11 Best WordPress Security Plugins To protect Your Website In 2024.
This article features the best WordPress Security plugins to help you secure your WordPress site and improve your website cybersecurity experience.
WordPress is a very popular CMS on the web.
It's open-source, flexible, and customizable, which means you can change anything about your website with plugins or CSS.
That also means there are several holes you can leave if you don't secure your WordPress installation properly.
The .htaccess file automatically protects all WordPress sites. However, installing additional plugins can further protect your site from hackers and spammers.
To keep your website secure, We compiled a list of our favorites based on their popularity, trustworthiness, and ease of use.
We've listed 11 WordPress security plugins you can install and use to prevent against most common threats.
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TLDR: In 2024, safeguarding your WordPress website is crucial.
This blog post highlights the top 11 security plugins, like WordFence, Ithemes Security Pro, and Sucuri Security, to fortify your site.
It covers the significance of website security, the functions of WordPress security plugins, and their role in protecting your website from threats.
WordFence is a free WordPress security plugin with an active community of users that help each other out.
It can scan the website for malware, DNS attacks, and Man-in-the-middle attacks. In addition, a feature called VirusTotal Integration allows you to check suspicious links against more than 40 different antivirus engines.
If any occur, you will receive an email alert. WordFence also provides actual time attack blocking, preventing known malicious traffic from reaching your site's servers.
It can protect your website against brute force attacks and automated password guessing.
Features:
WordFence offers a wide range of security features.
- Login Security.
- Centralized Management.
- 24/7 Incident Response Team.
- Two-Factor Authentication.
- Malware Scan.
- WordFence Firewall.
Pricing:
WordFence pricing is categorized as follows.
Free: Free.
Premium: $99/Yr.
Care: $490/Yr.
Restore: $950/Yr.
There is a no-cost version and a premium alternative that begins at $99 per year for a single site.
Developers make it more affordable for programmers by offering substantial discounts for bulk purchases of site keys.
If you're building many websites and care about their security, you should look into Wordfence.
iThemes Security Pro is a WordPress plugin built and developed by WordPress and internet security specialists.
It is also one of the best WordPress Backup plugin to backup your data.
iThemes Security Pro's sole function is to prevent anyone outside yourself and potential workers from accessing your control panel or interfering with your data.
Many believe this plugin is an excellent security solution that will prevent your business and website from being hacked and thus prevent any disruptions to their growth. iThemes Security allows you to keep an eye on and control the protection of your WordPress site.
An interactive Security Dashboard compiles all the data you need about your website's security in real-time.
Features:
Some of the features included in the ithemes plugins:
- Site Scanner with automatic vulnerability Patching.
- Intelligent Settings Import/Export.
- Two-Factor Authentication.
- Passwordless Login.
- Breached Password Protection.
- Brute Force Protection.
- Bot Traffic Protection with ReCAPTCHA.
- Magic Link.
- User Security Check.
- Temporary Privilege Escalation.
- WordPress Security Log.
- WordPress Security Dashboard.
- Version Management.
- WordPress Tweaks.
- Premium Support.
- Since most web admins don't realize when a file is tampered with, the security plugin's ability to detect file changes is crucial.
- Use Google reCAPTCHA and two-factor authentication to further fortify your account's security.
- The plugin checks to see if anything malicious has been added to your WordPress core files by comparing them to the latest version of WordPress.
- To increase the security of your authentication keys, you should update your WordPress salts and keys.
- When you're not actively maintaining your website, you can put your WordPress dashboard into "Away Mode," which locks it down entirely and prevents anyone from seeing your content.
- Additional necessities include 404 error protection, brute force defense, and stringent password enforcement.
- To stop brute-force attacks and banned users, you can refuse them to access the site.
Pricing:
The iThemes Security Pro packages are as follows:
Basic: $80/Yr.
Plus: $127/Yr.
Agency: $199/Yr.
Annual pricing for iThemes Security Pro begins at $80/yr. The cost rises as more locations need to be protected. It comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee, too.
