Can’t access the WordPress backend anymore or has your website homepage changed? You’ve probably suffered a cyber attack, so now it’s important to fix your hacked WordPress site.
A hacked and non-functioning portal can be a huge economic and image damage to your business. This “incident” is likely to interfere with your SEO ranking on search engines, cause you to lose all your business data or put your customers’ data at risk. In addition, those who visit it will have the perception of an unsafe and poorly maintained website, not to mention that they may be exposed to viruses with redirects to scam websites.
As you may have guessed, security is an issue that should not be underestimated. But how do you notice a system breach and how can you restore a hacked website?
In this article we will look at:
- Signs not to be underestimated
- How to repair a hacked WordPress site
- The importance of maintenance as prevention to website hacker breaches
- Why avoid do-it-yourself and rely on specialists
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WordPress site hacked: the signs not to underestimate
Before we figure out how to fix a hacked WordPress site, let’s see what are the signs of a possible breach. The portal can be compromised if you notice:
- slowed performance
- Redirects to unknown sites, suspicious or spam pages
- Error messages with unusual notifications (e.g., “Your site contains malware”)
- Changes to the pages, homepage, or the publication of unauthorized content on the site
- Difficulties in access (login) and errors in entering credentials
- Abnormal emails with spam messages sent from your domain
- Blocking of the site by hosting or search engines for activities harmful to users
Also, if you have a security plugin installed on your site you may receive a specific hacker attack warning.
Speaking of plugins, find out what the best WordPress plugins are!
How to repair a hacked WordPress site
WordPress is one of the most widely used CMSs in the world for building websites. It has many advantages, but at the same time it can be vulnerable. If you have noticed anomalies you need to act promptly to detect the problem, limit the damage as much as possible and restore the system. Here are the main steps to take.
1. Putting the website in “maintenance mode”
To prevent users from seeing the site compromised, it is essential to turn on “maintenance mode.” This not only protects the image of the site, but communicates professionalism by making the outage perceived as a planned phase of work.
You can set up maintenance mode by creating a simple index.html file to be uploaded to your site’s root directory, or use specific plugins such as Coming Soon and Maintenance Mode if you have access to the WordPress panel.
Remember to turn this mode off when the work is complete, restoring the site to normal operation.
2. Make the backup
Before taking action, make a full backup of all files and the database. This step is crucial to ensure that you can restore the data if any errors occur during the cleanup process.
- If you have access to your hosting’s control panel, backup at the server level to include all items and data without any limitations.
- If you prefer to operate directly from WordPress (and the site is still accessible), tools such as UpdraftPlus or Duplicator simplify the process. However, if the site is severely compromised, you will necessarily have to act through the server control panel or via FTP and phpMyAdmin.
Ensuring that you have a recent and complete copy of the backup is critical so that you can act quickly and minimize site downtime in the event of a problem or compromise.
3. Start the security scan
Use security software to do a preliminary scan, identifying malware, infected files, and vulnerabilities. Examples of useful tools are Sucuri Scanner and MalCare.
However, an automated scan is not enough: manually check folders and files for anomalies such as files with strange names, obfuscated code, or recent unauthorized changes.
4. Detect and remove malware and compromised files
Act directly on the system (cores, plugins, themes and any other folders or files), removing or replacing the infected files identified earlier.
- Download a clean version of the WordPress core from the official site to replace the compromised files, making sure to use the same version of your site to avoid incompatibilities.
- Never replace the wp-content folder, as it contains your custom data and files.
- Check the database for anomalous redirects or suspicious code, often found in tables such as wp-options or wp-posts. Use tools such as phpMyAdmin for this check.
By following these directions, you should be able to detect any traces of infection and then remediate them with targeted actions.
5. Update WordPress, plugins and theme
Once the infected files are deleted, update WordPress, plugins and theme to the latest version available. Updates fix known vulnerabilities that may have been exploited by hackers. If a plugin or theme is no longer supported by developers, consider replacing it with a more secure alternative.
6. Change passwords and permissions
Change all passwords associated with your site, including those for:
- WordPress Administration Panel
- Database
- FTP
- Control panel of your hosting (e.g., cPanel or Plesk)
Make sure the new passwords are strong and unique. Also check user roles in the WordPress panel for suspicious logins. If you find unknown users, remove them immediately.
7. Validate the site on Google
If Google has flagged your site as unsafe, use Google Search Console to request a rescan. Upload an updated sitemap to speed up the process and ensure that any compromised pages have been cleaned up or removed.
8. Preventing future attacks
Improve the security of your site by implementing the following measures:
- Set up automatic, daily backups, possibly not on the same hosting.
- Limit login attempts: Use a plugin to limit the number of consecutive login attempts.
- Use secure connections (SSL): Install an SSL certificate to encrypt traffic between your site and users.
- Choose secure hosting: Opt for a hosting provider with good security policies.
- Enable two-factor authentication(2FA): Further protect access to the WordPress panel.
To protect your website and prevent attacks, it is essential to implement robust and diverse security strategies. With frequent automatic backups, judicious access management and secure connections, you reduce the risk of data loss or intrusion. Reliable hosting and two-factor authentication add an extra layer of protection, ensuring maximum security for your site and your users.
The importance of maintenance as prevention to website hacker breaches
WordPress sites are hacked for many reasons, including misappropriation of data for identity theft or to harm the company. Often, attacks are automated and conducted by bots designed to exploit known vulnerabilities, such as out-of-date plugins or weak security configurations. In addition, targeted attacks by hackers, phishing, or use of stolen credentials can also pose a serious threat.
- choose effective passwords
- Update WordPress software, plugins and theme in a timely manner
- make automatic backups
- Install security plugins to monitor vulnerabilities and suspicious activities
- Rely on hosting with robust security measures
- Implement protection with firewall, two-factor authentication and SSL certificates
These are all violations that can be reduced and prevented through a scheduledwebsite maintenance service.
Do cyber attacks scare you? Find out what you can do in our article:
How to increase the security of your WordPress site
Avoid DIY and rely on specialists to fix hacked WordPress site
If your WordPress site has been hacked, consider that fixing the problem yourself could even make it worse. The risk is to damage it further and lose more data, lengthening the recovery time.
Removing malware and repairing compromised files requires specific technical skills and a methodical approach. At Isola we have a team of skilled technicians who can offer you website support tailored to your business. You can count on prompt response to unexpected problems and ongoing support to make periodic site backups, monitor for vulnerabilities, and make sure everything is working properly.
Combined with scheduled maintenance, support helps ensure the perfect functioning of the website. It is the ideal solution for preemptively recognizing the signs of an attack and eliminating or reducing the problem even before it occurs.
Do you want to repair your hacked WordPress site or effectively prevent cyber attacks?
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