Cyber threats are no joke. Like a virus, cyber criminals are adapting and finding ways around the old tried and tested security measures, which means site owners need to up their game too. Having a secure site is about more than just ensuring payment details are encrypted – you also need to think about the account security of users who log in to your website.
Today we’re looking at how you can create a secure login procedure for your website to prevent breaches and protect your business and your clients from harm.
Why Account Security is Important
Do you know everyone who has access to your site’s CMS? You might have a rough idea of who had access to your site when you first launched it, but who has been given access since then?
The truth is, there are probably more people who can access your site’s CMS than you realise. CMS access gives access to a huge amount of sensitive data, not to mention your site’s functionality, and customer accounts may have stored addresses and credit card information to expedite future purchases.
All the accounts on your site need to be secured against malicious activity. Even if you completely trust everyone who has access to your CMS, one stolen password or a login via an unsecure network is all it takes to compromise the security of your entire site and damage your brand’s reputation.
The market is saturated and customer trust is a significant factor – lose the trust and you’ll lose the customer.
Risks of Unsecure Accounts
So we know not having secure accounts is bad, but what are the actual risks of a security breach?
Data Breaches
Unauthorised access to your site can lead to data breaches, compromising sensitive information such as personal details, financial records, and proprietary business data.
Financial Loss
Cyber criminals can exploit vulnerabilities in your site to steal funds directly from accounts or through fraudulent transactions.
Damage to Reputation
A security breach can quickly erode your customers’ and shareholders’ trust and damage your brand’s reputation. Even if their personal data hasn’t been compromised, customers won’t want to do business with a website they think is unsafe.
Creating a Secure Login for Your Website
Now you’re probably wondering what you can do to stop all this. Well, creating a secure login for all the users of your site is a damn good start. There are a few steps you can take to make sure your logins are air-tight:
Use Strong, Unique Passwords
Remember when it was fine to use ‘password’ or ‘1234’? No? Probably because it never has been and the internet has been in public use for over 30 years, so change it immediately if you’re still guilty of this.
Lazy or easy-to-guess passwords are open invitations for cyber criminals, so your first defence against account breaches is to ensure all your users need to create strong passwords for their accounts that can’t be easily guessed. Make sure that all created passwords must be:
- At least 12 characters long
- A mix of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols
- Avoid common words or easily guessable information
You can also use password managers like LastPass, 1Password, or Bitwarden to help generate and store complex passwords securely.
Enable Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)
Even a super strong, impossible to logically guess password is not enough anymore. Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) adds an extra layer of security by requiring a second form of verification beyond just a password.
Even if a password is compromised, the second factor can prevent unauthorised access.It enhances security by combining something you know (password) and something you have (phone, security token).
For example, even if a password is entered correctly, a code sent directly to your mobile device would also need to be entered to allow access.
You can use services like Google Authenticator, Authy, or Duo Security to enable MFA on your site.
Avoid Sharing Login Information
It’s something we’ve all been told for years, but it’s worth repeating – don’t share accounts or login information, even if it’s just one time between coworkers. Shared information can easily fall into the wrong hands, and it increases the risk of unauthorised access – it’s just not worth it.
Make sure that everyone who needs access to your site uses their individual account, and don’t send any login information through unsecured channels like email.
Be Cautious of Phishing Attempts
Phishing is a common type of scam to steal personal information, such as passwords or card information, but phishing attempts can be hard to spot if you aren’t paying close attention.
These scams often come in the form of fake emails or websites that mimic legitimate ones, asking you to click a link or enter personal information. They can also sometimes take the form of urgent messages that create a sense of panic, leading you to give up information before you second-guess yourself.
Before you click any links or give up any info, look for suspicious email addresses or URLs. Sometimes in your phone or inbox, the message might seem as though it’s coming from a legitimate source, such as ‘Apple Support’ or ‘Google Team’ but if you look at the actual email address, it won’t be official at all.
But, as a general rule, never click on links or download attachments from unknown sources.
Regularly Update Your Security Measures
Just like a virus, cyber criminals are always adapting and trying to find a way around the latest online security updates, which means the creators of security plugins, antivirus software and any other safety features need to keep adapting too.
The same security measures won’t last forever, so keep aware of any new developments, update your site’s platform software, security extensions or plugins regularly, and fix any vulnerabilities in your system ASAP.
Monitor Account Activity
Don’t feel guilty about going all Big Brother – your site’s security is too important. You don’t need to monitor every click, but it’s a good idea to keep an eye on user activity on your site. Things like unusual login locations or times, as well as multiple failed login attempts could be signs of an attempted breach.
Monitoring tools such as Google Analytics are good for tracking unusual activity, and installing security plugins like Wordfence or Sucuri helps to keep everything locked down.
Use HTTPS and Secure Your Site
HTTP and HTTPS may look the same at a glance, but they have one huge difference that impacts your site security.
HTTP messages use plain text, meaning they can be read by snoopers and unauthorised parties, whereas HTTPS encrypts data transferred between the user’s browser and your website, protecting it from interception.
To implement HTTPS on your site, you need to obtain an SSL certificate from a trusted provider – this is a key trust marker for your users, advertised by the padlock symbol near the URL bar.
You also need to make sure that your site redirects all HTTP traffic to HTTPS.
Backup Your Data Regularly
One final piece of advice for website security is to back up your data regularly. Backups ensure that you can recover your data in case of a breach or system failure, mitigating the damage.
You can use automated backup solutions to do this, but it is also a good idea to store backups in multiple locations, including offsite.
Make Security a Priority by Partnering With Us
Security is an ongoing process, not a one-time task, but do yourself a favour and make it a priority from the start. A new website, where safety measures have been built in from the foundation is much easier to keep a handle on – you don’t need to worry about plugging any holes, updating user access, converting your site to HTTPS, or anything else.
If security is important to you (and it should be), we are a great agency to work with. Our web hosting packages offer monthly updates to WordPress core and plugins to ensure your security plugins are always up to date, regular file backups to prevent data loss, routine security audits and health checks of your site, including broken link checks and virus scans, and we even top it all off with a free SSL certificate that protects your data from interception.
So, if you’re looking for sustainable web design where security isn’t an afterthought, give us a shout, we’ll be happy to help.