When it comes to protecting WordPress sites, Security Ninja is an industry veteran.
In 2016, the company switched to a freemium strategy after being one of the first paid plugins in the security category on CodeCanyon (with four extensions).
The number of available options was pared down from a wide range of add-ons to just two: free and premium. Over 50 security checks, including file scanning for viruses, MySQL permissions, and PHP configuration analysis, are carried out by the main module (the only free one).
Security Ninja performs brute-force password checks on all user accounts to identify and remove those using easily-guessed passwords like "password" or "123456." Users can benefit from this since it increases their knowledge of security.
It has a built-in automatic hack fix tool, but it also has a thorough description of each test and the code to fix the security flaw manually.
Security Ninja is an excellent alternative to the conventional "click here to repair it" method if you like a plugin-free website. It's as easy as reviewing the alerts generated by the vulnerability scanner and deciding how to proceed.
Features:
Some of the features of Ninja Security include:
- Firewall Protection.
- Malware Scanner.
- Core Scanner.
- Scheduled Scanner.
- Events Logger.
- Vulnerability.
- Security Testing.
- Over fifty different security checks may be run on your site using the security tester module, which is included in the free edition.
- Ignorant of technology? There is no need to worry; the built-in auto-fixer can fix any problems.
- Run a scan of the WordPress core, comparing your files to the most up-to-date, secure version hosted on WordPress.org.
- Look for malicious code and spyware in plugins and themes.
- You can use a vast database of already-identified offenders to automatically ban problematic IP addresses.
- Keep a record of everything on your WordPress site, from logins to changes in configuration.
- Timed scans can be routinely scheduled.
- Improve load times by optimizing your database.
- Debug, database, and WordPress settings tests should all be executed.
Pricing:
As for the pricing, this software is free. So, you're not limited to tool access. But if you prefer working without ad popups, you can go premium for $9 per month. Additionally, you'll be able to view the photo 60 steps post-production.
You can check out the Pro version for $9 Per Month.
Security Ninja Monthly Pricing.
Starter: $6.99/Mo.
Plus: $12.99/Mo.
Pro: $18.99/Mo.
Agency: $29.99/Mo.
Security Ninja Yearly Pricing.
Starter: $39.99/Yr.
Plus: $99.99/Yr.
Pro: $149.99/Yr.
Agency: $199.99/Yr.
Businesses may protect their websites and web-based apps from malware with the help of Sucuri, a website monitoring solution.
Regarding website security, Sucuri Inc. is widely regarded as an industry leader, particularly on WordPress. WordPress users can download the Sucuri Security plugin at no cost.
It's an auxiliary security suite that works with what you already have in place. Unfortunately, it appears that GoDaddy is now the legal owner of this plugin.
The optimal use case for a website monitoring tool is protecting a small to medium-sized business's website from intrusion attempts from the outside.
Features:
Sucuri brings a wide Selection of features include:
- Detection. Website Monitoring and Alerts. ( Complete Website Scanner, SEO Spam Scanner, Blocklists Status, Uptime Monitoring).
- Protection. Future Websites Hacks. (DDoS Mitigation, Brute Force Attack Protection).
- Performances. Speed Up Your Website. (Website Speed Optimization, Multi Caching Options, Reliable Website Uptime, High availability).
- Response. Support for Hacked Websites. (Repair SEO Spam, Remove Website Malware, Remove Blocklists Status, Prevent Future Attack).
- Backups. Disaster Recovery Plan. (Automatic Schedule, Secure Storage, Incremental Backups).
1: It provides a wide selection of SSL certificates. These are included in the bundles, although they come at an additional cost.
2: Ticketing, email, and chat support are available around-the-clock.
3: You will be notified immediately when there is an issue with your website.
4: Some packages include premium defense against distributed denial of service attacks.
5: If you don't want to pay anything, you still get access to high-quality resources for keeping tabs on blocklists, screening for malware, keeping tabs on file integrity, and beefing up security.
6: Reports on the cleanup process, a service level agreement (SLA) for removing hardware, blocklist monitoring, hack patching, and other features are all available on the premium platform.
