For many years, WordPress has been used to design millions of websites. Many of them store private information. This often includes the payment data of e-commerce customers. As a result, you need to secure WordPress at all costs.
WordPress is recognized by so many users that we imagine this CMS to be invulnerable to piracy. But reality tells a different story.
In fact, this is regularly contradicted, but don't panic, it's perfectly normal.
All software has flaws, and WordPress is no exception. When a WP site is hacked, the culprit isn't usually the CMS. Rather, it's the webmaster who manages the site. The truth is, customers ignore the recommendations for securing their WordPress site.
Cybercrime
Experts predict more attacks on WP sites, as many have not upgraded to WP 6.0 since May 2025.
As a WordPress website design agency in Switzerland, we often hear “I'm a small SME”. However, big or small in Lausanne, Fribourg or Geneva, no one is spared!
For this kind of hacking, hackers aim high with automated bot attacks. In this respect, the real question becomes: how to avoid hacking and secure a WordPress site?
Our four WordPress security tips will protect your site in 2025
1. Protect your administrator page
Your admin page is the first thing you need to secure against cyber-attacks. That's why you need to make it difficult to access. Here are 4 essential actions to avoid unpleasant surprises:
- WP users know how to access the admin page. Just type /wp-login.php or /wp-admin. By the way, any bot will add this link to your URL. This leaves you vulnerable. To start protecting your site, modify the link on your admin page. Several plugins are available to secure WordPress.
- Use an “anti-brute force” system that will block your site after several failed connection attempts. This protection prevents forced attacks. When someone tries to access your site with an incorrect password, the page is blocked. You will then receive an alert by e-mail or SMS. As a result, many specific plugins exist to reinforce your WordPress site.
- Set up two-factor authentication on the admin page. As administrator, you choose the method. This can be a password with a secret code, special characters or a code sent to your phone. The latter option ensures that only the person with the phone can access the site.
- Update your passwords regularly. Mix upper and lower case letters, numbers and special characters. What's more, a fairly long password (minimum 10 characters) will be virtually impossible to crack by brute force.
2. Use secure WordPress hosting
For securing a WordPress site, You need to do more than simply block access. In fact, your site needs to be protected at the web server level. That's where your web host comes in. Take the time to look for a reliable host like Infomaniak or Cloudways.
Ideally, your server should be equipped with a firewall and intrusion detection systems. These tools protect your site from the moment WordPress is installed and during its development. In this respect, Cloudflare, even in its free version, also offers effective protection by filtering traffic directly.
With cloud hosting, the provider must ensure that the software on its servers protects your site while remaining compatible with the latest versions of WordPress.
3. Use WP with the latest updates
To keep your WordPress site secure, you need to maintain it regularly by updating all versions.
Just like you change the oil in your car or mow your lawn, maintain your WordPress site. Likewise, the WordPress core, plugins and themes all require frequent updates.
A report by WP White Security revealed that
«Nearly 50 % of WP vulnerabilities come from plugins or themes that have not been updated or patched. Vulnerabilities are spreading fast in the opensource world, and people looking to exploit them know where to start».
source:
According to Malcare Security, this figure would be even higher, reaching around 80%. That's why WordPress needs to be updated very often. Each new version corrects bugs and vulnerabilities. In fact, WordPress identifies its vulnerabilities and implements protections with every update.
Whether or not you like the latest WordPress releases (yes, I'm talking about you, Gutenberg), updates are no longer optional to secure your WordPress site.
4. Do not host several WP sites on the same server Imagine having 4 sites on your server account. Three of them benefit from regular updates thanks to their high traffic. However, don't forget to update the last one to secure WordPress.
A malicious bot can discover flaws in obsolete sites and access your server's backend. It could then download a script to take control of your hosting and hack into all your data.
Don't panic if you're using shared hosting. Good hosting providers generally manage small clusters of servers. This means few sites per server.
So when an attack does occur, it only affects a small number of sites. As a result, the risk of your WordPress site being compromised is greatly reduced.
And finally...
Here are some additional tips for securing WordPress in 2025:
- Choose quality WP themes that are regularly updated by their creators. Above all, always check the history before selecting a free WordPress theme.
- Avoid using “administrator” as your username. Unfortunately, many WordPress webmasters opt for “admin”. Obviously, this makes the username easy to guess on their WordPress site.
- Disable file editing and modification directly from the WordPress dashboard.
Co-founder of Smart Impact.Passionate about the web from the outset, he launched his first project in 2006: an online music magazine that is still running today. With almost 20 years' experience in SEO, a federal diploma in marketing and a solid geek culture, he and his team transform customers' (sometimes vague) ideas into concrete digital projects.