Whether you already run your own website or have only just started out, finding the best security plugin is absolutely essential. It is also crucial to find the plugin that fits your website best.
A high-performing security plugin will protect your site from any hackers, remove any spam comments, back up your website in the unfortunate event something goes wrong, and keep everything on your website up to date.
However, with such an enormous database of plugins available to us online, finding the best plugin can be difficult.
The fact you’re here would suggest you’re struggling to choose the best plugin too.
Luckily for you, we’re here to help. In this post, we are going to tell you everything you need to know about how to choose the best security plugin. At the end, we’ll even give you one of our best recommendations.
Let’s get straight to it!
Look At Your Hosting Plan First
Before even starting to look at security plugins, you should first take a closer look at your hosting plan. The reason for this is that most hosting plans have some form of security built-in.
If your provider already incorporates features such as updates, backups, malware scans, and firewalls, you don’t need to look for a plugin that manages them too.
The reason for this is that your provider is already managing them for you. Once you’ve identified whether your provider has these features or not and which ones they run, you can then decide what type of plugin you need.
From doing this simple research, you will have been able to identify whether you need a security plugin that provides full service or one that just has specific features.
This could potentially save you money because you could download one free plugin instead of an all-in-one subscription plugin.
Keep It Minimal
It is always a good idea to keep things minimal when looking for the best security plugin. We like to go by the motto quality over quantity.
One of the most common ways websites get hacked is through the use of too many plugins.
Hackers will look for exploits in the plugins that are yet to be updated as the owner hasn’t realized yet as they have too many plugins to remember.
By keeping the number of security plugins to a minimum, you have a better chance of avoiding this potential hacking issue.
Some owners will install multiple security plugins under the impression they will improve security. In reality, this makes things worse.
For starters, your website will be more vulnerable to hackers. Secondly, too many plugins doing the same task can lead to you getting locked out of the wp-admin dashboard.
In Doubt? Why Not Give It A Try
Sometimes it can be difficult to decide for sure whether a security plugin will be good for your website or not. If this is the case, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with simply trying the plugin out.
You could take some time to install a plugin, see how it performs, and then decide what you think. You could then uninstall the plugin and try another one. Alternatively, you could keep it if you think it’s good enough.
Before trying this, we do recommend backing up your website first. This will just guarantee that your website is safe in case anything unexpected happens.
Reliability And Compatibility
Arguably, the two most important things to consider when choosing the best security plugin for your website are reliability and compatibility.
Finding out whether a plugin is compatible and reliable can be a tedious task, but it is well worth it if it means your website is fully protected.
Below you will find some key things to consider when choosing a plugin that is both reliable and compatible.
How Many Active Installs Does The Plugin Have?
A good way to judge how reliable a security plugin is by looking at how many active installs it currently has. The more active installs a plugin has, the more likely it is that the software is reliable.
We would usually look for a plugin that has at least 300,000-500,000 active installations. These are the sorts of plugins that are seen as very reliable and trustworthy.
Is The Plugin Up To Date?
A compatible and reliable security plugin must be up-to-date. As we mentioned previously, a plugin that isn’t up-to-date is more exposed to bugs and viruses that could bring your website down to its knees.
With this in mind, you should take a look at the plugin’s last updated section. Here you will find out when the plugin was last updated. In our opinion, you should only look at plugins that were updated within the last 2 months.
If the plugin was updated longer than this, it could be assumed that the plugin is no longer being updated, has run its course, and is no longer compatible with your website.
What Are The Reviews Saying?
Checking user-submitted reviews is an excellent way to help you choose the best security plugin for your website.
Reviews will give you a good impression regarding how the plugin works, what people like, what people don’t like, and any issues you might experience if you download the plugin.
If reviews are great, you might be one step closer to finding the best security plugin for your website. If they’re bad, you might need to keep looking.
Do They Offer Customer Support?
Some plugins are made, thrown on the market, and left behind, never to be returned to again.
These are the plugins you need to avoid, not only because they might not be up-to-date, but because they probably won’t have any customer support either.
You need to find a plugging with good customer support as they will be your first port of call if something goes wrong.
Can Any Vulnerabilities Be Expected?
A simple Google search of the plugin you have in mind along with +vulnerability will bring up any past issues the plugin may have faced.
By looking at the search results, you’ll be able to identify which plugins are better, and which ones should be avoided.
Features An Easy-To-Use Interface
Finally, another thing that will really help you choose the best security plugin for your website is how easy the interface is to use.
By taking a close look at how you use the plugin and how easy it is to make changes or monitor problems, you can find out which plugin suits you more, and which ones are only going to cause clutter and disorganization.
Our Favorite Security Plugin
We didn’t want to finish this post without giving you at least one security plugin option. You’re lucky too, as we’re giving you our favorite.
Our favorite security plugin is Wordfence Security. Wordfence Security is an all-in-one security plugin that offers you everything you need to keep your website safe.
Key features include the blocking of malicious traffic in advance, malware scanning that checks your whole website, two-factor authentication, email updates regarding any issues, and real-time live traffic data.
As if that wasn’t enough, the Wordfence Security plugin is super easy to use and very fairly priced. For those that don’t want to pay for the plugin, Wordfence Security also has a pretty awesome free package.
Final Thoughts
You should now have a much better understanding of how to choose the best security plugin for your website. While it may be a tedious task that takes up a lot of your time, it is definitely one that needs to be done right.
While there are a lot of things to take in and think about, we hope this post has started pushing you in the right direction.
Now that you have all this information at your fingertips, start narrowing down your list of security plugins until you find the best one.
Hopefully this website can teach others and help you in getting your blog out there, capitalizing on it as much as you can, and can serve as the kind of resource I wish I had had. So, what are you waiting for? Get out there and make a name for yourself!
- Bluehost Vs HostGator: Host Features, Reviews, And Test Results - October 7, 2022
- Bluehost Vs DreamHost: Host Features, Reviews, And Test Results - October 7, 2022
- MidPhase Review: Host Features, Reviews, And Test Results - October 7, 2022
