The Importance of Password Security

Protecting yourself from this kind of threat is absolutely imperative, as it poses a very real risk to the safety and continuity of your online business, and maybe even your life as you know it! The previous statement is not an exaggeration; there have been cases in which business owners have lost everything because they were sued for the actions of someone who stole their login credentials and committed fraud with their accounts. If you can’t prove someone stole your login credentials, then you’re going to be the prime suspect regardless of whether you actually committed a crime or not. This is why it is absolutely essential to protect all of your login credentials.

Brute Force

In the distant past, passwords were somewhat safe regardless of how many digits they had or how abstract they were. The only methods a hacker had was to guess the password manually or by using a relatively slow program to guess the password. These programs are called Brute Force programs and they are still in use today by many hackers, however the current versions of these programs are much more complex, and much faster at completing the task of hacking into your accounts.

Keyloggers

However, now thee are programs which let hackers spy on your browsing habits, and even log the exact keys you press on your keyboard! This means passwords are no longer safe simply by creating a secure password! Instead you’ll need competent antivirus technology in combination with secure passwords. If a hacker can manage to get your login credentials, there is no limit to what they can do with it. They may even try to log in to some of your other accounts such as your email, your bank account, or some of your other websites. This is why it is absolutely imperative to never use the same password for all of your accounts. Make sure all of your passwords are random and make sure each one is unique and contains a healthy mixture of numbers and letters.

Conclusion

The risks associated with login credential theft are great and should not be overlooked by any online business owner. Even if you do not own a business, you should consider all of the personal information that you may store in your various online accounts such as your home address and your phone number which could be used to spam you. If you use online banking at all then you’ll most definitely need to make sure you take the proper precautions when protecting your passwords. Using a combination of antivirus technology and proper password creation, you should be able to keep all of your finances and personal information secure indefinitely.

Domain Stealing

Securing a domain name is about much more than simply procuring it. Once you have it in your possession you’ll need to make sure it stays in your possession. In the past hackers would focus on controlling a single computer, or a home network. Now they have the ability to circumvent web hosting security and gain control of entire web hosting companies over night. While this may sound unlikely, it has happened before, and an event of this magnitude does not need to occur in order for your domain name to be stolen. All the hacker needs to steal your domain name is a bit of ingenuity and trickery.

How is it Done?

Many times the hacker will send a fraudulent email that appears to be from your web hosting company, prompting you to renew your domain name. Once you provide the details they require, they login to your hosting account, and then transfer ownership of the domain to themselves, seemingly with your permission. This is just one of the ways hackers can steal your online identity. Hackers can also hijack the server that controls your hosting account and assume ownership of many domains in this fashion.

What are the Results?

Once the hacker has ownership of your domain, he can do whatever he likes with it. If it is one of your competitors, they may just decide to shut the website down and leave it abandoned. Or they may take every possible action to slander your site by defacing it with vulgar images or socially questionable content, before your regain ownership. The hacker could also use your site’s traffic and redirect it to their site, thereby stealing your hard earned customers. The possibilities are literally endless once the hacker has possession of your domain.

Regaining Ownership and Preventing Domain Stealing

While it may seem as if fixing the situation would be easy, it can actually be a very difficult process to  convince the hosting company that you are indeed the owner of the site, especially if the hacker transferred ownership seemingly with your consent. You may need to provide a plethora of personal information, and in some cases, you still won’t be able to recover your domain. The best way to keep your online identity is to prevent such an occurrence to begin with. You can protect yourself from domain theft by enacting security measures that require your web hosting company to contact you before any changes are made final on your hosting account.

Most web hosting companies present the option of receiving or phone notification before changes are made on your account. Speak to your web hosting company about setting up phone verification, as this is the best way to ensue secure possession of your domain.

Indeed the internet offers a marketplace of guilt free crime, where thieves can have their fun without ever seeing the face of their victims. However, just as these cyber criminals are oblivious to the lives of their victims, so are the victims oblivious to the existence of the hackers. Some business owners are not oblivious, they’d just rather not think about it. Putting your website’s security aside can have seriously dire consequences.

