Security Risks of WordPress Plugins
Do you have the desire to develop a versatile, powerful website for your business or do web blog, then the best option is WordPress. WordPress is the world’s most popular free platform with the following features.
WordPress is available as an open source platform, can be downloaded from WordPress.org or a blogging service hosted at WordPress.com – both are 100% free.
The online community provides over 10,900 available WordPress plugins, which are also free. It takes just only two simple clicks to install and activate.
Choose from over 1,217 free WordPress themes or choose from thousands of commercial WordPress themes for a nominal fee through third party providers.
The website professionals know the value and power of WordPress. TED, The New York Times, National Geographic, Forbes, Entertainment Weekly, and TechCrunch are some of the multination corporate companies use this WordPress system.
WordPress is used each and every day by millions of people all over the world. And I would also recommend WordPress to anyone who wants to build a website with unique style, power and versatility. However, it doesn’t come without risks.
Yes, WordPress is free to use and it provides many robust tools for website development, but that doesn’t translate or implement into automatic safety. One of the high security risks of this brilliant system happens to be the very WordPress plugins mushrooming everyday and so many of us have become addicted to.
The Perilous Plugin
WE never have it in mind that whenever we install a new WordPress plugin, we are installing a new program into the mix. There are risks in installing a plugin, but to have a secured site, there are some steps to be taken.
(1) Backup
This should be done without saying, but most of the website owners don’t take backup of their data seriously until they’ve already had a mishap. Losing your data or compromising for the lost data can cripple your business, so take care. The best backup service for WordPress is facilitated by a WordPress plugin called BackupBuddy and I recommend you to utilize the plugin.
(2) Get the Testers Result
Before you consider installing any plugin, you should look at the amount and depth of testing performed with the plugin. When you find a plugin you want, just look down on the right hand column under the compatibility block. Now you can see what others say about this plugin.
The comments posted here are given by the users and other developers, expressing their unbiased real feedback. You can click on the changelog tab and see if there are upgrades made, with documented lists of problems solved. The more transparent, the least risk..
(3) Take time before initiating new plugin installation
Do not install new WordPress plugins before analyzing it and do not be so quick in installing new plugin. Installing an untested plugin or and undocumented plugin makes you a beta tester and may bring compatibility issues with the new versions of WordPress.
(4) More Parts leading to More Potential Problems
WordPress Plugins are additional code, which implies that it is a cog in the mechanics of your site. Each add-on of the WordPress plugin increases the complexity as well as the possibility for something going wrong. Here we have to weigh the value vs. the risk comes into play, more or less like any other business decision. Take time to study the plugin and wisely make an informed, educated decision.
(5) Need for Pro-active Administration
Take pro-active steps as an administrator, and now you can minimize the risks involved in using plugins. Consider the following:
- Always check whether the plugin is compatible with your version of WordPress. It is a wise decision to refrain from installing any plugin which is not supported, unless you are a programmer and also have current backups.
- Always keep your WordPress in current version. This simple action will surely minimize the vulnerabilities and compatibility issues.
- Perform periodic regular backups and do scheduled testing of your backups to make sure the recovery process works successfully as expected. The last thing you want when your site is compromised is additional headaches on top of stress.
- Don’t leave unused plugins and delete them immediately. Do not turn off the unused plugins but it is safer to delete them then and there.
- If you don’t need any plugin, do not download it unnecessarily. You may have a question: how many plugins can I use? The answer is: As few as possible.
Processing your request, Please wait....