Pricing:
These are the several packages that You can purchase:
Sucuri Web Platform Plans Pricing.
Basic: $199.99/Yr.
Pro: $2.99.99/Yr.
Business: $499.99/Yr.
Multi-Site & Custom Plans: Custom Pricing.
Sucuri Firewall CDN Pricing.
Basic Firewall: $9.99/Mo.
Pro Firewall: $19.98/Mo.
Multi-site: Custom Pricing.
A 30-day money-back guarantee is available if you upgrade from Sucuri's free plan and are unsatisfied with the service.
WP Cerber Security is a plugin that provides multiple layers of security at once, including anti-spam, virus detection, and login protection.
It's effective for general safety, but its strongest suit prevents unauthorized access to accounts.
Because of features like Google reCAPTCHA, registration monitoring, bad user tracking, login attempt restrictions, and brute force attack prevention, login pages can be entirely inaccessible to unauthorized users.
Two-factor authentication, where a verification number is sent to your phone or email before you can log in, is also an option.
WP Cerber's anti-spam features for WordPress and WooCommerce-enabled sites are a bonus, as they can be used to safeguard sensitive sections like signup forms, forgotten password pages, and public comments.
Cloudflare integration, data export, and scheduled scans for malware and other dangers are all possible. Additionally, WP Cerber Security removes compromised files and restores older versions of your site to get things back to normal.
Features:
Features of Cerber Security include:
- Layered Security.
- Rich GEO Access Rules.
- Cerber Security Cloud.
- Monitor User Activity.
- CyberCriminals are Tracked.
- Automatic Virus, Trojan and Malware Removal.
- Woocommerce Forms Protection.
- Login Forms Protection.
- Lost Password Protection.
- Automatic Spam Removal.
- Mitigate Brute force and Code injection attacks.
- Two-Factor Authentication.
- The number of login attempts or IP address-based limits is also configurable in the free version.
- Limit access to your account by IP address.
- Create a unique URL to access your account.
- You need to activate the anti-spam engine to prevent spam from entering your site via the contact form or the comments section.
- Two-factor authentication allows users to enter a verification code emailed to their device.
- All of your site's essential files are scanned for vulnerabilities by this plugin.
- The plugin records all user activity and searches for signs of questionable activity or bots.
- Any time a file is modified or strange activity is detected, you will be notified by email.
- It prevents anyone who isn't logged into the site from accessing the WordPress administration area (wp-admin).
- The "approved users only" mode can be activated, or particular users can be blocked.
Pricing:
You can choose from three different subscription levels for WP Cerber Security, one of which is a free plugin that includes spam detection and prevention features.
WP Cerber Security Quartely Pricing.
Free: $0/Mo.
Single: $29/Quarterly.
5 Value Pack: $39/Mo.
WP Cerber Security Yearly Pricing.
Free: $0/Yr.
Single: $99/Yr.
5 Value Pack: $399/Yr.
The plugin can be purchased in quarterly or annual plans, with the latter offering the best value over time. The premium upgrade provides additional security against spam and viruses, automated malware scans, expert help, and cloud security.
Most WordPress users are familiar with Jetpack, primarily because the plugin has so many capabilities but also because WordPress.com employees develop it.
Jetpack has a ton of functionality that should be explored. While Jetpack's many speed and social media enhancement features are helpful, its protection against spam and automated visits is where it shines.
Jetpack is an excellent plugin for individuals looking to save money and rely on a reliable solution, as it includes several security features.
The Protect module, for example, can be used to prevent attacks without cost. Protecting against brute force attacks and implementing an allowlist are also features of Jetpack's foundational security features.
In terms of spam prevention, it is the most effective method for blocking unwanted comments in their tracks.
Not just WooCommerce, but all online shops can benefit from the seamless integration of anti-spam features. Jetpack is the best WordPress Backup plugin.
Features:
Jetpack Provides interesting and easy to use features:
- For a little online presence, the free package offers sufficient protection. However, you may spring for a more expensive premium package if you want unlimited assistance access.
