Part of the reason is small companies don’t usually have the resources to fend off these attacks… one thing that cybercriminals know - it’s easier to attack a smaller company who may have a larger client they can access, rather than go straight to the source. So they infiltrate small business systems as a springboard to access bigger data. The small company will have no idea they are a security vulnerability.

A recent insurance survey found that four out of five small-business owners do not have a cyber-attack response plan. Forty-six percent said they thought their current software is sufficient protection. Forty percent of small-business owners said they don’t think their company would be affected by an attack. They should think again.

There are millions of attacks every single day. We have been running security tests for a client who is a solo operator with a very new website (launched earlier in the year). We found there had been 1,205 attempted (failed) logins to the website dashboard and 504 (failed) page URL attempts. That’s seven attempted break-ins per day, on a site with lower than average traffic. Hackers prefer to target popular sites so if you have a fair amount of traffic you’re a prime target. An average website is attacked 44 times every day.

A security breach on your website can cause some really serious damage to your business. Hackers can steal both yours and your users’ data. A compromised site can be used to piggyback malicious code out to your customers and other websites. A growing trend is to lock you out of your own site, steal your data and hold it hostage. Your website can also be defaced or totally destroyed.

No matter how good your security, there is absolutely no guarantee that the perpetrators will not penetrate your defences. Hackers are continuously attempting new attack methods and finding new vulnerabilities to exploit.

The online world is in constant evolution and the security solutions have to adapt in tandem. As a website owner, your job is to minimise risk as best you can. Beware anyone who tries to sell you a 100% secure solution. That does not exist and they are lying to you! You will never be completely safe but you can do a lot to mitigate the risk.

You can scan your WordPress website for security breaches at any time, but it can be difficult and expensive to recover a website that has already been hacked. The safest thing is to avoid being hacked in the first place and there are some powerful security plugins around to help with that.

I’ve been securing clients’ WordPress websites for more than 10 years and can definitely advise and install the best security software for your requirements.

WordPress security installation and configuration starts at £840.00 - The final price depends on your requirements, the complexity of the site structure and what level of security you require.