How to Secure a Website in 2025: 10 Critical Tactics

The question “how to secure a website” might seem daunting at first. With terms like HTTPS, SSL, and firewalls flying around, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. But the truth is that securing your website doesn’t have to be complicated if you know the right steps to take. 

In this article, we’ll walk you through the 10 most critical tactics to protect your site, your visitors, and your peace of mind.

Why Is It Important to Strengthen Your Site’s Protection?

For any website owner asking the question, “how to make a website secure,” the answer starts with understanding that no site is too small or insignificant to be a target. Hackers target websites of all types and sizes—whether you’re running a personal blog, a small ecommerce site, or a large corporate platform. 

Beyond the immediate risks of stolen data, malware infections, or defaced pages, a vulnerable website poses broader threats. 

1. First, a security breach can result in financial losses due to downtime, data recovery costs, or penalties for non-compliance with data protection laws like GDPR. If you run an ecommerce site, for example, a single attack could compromise customer payment information, exposing you to legal issues. 
2. Second, your website’s reputation is at stake. Users expect their personal data to be safe when they interact with your site. If a breach occurs, trust is eroded, and customers are less likely to return. Additionally, a compromised website can lead to SEO penalties, as search engines like Google prioritize secure websites in their rankings. 
3. Lastly, protecting your site is needed to ensure business continuity. A secure site minimizes the risk of prolonged outages or catastrophic data loss that could disable operations.

How to Secure a Website: 10 Critical Steps for Beginners

1. Fix “Connection is Not Secure” Errors

Let’s start with this tip because the “Connection Is Not Secure” error is still a common issue on many websites, but the good news is it’s easy to fix. This warning appears on sites that don’t use encryption to protect data. Modern web browsers display similar messages to alert users when a website lacks basic encryption. 

So, if you own a website, especially an online store, protecting your users’ privacy and sensitive information is critical. Without encryption, hackers can intercept data like login credentials or payment details, putting your visitors and your business at risk.

The most trusted way to protect your site is by using SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) encryption. An SSL certificate ensures that the data exchanged between your site and its visitors is encrypted, preventing it from being accessed or exploited by cybercriminals. It’s the gold standard for safeguarding sensitive information and maintaining user trust.

If your hosting provider doesn’t offer SSL certificates, don’t worry, you can still protect your site. Services like Let’s Encrypt provide free SSL certificates that are easy to install and widely trusted.

2. Regularly Back Up Your Website Automatically to Avoid Data Loss

Even the strongest website security measures can’t guarantee 100% protection against all potential threats. That’s why having a reliable backup system in place is absolutely essential. 

Regular website backups allow you to quickly restore your site if something goes wrong. This helps safeguard your business operations from disruptions caused by hacking, software errors, or accidental deletions.

The most hassle-free way to back up your website is by automating the process. You can use either a third-party solution or a backup tool provided by your web hosting service. Automated backups save you time and ensure that your website data is always protected without requiring constant attention and work from your side.

3. Create Strong Passwords and Enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)

Weak or reused passwords are like an open invitation for cybercriminals. They make brute-force attacks and unauthorized access much easier. One of the simplest, free, and most effective ways to secure your website is by creating strong passwords. 

Choose complex passwords that combine letters, numbers, and symbols, and avoid anything that’s easy to guess. Regularly updating your passwords adds another layer of protection and keeps your accounts more secure.

Meanwhile, two-factor authentication (2FA) works by combining something you know, like your username and password with something you have, such as your smartphone. This process ensures that even if someone steals your password, they won’t be able to access your site without the second authentication step.

For WordPress websites, implementing 2FA is seamless with the free SiteGround Security Optimizer plugin, where the feature is just a click away. If you’re not using WordPress, there are plenty of other options to add 2FA to your website. Many hosting providers include 2FA tools as part of their security features, or you can use third-party services like Google Authenticator or Authy to secure your accounts.

4. Keep Your Website Software Up-to-Date

Keeping your website’s software up-to-date is one of the most effective ways to maintain its security and functionality. Outdated software often becomes a target for hackers, as older versions may contain known security flaws. 

Updates frequently include security patches and improvements that fix these vulnerabilities, ensuring your site stays protected against new threats. This applies to every aspect of your website, from the CMS to plugins, templates, server, and any integrated tools or apps. Make it a habit to stay on top of updates—it’s a small effort that can save you from major headaches down the road.

If you’re using WordPress, checking for updates is straightforward. Simply log in to your WordPress dashboard and navigate to the Settings or Plugins section to see if updates are available. From there, you can choose to manually update each component of your site.

For those who prefer to avoid the hassle of managing updates themselves, opting for a managed WordPress hosting provider is a smart choice. With managed hosting, updates for your CMS, plugins, and themes are handled for you, ensuring your site stays current and secure without any extra effort on your part.

5. Choose a Secure and Reputable Web Hosting Provider

The host you choose directly influences the server infrastructure, security protocols, and any additional measures implemented to protect your site at the server level. This makes selecting an established and secure web hosting provider a foundational step for safeguarding your website. 

