I’d say I don’t want to alarm you, but actually, I sort of do. There’s nothing I like less than gaining a new client because they have been hacked. It’s a simple fact that over 30,000 websites are hacked every day! Google Search Quality Team recently reported that there has been a 180% increase in the number of sites being hacked this year (2015).
Hackers target all types of sites. Small business sites are popular and easy targets. Hackers often use automated software (easily available online) to make repeated access attempts to multiple sites easy and fast. I’ve seen up to thousands of malicious access attempts a DAY on the small business sites I monitor.
The efficiency of automated password crackers, plus the number of hackers out there means someone is trying to break into your site almost every day or even multiple times a day, you just don’t know it until they are successful! The more visible your site is in search engines (something we all want) the more hacking attempts.
Hacking can lose you valuable time and money to get it fixed, prospective customers, and even your site standing in search engines.
Worse, you may not always know right away you’ve been hacked. Many hacks are stealthy, siphoning off traffic, infecting your site visitors, or linking to other sites with spammy keywords, all without changing the look of your website.
All websites need security. If you are a current web client, I’m happy to set up a security consult if you are a DIYer. But if you’d prefer to concentrate on other things, I offer a security and maintenance package for current WordPress clients.