You probably already know that a server is where every website is stored. Because they are expensive, most people don’t have their own servers. Instead, they make use of the servers that a web hosting company provides.
Web hosting companies enable you to keep your website on their servers for a lot less money than you would have spent if you attempted to purchase and manage your own server. Several websites can be hosted on a single server using shared hosting while sharing the server’s resources. It is said that this can compromise the security of the websites hosted on the server.
But here is the truth- Shared hosting is not by definition unsafe. It’s a completely acceptable method of website storage, especially if you’re just starting out or have a limited web hosting budget. However, because all the websites on a shared server share the same resources, shared hosting is a particularly risky choice if your web provider doesn’t take appropriate precautions to keep its servers secure.
With this article, we will bring some key aspects as practices with which you can secure your shared server. So, if you want to know more, here are some key tips.
- Preventing DDoS attacks
A DDoS (Distributed Denial-of-Service) attack is a sort of cyberattack in which a malicious actor floods your server with traffic, depleting server resources and keeping valuable resources from getting to your website. This inevitably leads to downtime.
Since websites already share server resources, which means that resources are already limited, and because if even one website on the server is attacked, this could have an effect on the other websites on the server, this is a weakness of shared servers in particular.
It is essential to find a web host that offers DDoS attack security capabilities that can recognise the beginning of a DDoS attack and take action to stop it.
- SSL Certificates
Even if hackers manage to get their hands on your data, they won’t be able to decode it because it has been encrypted with an SSL certificate. Because SSL certificates are so crucial to website security, you aren’t even allowed to collect credit card information online without one.
Your search engine ranking will be affected, among other things, if you don’t have an SSL certificate.
Choose a web host that has their own website setup with an SSL certificate. Verify your host’s availability of SSL certificates for your website and that all of their hosting plans, even the most basic shared hosting plans, are SSL certificate compliant.
Make sure your SSL certificate is installed correctly after you have one so you can safeguard your website.
- Antivirus and malware scanning
Software that has been maliciously developed is known as malware. Malware is capable of modifying your website’s design and rerouting users to shady websites, among other unpleasant things. Your reputation suffers when your website is plagued with malware, and if you operate an eCommerce website or depend on your website for income, your revenues suffer as well. Select a hosting company that offers regular malware scans and a powerful antivirus that can guard against the most popular tactics hackers use to weaken your website if you want to safeguard it from malware.
- Firewalls
A firewall is a piece of software that establishes guidelines for the types of communications it will permit and prohibit. A firewall that is properly configured can do wonders for the safety of your website. Firewalls are particularly useful since they immediately blacklist hackers who even attempt to hunt for a weak point.
Firewalls are thus an excellent indication that a web hosting company is concerned about the security of its servers (and your website).
- Privacy for domain names
To prevent hackers from obtaining your personal contact information simply by checking the public domain name registry, reputable web servers offer WHOIS domain name privacy. Select a web host that provides this security.
Conclusion
Shared hosting has a negative reputation as the least secure type of web hosting. Dedicated and VPS hosting are undoubtedly more secure hosting solutions, however this does not imply that shared hosting is necessarily less secure.
You may take advantage of shared hosting’s low cost and the assurance that your website is secure if you abide by our advice on hosting security and pick a web hosting company that shares your commitment to hosting security.
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