Lots of WordPress websites face malware issues daily. This causes issues such as site crashes, data theft, harming visitors, and more. It is believed that around 70% of the 40000 websites (WordPress websites that are mentioned on the Alexa Top One Million) are prone to hacking. In addition to this, over 80% of these sites are affected because of outdated themes and plugins. When a WordPress site is affected due to malware, it will affect the integrity, functionality, and reputation it. Hence, you should know the ways to remove malware from the WordPress website.
To find solutions, keep on reading this post.
How to know if your WordPress website is malware-infected?
Before we talk about the ways to follow for removing malware, you should determine first if your website is truly infected. Below are the signs that can help you detect the malware signs before taking swift action:
Unusual behavior of the website
If your website is showing unusual behavior such as slow loading, redirects, or unexpected pop-ups, it will show that your WordPress is attacked by malware. In addition to this, unexplained modifications in the files or unknown new accounts of the users are also red signs. Thus, you should check the website regularly and take the necessary actions.
Warnings from search engine
Many times you also receive certain warnings from search engines that indicate possible malware attacks. You should keep in mind that such warnings only be issued by search engines if they locate malicious content. Since this has a direct association with your official website and its reputation, you should not ignore warnings received and work towards removing them to maintain visibility and trust.
Unexplained drop in traffic
If you are experiencing a drop in website traffic all of a sudden, malware can be the main reason for it. A malware-infected website often leads to decreased online visibility. According to some online research, more than 50% of the drop in website traffic is due to security issues. So, whenever you notice such things, check for the malware.
How to remove malware from WordPress websites?
If you identify the malware attack on your WordPress website, you can get in touch with an experienced and expert web design company in Delhi or simply follow the steps mentioned below for removal:
Step 1: Locate the infected codes and files
To remove malware from the WordPress website, you will have two different methods. These include the following:
- In one method, you should utilize certain plugins and tools that are specifically designed to remove malware. Through these tools, you can automate the entire process, and scan, and eliminate the infected codes and files effectively.
- The second method is completely manual. This means you will need to check every code and file manually for malware. Once you locate them, remove them. It is a time-taking process where you will need careful removal skills and patience, of course.
Step 2: Backup the website
Beforehand, you should know the importance of backing up the website to prevent losing data and files. While removing malware, any unexpected event can take place. But when you have a proper backup, you can easily restore everything. In case you feel that this process is complex, you can get in touch with a professional who has access to various tools to automate and simplify the backup process.
Step 3: Isolation and quarantine are mandatory
You must isolate as well as quarantine possible threats while removing malware. For this, you should start by disabling suspicious themes and plugins that contain potential threats as they can offer an entrance to malware. In addition to this, you should also detach malware-infected files. Once you do it, start addressing the issues.
Step 4: Remove the malware
Once you complete the above steps, you are all set to remove the malware. Check out the following to conduct this removal process with no issues:
- Firstly, start by cleaning the hacked files and database of the website. To perform this, you will need the access to the database and file structure of the WordPress.
- Down the official site of WordPress again to manually fix the malware infections in the core files. Or, you can use Adminer or PHPMyAdmin to remove database malware.
- Now, reset user passwords to avoid any unauthorized access. Along with this, validate every account’s role to make sure hackers have not created any fake accounts.
- If you leave a backdoor, it will be more like an invitation for the hackers to enter the website again. Hence, remove any suspicious plugin themes or files.
Step 5: Improve all security measures
This is the final yet most critical aspect when it comes to the process of ‘removing malware from WordPress’. The objective of this step is to make sure that you do not leave any door open for the hackers. To strengthen the same, you can do the following:
- Firstly, update the outdated software. While doing so, make sure you also update themes, plugins, WordPress, Apache, PHP, cPanel, WHM/cPanel, etc.
- Changing user passwords is another good way to prevent malware infection. You should change the passwords of SSC, databases, user accounts, and others. Try to keep the number of user accounts as minimal as possible to prevent further issues.
- Since WordPress utilizes browser cookies, you should generate new secret keys. If you do not ensure this, your website can still get hacked even after changing the passwords.
- Alongside, you must restrict public access and close every entry point for the hackers. For this, you must update servers and software regularly. Utilize multi-factor authentication and strong passwords.
Finally,
The simplest method to remove malware is by contacting an expert Web design company in Delhi. For this, no other option is better than Value4Brand. With an experienced team, they will help you remove the malware without compromising the website’s safety and losing critical data. To learn more, you can visit its official website or call them to discuss your concerns.
