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The Importance of Secure Web Hosting

Virtually every known web hosting company in the industry places their efforts and advertising emphasis on one main aspect of web hosting- security. These web hosting companies have every reason to place added emphasis on security, as any website can be attacked by hackers. Just as the web hosting companies are doing everything they can to deter intruders, hackers are also putting forth every effort to find sensitive information such as credit card numbers, account numbers, addresses, phone numbers, social security numbers and anything else they can benefit from.  To ensure the constant protection of this crucial data, proven security measures and constant monitoring must be practiced by the web hosting companies to ensure the safety of the end-users.

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.

What Makes a Dedicated Server Different?

The time has come; you have finally decided to get yourself a website on the internet.  After conducting some research via your preferred search engine, you probably came across a countless number of sites offering hosting service for rock-bottom prices that appear too good to pass up.  So what does this low price get you?  In most cases, you receive space on a server along with a variety of tools that will help you build your website.  The main problem is that you are forced to battle it out with other customers who are hosting their sites on the same machine.  If your needs call for more than the typical web hosting arrangement, this environment may not be suitable for you.  The lingering threat of performance and security issues can be very damaging to your web presence.  When this is the case, you are probably best suited for a dedicated server.

PC vs. Server

Though it is essentially a computer, a dedicated server differs greatly from the typical home-based PC.  The major difference lies in the operating system.  This type of computer runs specialized versions of operating systems such as Windows, Linux and Unix, platforms that are optimized for network operations.  While your computer is made to run word processing applications, video games, and other related applications, a server is designed to run programming packages, databases, web services and other technologies associated with a website.  And although both types of computers have similar resources such as CPU, memory and disk space capacity, a server tends to have greater amounts of each, enabling it achieve a level of performance your PC could never reach.

Dedicated Servers and the Hosting Business

It has become very common for web hosting firms to lease server space for hundreds and sometimes even thousands of accounts on the same machine.  Depending on various factors, some of these websites may begin to experience problems as the server nears toward its limitations. It is also important to note that is even though you generally have the ability to manage your website, the service provider has control over the entire server.  Therefore, if there are configurations and software applications that you really need, you just could be out of luck.   A dedicated server lifts these limitations and several more by providing you with complete control.  From server configuration to software technologies, you have the freedom to incorporate the components you feel are best fit for your website.

Do You Need Your Own Server?

If you plan to run an online business with a website that contains mission-critical data and receives high volumes of traffic, a dedicated server could be the solution for you.  If your business cannot afford to compromise performance and reliability, then you probably should opt for this sort of arrangement.  Whether or not you choose to lease a dedicated server or run your own in-house depends on your budget and IT resources.  When factoring in all the costs and technical hardships, many find that the hosted option is the best way to go as it is requires substantially less upfront investment and tends to be less complex as well.

Four Critical Web Hosting Security Features

Security is a vital aspect whether you are running a personal or business website.  Hackers are on the prowl and if your site and hosting environment is not secure, you could be hit with excessive downtime or worse, have all of your confidential information stolen.  It all sounds grim, but getting yourself a secure hosting solution doesn’t have to cost you a fortune.  The key is knowing what to look for and understanding which security elements should come as standard features.

SSL Support

If you plan to sell products and services from your website, SSL is a security feature you can’t be without.  Short for Secure Sockets Layer, SSL is an encryption protocol that creates a secure tunnel between you in the web server.  This means that instead of sensitive information, such as login and credit card details, traveling over the internet in plain text, data is scrambled in a way that ensures it will not be compromised, even if intercepted by an intruder.  Although most web hosting providers offer free shared SSL certificates, you may want to find a company that allows you to purchase and incorporate your own private certificate for enhanced security.

