Website security is geared towards ensuring the security of websites and web applications and preventing and/or responding effectively to cyber threats.
2. Table of Contents
2
Website
Website Security
Major Threats to Web Security
Website Security’s Protection (for
Websites)
Website Security’s Protection (for
Visitors)
Efficient Website Security Plan’s
Features
Major Measures for Website Security
Conclusion
3. A website refers to a collection of related web pages and content which exists under a
single domain name. It is identifiable by a common domain name. The World Wide
Web (www) is formed by all those websites collectively that can be accessed publicly
via the Internet.
Every website is hosted with a web hosting company that makes available the server
space, services and technologies that are required for the purpose of keeping a
website up and running and accessible over the Internet. The best among these web
hosting companies are often referred to as the “Best Windows Hosting Company” or as
the “Best Linux Hosting Company” or as the “Top Cloud Hosting Company”.
3
Website
4. YELLOW
Web security, which is also referred to as cybersecurity, is meant to protect websites and web applications by
ensuring timely and proper detection as well as prevention of cyber threats, along with developing and
following an effectively designed response mechanism to deal with cyber threats. It is aimed at protecting
websites as well as web application from being hacked and preventing unauthorized access to these.
Any website or application that is deemed as secure, uses different types of checkpoints and techniques to
ensure its safety.
Website Security
4
5. Major Threats to Web Security
The top security threats for all web-based services are mentioned below, in no
particular order.
Password breach
Data breach
Cross-site scripting
SQL injection
Code injection
Remote file inclusion
5
6. Website Security’s Protection (for Websites)
6
Measures related to website security ensure the protection of a website against the following-
DDoS (distributed denial-of-service) attacks- These attacks are harmful as these can slow or even crash a site entirely,
rendering it inaccessible to visitors.
Malware- A malware is capable of stealing sensitive data, distributing spam, allowing cybercriminals to access a site
and carrying out many more dangerous activities.
Blacklisting- Detection of malware on a site by search engines, might result in the site’s removal from search engine
results and it being flagged.
Vulnerability exploits- A site and the data stored on it can be accessed by cybercriminals by exploiting vulnerabilities,
such as an outdated plugin.
Defacement- This attack poses a serious threat as it replaces a website’s content with the malicious content of a
cybercriminal.
In the context of websites, every website that is accessible over the Internet is hosted with some web hosting company.
Any web host that has been providing excellent service in the field of hosting, has gained the reputation of being the
“Best Windows Hosting Company” or the “Best Linux Hosting Company” or the “Top Cloud Hosting Company”.
7. Website Security’s Protection (for Visitors)
7
Website security protects the visitors of a website from the following-
Data theft- Customers’ data, such as payment information, that is stored on a site is a prime
target of cybercriminals.
Phishing schemes. Phishing attacks often take place through web pages that look legitimate
but are designed with the aim of tricking users into providing confidential information.
Session hijacking. Cyberattacks can take over a user’s session, forcing unwanted actions on a
website.
Malicious redirects. Certain cyberattacks are meant to redirect site visitors from the site they
intended to visit to a website that is malicious.
SEO Spam. It is used to drive traffic to malicious websites.
8. Efficient Website Security Plan’s Features
8
To be effective, a website security plan must ensure to include the following features-
Site Seal
Web Application Firewall (WAF)
Malware scan
Manual malware and hack removal
Security monitoring
File change monitoring
Blacklist/spam monitoring
Website Malware removal
Blacklist removal
Content Delivery Network (CDN)
Advanced DDoS mitigation
10. Major Measures for Website Security
10
The main protective measures that contribute to a website’s security are mentioned below-
SSL Certificate
Web Application Firewall
A Website Scanner
Software Updates
11. Conclusion
11
Website security assumes paramount importance with more and more people using the Internet for
various purposes, which increases the amount of vulnerabilities that can be exploited as well as the
associated risks. Reports suggests that a little over half of the entire Internet traffic originates from
automated sources, such as spammers, hacking tools, bots and impersonators. The threat to the security
of one’s site, its contents as well as one’s confidential and sensitive information has increased
significantly and is continuously increasing. Hence, website security becomes vital as it is geared
towards ensuring the security of websites and web applications.