A reliable hosting provider should offer server-level security features such as 

firewalls to block malicious traffic, DDoS protection to guard against distributed denial-of-service attacks, malware scanning and removal tools to keep your server clean, and 24/7 server monitoring to detect and address issues in real-time. 

Consider hosts that provide additional features as part of their hosting plans like SSL, and automated backups and updates for your CMS, plugins, and themes. You should also evaluate the host’s customer support. A hosting provider with responsive, knowledgeable, and around-the-clock support can be invaluable when addressing urgent issues or security concerns.

6. Scan Your Website for Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities

Scanning your website regularly is a must for anyone asking, “How do you make a website secure from cyberattacks?” Even if you’ve implemented strong protections, as we said, new threats and weaknesses can emerge over time. Scanning your website is important because it helps prevent breaches by catching security gaps early. It also builds user trust by maintaining a safe environment for your visitors.

Website vulnerability scanning checks for problems like outdated software, malware infections, weak spots in plugins or themes, and configuration issues such as unsecured databases or improper file permissions. Using automated tools makes the scanning process simple and effective. These tools examine your website for known vulnerabilities and generate reports to guide you in resolving any detected issues.

There are various scanning tools and solutions you can choose from. At SiteGround, we’ve made website scanning incredibly convenient with our Site Scanner tool. It performs daily scans to detect potential threats and immediately alerts you to any issues. Whether it’s malware, vulnerabilities, or hacks, Site Scanner keeps your website secure and can even handle cleanup automatically. Plus, it’s an affordable solution for peace of mind!

7. Take Advantage of a Web Application Firewall (WAF)

A Web Application Firewall (WAF) acts as a shield between your website and the internet by filtering and monitoring incoming traffic. It blocks malicious traffic and protects against common application security threats, brute-force attacks, SQL injections, and more.

One of the greatest advantages of WAF is that it works in real-time to detect and neutralize threats, ensuring your website remains safe without manual intervention.

For those who don’t have WAF included in their hosting plan, there are excellent third-party options and WordPress plugins.

8. Monitor and Limit Admin Permission and User Access

Managing who has access to your website and what permissions they have is a simple yet highly effective way to enhance security. Surprisingly, many security risks stem from human errors—mistakes that could easily be avoided with regular monitoring and proper controls.

To start, periodically review your website’s list of users. Identify inactive accounts or users who no longer require access, and promptly remove them. Inactive accounts can be a vulnerability waiting to be exploited by attackers.

For active users, follow the principle of least privilege. This means granting each person only the permissions they genuinely need to perform their tasks, nothing more! For example, if a user only needs to edit blog posts, they shouldn’t have administrative privileges to change website settings. 

Another layer of protection is implementing role-based access control, where different roles (e.g., editor, contributor, admin) come with predefined levels of access. This helps ensure consistency in permissions and reduces the likelihood of accidental over-permissioning. For websites with multiple admins, establish clear guidelines and encourage best practices, such as enabling 2FA for all admin accounts.

9. Use a CDN for “Always Online” Availability

A Content Delivery Network (CDN) is a network of servers distributed around the world that work together to deliver your website’s content to visitors more quickly. When someone visits your site, the CDN serves them content from the server that’s geographically closest to them. This reduces significantly load times for visitors. 

But a CDN isn’t just about speed, it also provides powerful security benefits. For instance, it helps mitigate DDoS attacks, ensuring your site remains stable and accessible even during malicious traffic spikes. 

At SiteGround, our CDN takes this a step further with an “Always Online” feature. This functionality ensures your website remains available even if your server experiences an issue. If your site goes offline, the CDN continues to serve cached versions of your pages to visitors. This means that your site will still appear online for your visitors and protect your reputation.

10. How to Secure a Website by Protecting Your Email from Phishing and Spoofing 

Email scams, such as phishing and spoofing, remain a significant cybersecurity threat. Many people still fall victim to these schemes, where attackers trick them into sharing sensitive information like passwords, credit card details, or other personal data. As a website owner, you play a vital role not only in protecting your business but also in educating your website users about these dangers.

Phishing emails often appear to come from trusted sources, such as your brand or other well-known entities. Spoofing, on the other hand, involves forging the sender’s email address to make it look legitimate. Both techniques aim to deceive users into taking harmful actions, such as clicking malicious links or downloading dangerous attachments. 

To safeguard your website and your audience implement SPF and DKIM records. These email authentication protocols help ensure that only legitimate emails from your domain reach your users’ inboxes. They prevent attackers from impersonating your email address and increase trust in your brand’s communications. 

Also, regularly remind your customers and team members to verify email authenticity. Encourage them to look out for red flags, like unexpected requests for sensitive information. Lastly, choose email services that offer robust spam filters and security features to block suspicious messages before they reach your users’ inboxes.

Make Your Website Secure in 2025

Follow the steps we’ve described to understand how to secure a website effectively in 2025 and build trust with your users. Remember that website safety is an ongoing process, and don’t forget the importance of educating your team about the best security practices to prevent human errors. 

If you’re looking for an easy way to implement these security measures, SiteGround offers robust solutions like free SSL, automatic backups, WAF, CDN, 24/7 support to keep your site safe, and much more.