complaints on the support page.
• No recent improvements in the changelog within the “Development” tab.

1. Get Anti-Malware Software

Invest in reliable anti-malware software like Wordfence, Sucuri, and Jetpack Protect. These tools help you detect and prevent malware. Malicious software can impair user experience and lower rankings, engagements, and conversions.

Are you wondering which anti-malware is right for you?

This table summarizes security features for the best ones:

	Wordfence	Sucuri	Jetpack Protect
Top Benefits	Automatic malware scans Daily email notifications Basic deletion of simple malware Web Application Firewall (WAF) Access logs Two-factor authentication Regular malware pattern updates Expert malware removal	Supports all websites Free malware scans with automation on a premium Security event logs Blocklist monitoring Malware removal WAF SiteCheck Scanner requires no account setup	Schedule daily automatic vulnerability scans  Checks, the WordPress core, plugins, and themes Recommends resolutions WAF Daily automatic malware checks Instant mail alerts
Key Demerits	Only works with WordPress	Remote free and WordPress  scanning: not 100% accurate	Limited to WordPress sites

1. Backup Your Site

Always back up your website when making changes, including small adjustments like updates to a single plugin. Backups help you quickly restore previous versions if a change breaks your site or creates other challenges.

Backups can also help you recover an uncompromised site version after a malware attack.

Moreover, a redesign may result in new broken links. These present the threat of broken link hijacking (BLH) and subsequent concerns like cross-site scripting.

A backup quickly solves broken links and other problems, like data loss. That’s why having a copy of your site is a great idea.

An easy way to perform backups is with automation tools like eBackupper and Handy Backup.

Tip: Don’t restrict backups to the redesign phase. Include routine backups to secure locations away from your website files. Offline copies allow you to restore your site without paying ransoms if a takeover occurs.

Test Your Website Regularly to Maximize Security After Redesigning

Regular testing is the secret to successfully incorporating website security enhancements during a redesign.

Check whether you have new HTTP redirects or broken links that pose a BLH threat. Review your plugins regularly to ensure they work seamlessly and are up-to-date. Likewise, scan for malware and password weaknesses.

While you can do this with security tools and plugins, none offers a comprehensive solution. That’s where trustworthy website security services like Vizion Interactive come in.

Talk to us now. We’ll help you redesign to meet all website security best practices ASAP!

At Vizion Interactive, we have the expertise, experience, and enthusiasm to get results and keep clients happy! Learn more about how our Website Design and Development services can increase sales and boost your ROI. But don’t just take our word for it, check out what our clients have to say, along with our case studies.