- The anti-spam measures are among the best available; Akismet stores numerous unwanted comments in its database.
- The upgraded plans transform the plugin into a full suite, including automatic backups and virus scans.
- Simply log in to your Jetpack account and follow their update instructions to update your plugins.
- When using Jetpack, you won't require any further plugins. It includes tools like email and social media advertising, site personalization, and search engine optimization.
- The free plan includes protection from brute-force attacks.
- Besides, the standard WordPress dashboard adds a statistics section with helpful information.
- Thanks to the free content delivery network (CDN), your site will load much more quickly.
- We keep an eye on your downtime, too.
Pricing:
Jetpack premium consists of two editions, which costs $10.95 for Security, and the Complete Security at $29.
Jetpack Security Pricing.
Security: $24.95 $10.95/Mo, Billed Yearly.
Complete: $74.95 $29.95/Mo, Billed Yearly.
Jetpack's spam filtering features (which Akismet provides) are available at no cost to users.
Most additional security options, however, do call for a paid membership. About $9.95 Normal price per month will bring you site backups, but the $24.95 normal price plan is needed to acquire utilities like real-time malware scanning and spam protection for forms.
The good news is that Jetpack frequently offers discounts of 50% off. It's also worth noting that protection against brute force attacks is built into the free plugin.
All In One WP Security is among the most feature-rich free security plugins available, and it comes with a user-friendly interface and enough support at no cost to you.
This plugin provides graphs to help explain fundamental indicators like your site's security and what can be done to improve it for new users.
The capabilities are arranged in a hierarchical structure with a "Basic," "Intermediate," and "Advanced" tier.
Therefore, the plugin is still usable, but only by more experienced programmers.
Thanks to this plugin's primary function, your user accounts, login attempts, and user registrations will all be safer.
The plugin also includes protection for your database and files. All In One WP Security is the best free WordPress Security plugin.
Features:
Some of the features making this possible are:
- A user can be blocked according to your specifications using the blocklist feature of the WordPress security plugin.
- You can save copies of your.htaccess and.wp-config files. If something goes wrong, there's a tool to get them back to normal.
- The plugin displays one graph to indicate the overall health of your website and another chart to indicate specific trouble spots. It's an excellent way for the average user to get a feel for the site's security.
- When an emergency arises, you can press a temporary lockout button.
- Some security capabilities may be exported and imported.
- Prevent iframes from showing your site's content on other sites.
- Site content can be concealed from automated crawlers and other unwanted visitors.
- No hidden fees or costs. The plugin is entirely free.
WPScan is an alternative security plugin for WordPress. It relies on a manually-curated vulnerability database routinely updated by in-house security experts and the general public.
More than 21,000 vulnerabilities are documented in the database maintained by Automattic.
Using that database, the WPScan plugin can check your WordPress installation for known security flaws throughout the core software, any installed plugins, and any activated themes.
Additionally, the plugin has other security checks, such as scanning for exposed debug log files, backed-up wp-config.php files, users with weak passwords, and more.
WPScan's Free API plan is well suited to most WordPress installations.
However, premium subscriptions are available for those anticipating a higher API call volume. Here, you will find the most reliable malware, IP, and file scanners.
Features:
Various features make Wpscan unique. These components include:
- It relies on a continuously updated version of its vulnerability database.
- Core files, debug.log files, database files, and more should all be scanned routinely.
- You can set up alerts to be sent to your inbox if a security hole is found.
- You can set up regular scans at predetermined intervals.
- The plugin alerts you when it detects a password likely to be compromised and prompts you to change it.
- Access and save reports.
- Obtain risk scores to understand better how vulnerable your site is.
- Scan your site using the security scanner to get an idea of what a hacker sees when they attempt to break in.
- Each identified flaw has its reference page with information on how to remedy it.
- One can even earn prizes for contributing to their database of security flaws.
Pricing:
These are the top-tier packages:
A lifetime free plan allows you up to 25 API queries each day. You should be fine if you run a standard WordPress installation with up to 22 plugins.
