Getting your business website live is one thing, but ensuring it’s secure 24/7 is another. With the PoPI act now in place, and cyberattacks continually on the rise, now is not the time to let your proverbial business front door open. E-commerce websites are particularly vulnerable during the end of year festive rush, or any busy season for that matter.

Just because you have a secure payment gateway, doesn’t mean your customer data is safe at all times. There is certainly more than one way to secure sensitive information and your customers’ connection with your website. From an SSL certificate to malware removal and more, this article highlights the ways to test and secure your cybersecurity.

 

4 website security test tips:

Everyone has different website security needs, but here are must-do reminders on how to test website security.

 

1.  Check the strength of all your passwords

 

Having strong passwords is a simple way to prevent brute force attacks, which are an ongoing issue. According to Fortinet, a brute force attack is “a hacking method that uses trial and error to crack passwords, login credentials, and encryption keys. It is a simple yet reliable tactic for gaining unauthorized access to individual accounts and organizations’ systems and networks.” 

Essentially hackers use software that tries to guess your password, and if yours is far too simple or you use the default password given to you, you’re opening yourself up to a cyberattack now and in the future. Make sure all your passwords contain letters, numbers, and symbols. Even adding capitalised letters helps you to create a stronger password.

 

2. Hire a white hat website hacker

 

You’ll never know how secure your website is unless you see the vulnerabilities for yourself. If you really want to see where all the potential holes are, you can hire a hacker whose expertise is to find potential security flaws for website security tests. 

They’ll perform configuration testing, which checks the performance of a system against various combinations of software and hardware to find out the best configuration under which the system can work without issues.

 

3. Is your SSL certificate applied site-wide?

 

An SSL certificate is vital for encrypting data between your website and your customers. Encryption means that even if data is breached, it cannot be deciphered. An SSL certificate is clearly visible via a small padlock in the far left corner of the address. It’s a visual cue to both consumers and Google that a website is protected and secured.

But in order for your SSL certificate to work at its best for your website, it needs to be implemented site-wide and not only on certain pages. You don’t want customers’ data to be encrypted on some pages, but not others. Check your current SSL certificate package to ensure it’s applied on all of your pages. Additionally, keep on top of its expiration date so that you and your users never have an unencrypted experience online.

 

4. Do you scan daily for malware?

 

If you make use of a malware removal tool, it’s vital that daily scans take place to ensure no malware goes unnoticed. Malware is any software that infiltrates a platform with the intent to take hold of sensitive user information and can wreak havoc on a website and its customers.

Check out your malware removal tool (if you have one) and ensure it offers the following basic features so that your website is constantly monitored:

  • Malware prevention
  • Malware detection
  • Malware removal
  • Web application firewall
  • Daily or hourly scans
  • Threat investigation and analysis

Taking the time to run these tests, whether monthly or quarterly, will ensure your website is as safe as it can possibly be during those business-critical busy seasons.