Basic Safety Guidelines For A Shared Hosting Server

Have you asked yourself the common question;  “what is a  shared web hosting plan”? As the name implies, this hosting package means that your website shares a server with multiple other sites. There are advantages to this hosting package such as the cheap price, but there disadvantages too - mostly related to security concerns.

With this type of plan, your site becomes vulnerable when any of the websites on your server are hacked, as hackers compromise sites by uploading dangerous code to the entire server. Moreover, this type of web hosting is generally used by business owners without refined technical skills. Hence, it might be too late by the time you realize you have experienced a security breach.  

Here is a list of five ways to secure your shared web hosting plan from malicious activities of all types.

Antivirus Software 

It is recommended that everyone have antivirus and malware protection installed on their local computers to keep intruders out. Such software scans each and every uploaded file for common exploits, leaks, and loopholes to keep your site protected. However, hosting resources can get drained when an antivirus perpetually scans your files. 

To prevent this process from slowing down your website, go for a cloud solution such as Avast antivirus. This means you can transfer the scanning workload to the cloud, and enjoy security coupled with the optimal performance of your device.

Besides Avast, here are two examples of notable antivirus services: 

• Norton offers a range of services from antivirus to anti-spyware, 2-way firewall, and anti-phishing functions. 
• Kaspersky secures emails and documents, as well as traffic and data, and protects your site from phishing and spam with a personal firewall.

Keep Everything Up-To-Date 

CMS websites powered by Drupal, WordPress, Magento, and Joomla that are currently running on shared plans mandatorily require updates like the latest patches to work efficiently. 

While most people think updating software is designed for availing new features, the real reason is security. In fact, it is important for small business hosting users to update modules, themes, plugins, and third-party app integrations at all times. These updates resolve bugs and neutralize security threats, keeping you one step ahead of malicious parties. 

When it comes to plugins, it is important to commit to regular updates, especially if your website is built on WordPress. Delete plugins that are inactive as hackers might otherwise use the vulnerabilities of an older version to gain access to your website.

Smart Password Creation 

While passwords are convenient and practical for authenticating users, it is not ironclad. In fact, it is easy to crack most passwords with a dictionary attack when your website is hosted on a shared plan. Moreover, brute force cracking can decipher your passwords effortlessly. 

If you do not want hackers to obtain your data, set strong passwords for cPanel, MySQL, SSH, FTP, and email accounts. Also, you must ask others on your team to follow suit to keep the entire system safe. 

Here are five tips for setting strong passwords when you are using cheap hosting:

• Do not use the same password for all log-ins.
• Use a password generator like LastPass and set high-complexity levels for passwords.
• Do not use a password you can remember. 
• Implement strong password validation for your team members.
• Change your passwords regularly. 

Two-Factor Authentication 

With over $16 billion lost in 2016 alone due to cyber-attacks, one of the best ways to protect your website is via advanced authentication. Two Factor Authentication (2FA) uses two steps to validate log-in credentials of users, so that even if a malicious party gets a password right, the second step that verifies the identity of the user will block out the hacker.

Take a look at the following web hosts with 2FA features. 

• A2 Hosting: You can incorporate 2FA with a one-time password using the authenticator app in addition to a backup code. 
• Interserver: set up 2FA for WHM/cPanel accounts with Google Authenticator on the best Cheap Shared Web Hosting service provider too. 

Apply DDoS Protection 

Distributed Denial of Service or DDoS attacks drain the bandwidth and resources of your server by flooding it. This can even cause a website to crash. 

To stay safe, it is mandatory that you choose a web host offering DDoS protection as it can detect the unusual patterns in traffic prior to the occurrence of an attack. This is crucial for websites hosted on shared plans even if you were given unlimited resources as ultimately, every server has a finite capacity for resource generation. 

You can also prevent DDoS attacks by choosing web hosts with firewalls and CDNs. Here are two hosting services that offer this feature: 

• HostGator offers a custom firewall and weighty mod security regulations.
• Liquid Web has three types of plans for DDoS protection. 

Bottom Line 

While shared web hosting is cost-effective, it lacks key safeguards that might be available on dedicated or VPS hosting plans. You can sign up for extra protection by enabling a compatible antivirus solution, DDoS protection, or 2FA on such a plan. Also, ensure that you update all apps regularly in addition to generating sophisticated passwords to keep your website safe from malicious attacks.