As the number of API calls increases, the cost of the more expensive premium plans rises.
Titan Security is an all-in-one security package that can detect and eliminate malware and spam.
The plugin does routine audits and generates reports anytime an unusual request is made to your website.
You can use these programs in conjunction with firewall rules to restrict specific traffic from entering your website. Because each function has its tab on the dashboard, newcomers should have no trouble getting around.
As a result, administrators only need to click a button to access the firewall, site checker, and error log. The anti-spam statistics are our favorite, as they visually represent all previous week's spam attacks.
Learn if your site has been a spammer's focus and if the plugin is doing its job. Although Titan Anti-spam and Security has many useful features, its primary strength is its intelligent spam filtering system.
In a nutshell, you won't have to worry about your users receiving assaults because of any nasty comments you publish.
Features:
They provides essential features any websites require to run securely, including:
- Malware Scanner.
- Firewall(WAF).
- Antispam.
- Real-Time IP Blacklist.
- Security Audit.
- Site Checker.
- 2FA.
- Backup.
- The plugin does not call for a Captcha, making for a more streamlined user experience.
- It provides a background-running spam-detection technology that learns from its mistakes and improves over time at identifying spam on your website.
- All spam comments are deleted and marked as a spam automatically.
- Firewall rules can be activated, and malware can be scanned.
- IP addresses can be blocked in real-time.
- The attack log keeps track of all instances of suspicious behavior and allows you to save or forward the data.
- Create sophisticated filtering rules for variables such as hostname, IP address, user name, referral URL, and more.
- The security scanner employs over a thousand signatures, and the premium edition supports as many as six thousand.
- The scan rates are customizable.
- If you'd instead scan once a month or once a week, you can set up a scanning schedule.
- All users have access to a built-in trash bin to remove unnecessary data quickly.
Pricing:
They offer three packages, each with different features and prices.
Titan Pricing.
1 Site: $55/Yr.
3 Sites: $159/Yr.
6 Sites: $319/Yr.
A few clicks are all it takes to add the most advanced WordPress security plugin, Defender, to your site.
The malware scanner, antivirus scans, IP blocking, firewall, activity log, security log, and two-factor authentication (2FA) help prevent brute-force login attacks, SQL injections, cross-site scripting XSS, and other WordPress vulnerabilities and hacks.
You no longer need a virtual doctorate in security to make even the most straightforward changes to your security settings. All the necessary security enhancements and suggestions are included in Defender.
Features:
Features contributing to how it works are:
- Security Scanning.
- Defender Firewall.
- Blocklist Monitor.
- Two-Factor Authentication, (2FA).
- Audit Logging.
- One-Click Config.
- Google re-CAPTCHA.
- Force Password Reset.
- Biometric Authenfication.
- GEO-Location Blocking.
- App verification, backup codes, lost device email, WooCommerce 2FA, and Web Authentication are all examples of two-factor authentication (2FA).
- Change the default WordPress login page by using "Login Masking."
- Forgotten password or too many unsuccessful login attempts.
- Malware scanner - check WordPress installation for unauthorized alterations.
- Additional security against XSS, code injection, and other typical attacks can be added via security headers.
- 404 Detection - Automatic IP Blocking for Bots.
- Configs: Save your customized Defender security settings and quickly transfer them to another website.
- The IP ban depends on the user's location and country (IP blocking).
- WordPress Firewall for IP blocking and whitelisting.
- To avoid spam, please turn off pingbacks and trackbacks.
Pricing:
Like most SEO software, this one is also premium-based. However, the pricing is crafted with specific customers in mind.
Defender Pro: $7.5/Mo.
The Defender Pro that costs $7.5 is available for small business agencies. It is mainly for businesses that require a secure wbesite.
We like SecuPress because it does an excellent job of preventing malicious software from installing itself on your site.
It's created by WP Media, whose other products you may be familiar with include WP Rocket and Imagify, both of which feature development by WP Media co-founder Julio Potier.
SecuPress is an option if you need a security plugin with a good UI and a simple interface.