Ensuring Customer Safety

One of the primary concerns web host’s have in regards to website security is customer safety. Maintaining trust within the online shopping format is crucial towards building a successful business. There have been cases where the customer was defrauded and the website owner was blamed for this fraud, and cases like this have even resulted in the loss of business and even unjust incarceration.  To avoid such a drastic mishap, it is important to select a web host that is serious about their commitment to security.  Make sure you have an active SSL certificate for your site at all times, and you may even want to post the certificate seal on your website to instill trust in your customers and to deter hackers.

Quality Data Encryption

A common security issue online is identity theft. With all of the important information that is floating around in cyber space, this type of crime is inevitable, yet entirely preventable. All that is needed to prevent the interception of crucial information is quality data encryption. Every web host includes a certain level of data encryption with their hosting plans, but if you’re running a business then you may want to consider the strongest form of encryption available. Talk with you web hosting provider to find out about the strongest data encryption service they offer.

Minimizing Vulnerability

You may notice that your web hosting plan comes with a control panel that has an integrated application installation utility. It is important that you don’t get carried away installing third party applications. It is a well known fact that a lot of these applications leave your site extremely vulnerable to attack, and therefore the use of these applications should be limited. You should also make sure all of your passwords are strong and contain a mixture of numbers and letters. If you use a simple password, a hacker can us a brute force program to guess the password systematically. A good program can crack a simple password within an hour or so, leaving the entire back end of your website open to intrusion.

So, what’s an entrepreneur to do? Should you spend your time and money on elaborate systems that promise to protect you? Should you shy away from offering content on the internet altogether? It might be helpful to consider a few things first:

With this in mind, why not adopt a more empowering attitude that is shared by many of today’s millionaire internet content providers – focus on prosperity instead of being toppled by fear. Yes, they take some of the standard precautions to protect their content. However, at the end of the day, even if someone did rob them of their content, they offer so much value to so many people that they would still be rich.

Here are a few of the practices observed by empowered internet content providers:

The steps noted above may not stop the hard core content thief but they will certainly give you some added protection from curious eyes. With a little research you can find the right digital data protection resource for your content library.

Why Hackers Target Web Hosting

The web hosting industry consists of thousands of individual companies that hosts hundreds of millions of websites around the world.  There are literally billions of dollars involved in this industry and hackers will employ any device they can to get some of it.  If you run a business website that sustains the lives of your family and others, then it is crucial that you place security above every other aspect of web hosting. Your web host ultimately will be responsible for maintaining the security of your website, so thorough scrutiny of the web hosts security practices is imperative when examining prospective hosting providers.

How Equipped are Hackers?

Hackers employ a wide variety of techniques and tools to try and infiltrate any loophole they can find.   Usually, a hacker will use a multitude of combined tools and techniques to compromise the security of a website and then take advantage of any information they can find.  Some will even go so far as to become your online “friend” to entice victims into doing certain tasks, such as visiting an infected website that will execute a malicious code on the hard drive of the infected computer. Most of the time they will gain access to a computer by getting the victim to download a file, such as a game or a mutli-media application. Once they have access to your computer’s hard drive, they can even use it as a “drone” and use your computer’s resources to carry out hidden hacking tasks for them. Some hackers can have thousands of “drones” at their disposal, making them a serious threat. One of the more serious tools hackers have is called a keylogger. Keyloggers have the ability to log every key pressed on one’s keyboard, thereby giving the hackers access to passwords and other information.

Security is the Top Priority

You don’t have to be an expert in Internet technology to keep your website safe, in fact you don’t need any experience in this field at all. However, your web host should employ countless experts and a twenty four hour security staff. It is your job to ensure that you are using a reliable hosting provider, and it is the responsibility of the hosting provider to keep your website safe. To ensure your website is safe, all you need to do is a little bit of background research on any potential web hosting companies. All web hosting companies have multiple user reviews available online, and generally speaking, any of the top 10 web hosting companies are a safe choice.

Update Your Web Applications

Running older versions of programs such as Joomla or WordPress is like inviting hackers right into your website.  Software developers make updates of their products available to keep a jump on ambitious hackers.  In fact, there is currently a very nasty battle brewing between software companies and hackers.  Cyber criminals make it their business to compromise new applications as soon as they are released on the market.  Because this takes more time than they would like, the new versions of software are typically safe until updates or upgrades are made available.  Unfortunately, this usually means that the old versions are rendered vulnerable and therefore, insecure.  To put it simple – if you really value your customers and have their best interests at heart, you will only make use of the latest and most secure web applications.  If the word gets out that your website or blog is insecure, then you might not be able to recover from the blow inflicted to your reputation.