Intrusion Detection

While most web hosts protect their networks with firewalls, not all of them are properly managed, a factor that can result in a wide range of attacks on the server.  A company that is serious about security will maintain redundant firewall components and also allow you to directly or indirectly make adjustments to the rules.  For instance, if your site begins to experience a significant amount of malicious traffic, the web host should give you the ability to add the IP addresses of malicious visitors to the firewall ACL (access control list).  You can take security one step further by signing up with a host that offers an IDS or Intrusion Detection System.  Though similar to a firewall, IDS gives you tighter security as its method of packet filtering digs deeper to halt attacks before they reach the server.

DDoS Protection

Short for Distributed Denial of Service, DDoS is one of the most basic attacks yet also one of the most severe and difficult to prevent.  This type of exploit can slow down a web hosting provider’s entire network along with each website hosted on the same node.  So even if an attacker is only trying to bring down a single site, all customers can suffer if they are hosting on a shared server.  Anti-DDoS technology is now implemented into newer firewalls and routers, a feature neither you nor your web host can afford to sacrifice.

Spam Filtering

Most people don’t view spam as a threat but it is that type of thinking that can lead to disaster.  Aside from hogging system resources and slowing do the server, these messages often carry viruses, worms, Trojans and other types of malicious software.   If it isn’t a harmful program, it is a well crafted scam where someone purports as a legitimate company in attempt to steal your personal information and assets.  The spam filter has become a common web hosting feature and one you need in any type of solution.

Conclusion

Security features should standard with every web hosting plan but unfortunately, they don’t.  This is why it is so important to do your homework and find a company that puts the customer first by practicing sound security.

Web Hosting Security – Are you prepared?

In today’s web-based world, hackers and malicious software are the biggest threat to anyone who conducts business online.  Viruses and worms have the ability to cripple entire networks while an experienced hacker can penetrate a system and thieve confidential data.  Because of this, consumers and online businesses alike are taking proactive steps towards protecting their personal information.  Some are conferring with their web hosting providers to ensure that the security measures they implement are reliable.

Security is especially critical in environments where shared and virtual private servers are being used.  Not only is important to protect consumers from the common threats associated with the web, but to also protect clients who are sharing the server with potentially malicious users.

One security feature that is often implemented to assure this protection is something known as a cage structure.  In a cage structure, every hosting client is assured complete privacy from other users on the server.  It uses the “change root” restriction from the Unix operating system which enables the hosting server to behave like a restricted shell.  This creates a cage around the hosting server and places boundaries that can’t be accessed by any client.  In a cage structure, no user can interfere with the core operations of a server or it’s associated services.

When considering building your site on a shared server you should also inquire about the implementation of binary code in the environment.  Unapproved binary code could inadvertently create security gaps in the server and place sensitive customer data at risk.  Any application or programming language that has the ability to breach security should be prohibited.  A reliable provider will not allow this type of activity if there is even the slightest possibility that it may compromise clients sharing the server.

A reliable provider will also make certain that the deployment of it’s operating system and software are hardened with updates and patches.  Such a configuration will ensure that all known vulnerabilities and exploits are eliminated.  They will provide continuous security against software exploits by applying the most recent fixes and distributing security advisories to clients on a routine basis.

In order to contain prevalent threats, a web hosting company must commit to sound security measures to ensure protection for their clients.  Here is how it can be done:

• Ensure that all hardware is physically secure

• Ensure that all network services provided by the operating systems are secure

• Ensure that the files system is secure from unauthorized access

• Ensure that password features are always enabled

Furthermore, companies can implement better security with reliable firewall systems.  A firewall could be either a software or hardware component that prevents hackers from gaining unauthorized access to a server.  When properly configured, a firewall makes it difficult for an intruder to even locate your system.  It will help to ensure that malicious traffic cannot attack or enter the hosting environment.   A firewall should also be configured in a manner where attacks can’t be launched from the server.  This would prevent outbreaks where infected machines are commanded to attack other systems.

Lastly, it’s a good idea to choose a shared host that provides anti-virus features.  Most of the time, a Unix hosting environment will be immune to Windows-based malware.  However, it often has the ability to infect a Windows system just the same.  For this reason, enhanced security is required at the user-end to prevent the mass creation of infected sites.