How To´s

Regardless of the size of your business, understanding the importance of online security is fundamental. In our digital age, having a website for your business is the best way to grow and stay relevant, as more and more people choose to shop online. But when your business is online, it’s exposed to a wide range of threats and malware that can endanger your work and private information as well as that of your site’s visitors and customers. This is why investing in security should be a priority of any business owner.

Some of these threats include identity theft and the exposure of private information about your identity or about banking or any sensitive information sent online. So consider secure web hosting an investment in prevention - a means to ensure that your data is always sent through a secure connection. You might also consider secure email hosting if you send important information by email.

Keep in mind that a secure web host isn’t a 100% guarantee that you won’t have a security breach, but it certainly presents a significant barrier to potential hackers. We’ll look at some of the features a good web host should have to provide that security barrier.

How to make your site more secure:

Backups - Regardless of whether your site suffers an internal server error or is subject to an external threat, you’ll need to have everything backed up. Check hosting services’ packages - you’ll see some that offer automatic backups weekly and daily.

SSL certificate - SSL protection makes sure that all information that’s transferred between a web server and each user’s browser is properly encrypted. On web browsers, SSL certificates appear to the left of the URL as a padlock icon - if a site is not properly encrypted, instead it will read “Not Secure.”

Secure File Transfer Protocol - Secure file transfer protocol (SFTP) is typically offered by hosts to ensure that sent files of all kinds are protected. It’s a good idea to read the fine print on a host’s plan to understand exactly what kind of protection they offer (it tends to vary from host to host).

Dedicated Server - A dedicated server offers perhaps the most security possible. Dedicated servers are private servers, used only by a single website or company. For an owner of a dedicated server, this means you have complete control over the settings, the kind of hardware used and the server’s administration. Some hosts include administration services, while others offer them for an additional fee. Alternatively, hire your own qualified system admin to keep an eye on the server and make sure everything’s running smoothly.