Secure Your Administrative Systems

Web applications are not all you need to be concerned about.  You also need to pay special attention to your administrative systems as well.  Whether it is the job of your system administrator or web hosting provider, it is ultimately up to you to ensure that security is up to par.  One of the most effective ways to keep your administrative systems secure is to apply strong passwords.  You would be surprised at just how fast hackers can guess a password.  This is especially true if you choose to use something that can be easily associated with your personal life.  You also have to consider that hackers have access to automated tools that greatly simplify the guessing process.  If your website stores sensitive information about your business or customers, then choosing a smart, secure password is a must.

Conclusion

If you run an online business, then there is a great chance that your website is your main source of income.  When this is the case, you need to make sure your customers’ information is secure as this is the best way to maintain integrity and loyalty among your audience.  Don’t take any chances with security.  By staying ahead of the game, both you and your audience can enjoy the peace of mind a solid security system offers.

If a hacker is able to get a hold of credit card numbers, Social Security numbers, customer data, or other sensitive details, it won’t take long for the business to start suffering and losing customers when their audience no longer trusts them with their information.  So how does one stay ahead of sophisticated web criminals, and how much will it cost you?  While there is no exact figure, the cost of doing nothing is probably much more than you can afford.

Do Nothing and You’ll Pay

You will pay severely if you do not take measures to secure your website.  A single hacking attack can ruin your life whether you run a small business or a large corporation.  Deciding on what to pay for a reliable security system depends on a range of factors, but mainly on the type of business itself.  For example, if you run a business in the financial sector, you would more than likely require a state of the art security system, in addition to hardened operating systems, web servers and applications.  Routine penetration tests and security assessment should also be a priority.  As we speak, hackers are coming up with new ways to bypass virus scanners, firewalls and network security mechanisms to penetrate websites and thieve important information that does not belong to them.  It is critical to remember that implementing a security system without regular updates and assessments is equal to doing nothing at all, a painful lesson Telegraph was forced to learn.

Minimizing the Risks

One of the main reasons security assessment must be regularly performed is because it can help to mitigate serious risks.  The applications, code, and the infrastructure itself must be reviewed on a routine basis to check for new vulnerabilities.  If not, your website and the sensitive data it contains could be susceptible to SQL injection, cross-site scripting, URL manipulation and host of other exploits.

When trying to determine how much you should spend on a security system, keep the following factors in mind:

Regulatory compliance

Industry standards

History of security breaches

Size of network and system

Impact of potential losses in the event of a successful breach

Conclusion

Building an efficient security system can turn out to be very expensive.  However, no business can afford to do nothing.  Therefore, the cost of a security system should be estimated at a rate that gives your business the assurance that it can provide customers with the access they need while keeping the criminals out.

Good Security is Key

Aside from building and maintaining customer loyalty, having a secure website protects the online retailer more than anything else.  Each and every year, companies lose millions of dollars because of security breaches that resulted in the loss of customer data.  Among these expenses are high legal costs pertaining to lawsuits, money paid to customers through resolving settlements and judgments, and ongoing costs to prevent similar breaches from occurring in the future.  While all of these expenses are significant, the big cost the company has to endure is the loss of customers who do not feel safe and no longer trust the business with their sensitive information.

The only way to make consumers feel safe is to guarantee them that your website is safe and can provide a secure environment for their confidential information.  You can incorporate all of the latest security measures and mechanisms for your site but if potential customers don’t know about them, they will not help your conversion rate in any way.  The most effective method for ensuring that visitors know your site is safe for shopping is to decorate it with a trust seal.  Numerous studies have shown that a large number of online shoppers are aware of trust seals and look for these marks before making purchase to ensure their personal information remains safe.  However, you want to keep in mind that not all trust seals are create equal.  For this reason, you need to make sure you receive your mark from a reliable and well renown brand.

