Keeping your online store safe and secure is a crucial part of running an online business, but you probably already knew this. Security technology is a rapidly changing and it can be hard for business owners to keep up. Thankfully, there are some relatively simple steps anyone can take to protect their WooCommerce site. Website security can be a complicated process, but with these steps, anyone will be able to add a sturdy layer of protection around their website.

Pick A Host Wisely

Although it might seem obvious at first, you want to pick a hosting company that will take care of a lot of the security legwork for you. There are many smart people in the field of internet security and a lot of those people work at hosting companies.

When you’re deciding who to host with, you should keep an eye out for these important things:

• Daily Backups – These are crucial in the event your site gets taken down for whatever reason. Backups are important for getting your site online asap.

• Restoration Services – Just as crucial as the backups, these will help you get back online.

• Automatic Updates – These will help patch any security holes that are uncovered, ensuring your data remains safe.

Get An SSL Certificate

If your accepting credit cards then you will need an SSL Certificate. When people send data over the internet to you (most likely credit card details), this encrypts the data, keeping it safe.

A lot of website hosting companies will offer SSL Certificates if you opt for one when you decide to host with them.

Always Keep Your Own Backups

Although you want to choose a host whose taking backups for you, you don’t want to leave the fate of your website completely in another’s hands. We can’t recommend enough downloading your own backups, as you’ll be grateful in the event of a complete catastrophe.

At the end of the day, you can’t completely guarantee that anyone is taking daily backups of your website, so it’s best not to leave it to chance.

There are some great WordPress backup plugins out there that make the job really easy.

Prevent Brute-Force Attacks

Brute-force attacks are still the most common and effective way to break into websites. They refer to the simple method of using computer power to guess combinations or passwords until the correct series of characters is stumbled upon.

Fortunately, as this method of hacking is relatively simple, so too are the solutions. You can:

• Limit Login Attempts – This kind of attack can only work if the attacker can have unlimited attempts at guessing the password or code. There are plugins out there such as WP Limit Login Attempts that you can use on your WooCommerce store to prevent such attacks.

• Use 2 Factor Authentication – 2-factor authentication is another smart way to keep your website safe. With 2-factor authentication, even if someone has guessed your username and password, they’ll still have to gain access to another password on another device. 

• Use A Password Manager – Password managers can create incredibly difficult passwords for you, and then automatically re-enter them when you’re on the appropriate site—providing that you know the master password. This is a great way for making impossible to crack passwords. 

Constantly Update

If your website has automatic updating then you won’t need to worry about this. All those smart security people we mentioned earlier? Well, they’re constantly working on new versions of WordPress to fix any previously undiscovered security holes or bugs.

It’s good practice for you and your customers to make sure that you’re always running the most up-to-date software available.

Let Your Customers Know That They’re Safe

While it should be a given that you’re looking out for your customer’s security behind the scenes, you should go a step further and let them know that they’re being looked after.

Customers who feel safe are more likely to buy, recommend and return to your website, increasing your business’ bottom line.

One of the ways you can show off the security of your website is with the McAfee SECURE plugin. It lets visitors know that your site passes an external security scan and is safe to navigate too.