The free version protects against brute-force login attacks, blocks malicious IP addresses, and protects against intrusion via a firewall. In addition, your security keys will be safeguarded, and malicious bots will be stopped.
Malware scans actively seek out abnormal behavior and, if necessary, shut it down.
Their premium plan provides users with email and SMS warnings, two-factor authentication, IP geolocation blocking, scans for PHP malware, and PDF reports.
Features:
SecuPress has a fantastic user interface. This ensures that anyone, even those with no prior experience, can pick it up and start using it right away.
- You can modify your WordPress login URL to make it inaccessible to automated programs.
- It aids you in finding insecure or manipulated plugins and themes that may contain harmful code.
- Spots malicious IP addresses and shuts them down.
- Protects against login attempts using brute force.
- There are 35 checks for safety built into the plugin.
The premium version's advantages include:
- Security notifications.
- A comprehensive malware scan.
- The ability to restrict access to specific nations based on geography.
Pricing:
Additional SecuPress offerings, along with their respective prices, are as follows:
A free version for essential protection against malware and automated attacks meets your needs.
Prices for the premium edition begin at $69.99 per site per year. However, the price per site lowers significantly when purchasing 5, 10, 25, or even 200 locations.
What Is a WordPress Security Plugins?
A WordPress security plugin is a software program that helps protect your website from hackers and other malicious threats.
These plugins can block spam, prevent malicious software from infecting your site, provide malware scanning and removal tools, prevent brute force attacks, and more.
It can help you monitor your site's health, block attacks and intrusions, get rid of spam comments and fake accounts, and even recover from a breach if it happens.
Why WordPress Security Plugin is Important and how does it work?
Why WordPress Security Plugin is important?
Hacking has become a common problem for WordPress websites. So if you use WordPress, you must stay on top of security issues and ensure your site is protected against malicious attacks.
A hacked WordPress site can have severe consequences for your business, including the loss of income and data.
Hackers can get user information and passwords, install malicious software and even distribute malware to your users.
How WordPress Security Plugins Work?
WordPress security plugins are designed to help protect your site from hacking attempts or blocking them if they exceed a set threshold.
They also protect legitimate search engine crawlers from being throttled or blocked by recognizing them as friendly crawlers.
What is the best free Security Plugin for WordPress?
If you're a WordPress user, then you know that your website's security is a top priority. However, it's more important to ensure that your site has the best protection possible.
Here are our picks for the best free security plugins for WordPress.
The best free WordPress security plugins are Wordfence, iThemes, and Sucuri. They are all very effective at blocking bots and malicious scripts from infecting your site.
Wordfence has many features that make it one of WordPress's most comprehensive security plugins.
It has a firewall, an antivirus scanner, and anti-phishing protection built into its core functionality. It also comes with a spam filter that can be set up to scan comments before they're published on your site.
This means fewer spam comments showing up in your posts!
iThemes Security is another excellent choice because it offers free and paid options depending on what kind of protection you need for your website.
If you only need basic security features like malware scanning or IP blocking, this plugin will work flawlessly without costing anything extra! However, suppose you have more advanced concerns like brute force attacks or personal information leaks.
In that case, premium upgrades are also available, which will help protect your site even further than before!
Sucuri is another excellent option because it provides complete protection against any attack, whether it's from hackers or spammers trying to get into your account through brute force methods such as SQL injections (SQLI) or Cross Site.
Conclusion.
WordPress is a safe platform, but that doesn't mean your website will be secure.
It is still vulnerable to hackers, who use various methods to bypass your security features and wreak havoc on your site.
If you're serious about keeping your WordPress site secure, you'll do well to look into a plugin like iThemes Security Pro or Wordfence.
I hope this list of security plugins can help you protect your WordPress website from hackers and spammers.
Security is a serious topic and can be pretty challenging, but these plugins simplify the process and let you take care of your site easily.
Feel free to let us know!
Which of the Best WordPress Security Plugin do you use to secure your website?
Which one of these WordPress Security Plugins are you planning to use, and why? Let us know by commenting below.