HackerProof by Comodo

Comodo is well known for specializing in a wide variety of security certificate products designed for both individuals and businesses.  The company’s HackerProof Trust Seal program is currently one of the best in the industry when it comes to third-party security solutions.  This particular mark offers considerable advantages over other trust seals.  For one, it is placed in the corner of your site throughout all web pages, making sure it is visible to customers.  In addition, the HackerProof program utilizes a unique Point to Verify technology that lets customers verify the authenticity of the retailer without needing to leave the site.  There are many Certificate Authorities out there, but the Comodo brand is synonymous with security and trusted by more than 100 million customers.  Customers loyalty is critical, and the HackerProof seal could be exactly what you need to boost confidence and increase sales.

Defense Against Defacing Techniques

There are several ways a hacker can go about gaining access to system and changing the content on a website.  Some of the most common methods involve directly accessing the sever through security flaws in the web server, web applications or operating system.  Other vulnerabilities are exploited on the client side through techniques such as session hijacking, browser-based attacks and executing remote code.  No matter how they gain access, you need to make yourself aware that there are preventative measures that can be taken to keep the hackers out and avoid defacement.

Preventing defacement is all about securing data stored on both server and client systems.  This can actually be done in many ways, with the following five being among the most effective:

1.) Make website security a priority.  For some, this begins with ensuring that all servers are physically secure.  Whether it is in a data center or in-house environment, your server hardware and communications equipment should be locked in an area that is only accessible by authorized personnel.

2.) Focus on web server security.  Keeping your servers locked up ensures physical security, but what about the data and applications stored on the hardware?  Technology has made it to where criminals mainly operate through network connections to exploit vulnerable applications and computer systems.  The best way to ensure security for your server platform is to apply regular updates and patches to your operating system, web server program and any other applications running on the machine.  In addition, you should make sure that any important data residing or communicating with the server is encrypted.

3.) Place an Emphasis on web applications.  Most successful defacement exploits and website attacks are enabled by vulnerabilities that exist within web applications.  If you have your own team that develops these applications, devise some practices that ensure they are sticking to secure code and eliminating all gaps that could possibly be exploited.

4.) Conduct routine security tests.  Do you know if your website is currently at the mercy of defacement?  How would you?  Well, you can sit back and wait for an attack to happen, or go on the offensive by putting a security system in place that searches for vulnerabilities on a regular basis.

1.) Solid Structural Foundation

In order to be successful, a dynamic website must have solid base.  Encasing your content in a height-flexible container could turn out to make the ideal foundation for your site.  Something simple like a border that has consistent width will separate your inner content from the background of the page.  This foundation can be expanded or contracted with ease to accommodate your content requirements.

2.) Simple Navigation and Usability

One of the most effective methods for having a dynamic site and maintaining its functionality is to incorporate a navigation scheme with drop down menus.  These menus will allow for specific navigation from any page on your site.  In addition, they are simple to dynamically produce and work exceptionally well when applying the same approach as with the site foundation.  Your main categories can be concealed within a “div”, which will allow them to have an absolute position along with hidden submenus that appear when your visitors roll their mouse over them.  This method is highly recommended as it allows the height of your site to comfortably adjust in accordance to the number of submenus without impacting the overall layout.

3.) Accurate Content Containment

A major hurdle developers face when dealing with dynamic sites is the presence of far too much  content on every single web page.  In many cases, layouts are specifically designed to support a certain amount of content.  Should that amount be exceeded, the page often looks jumbled and way too crowded.  There are methods that can be used to overcome this problem and one of the best of all involves combining DHTML and JavaScript technologies to enable tabbed browsing within your pages.  This powerful combination also helps to ensure greater usability and SEO-friendliness that will come in handy in terms of your search engine rankings.   By incorporating JavaScript and DHTML into your navigation, your dynamic will be better organized with more space that allows visitors to browse through products, portfolio and other elements of the site without having to wait as the page reloads.

Conclusion

It is clear to see that maintaining a dynamic website can be a full-time job, or at least a very tedious one if you have to perform a decent portion of design and administration.   Fortunately, keeping up with it can be simplified by taking advantage of a few advanced design techniques, which will ultimately result in less stress down the road for you.  Using the methods in this article will not only give your site a more efficient and comprehensive design, but one that carries the consistent look and feel you need to reach out to your audience.