Keeping your WordPress website up to date is one of the most important ways to protect your business online.
WordPress, themes and plug-ins are regularly updated to fix security weaknesses, improve performance and maintain compatibility. When these updates are ignored, your website can become vulnerable to hacking, malware and other technical problems.
Hackers often use automated tools to search for websites running outdated software, and with 60% of all websites being on WordPress, it is the most targeted platform. They will target anyone regardless of size, which means you are at risk because they may not be monitored or maintained regularly.
An outdated WordPress website could allow hackers to:
- Gain access to your website
- Upload malicious files
- Redirect visitors to unsafe websites
- Send spam emails from your server
- Steal customer or business information
- Damage your search engine rankings
- Cause your website to be suspended or taken offline
Keeping everything updated also helps your website run more smoothly. Updates can improve speed, fix bugs and prevent compatibility issues between WordPress, themes and plug-ins.
However, updates should be completed carefully. A new plug-in or theme version can sometimes cause parts of a website to stop working. This is why it is important to take a full backup before making changes and test afterwards, including contact forms, login pages, shopping baskets and checkout processes.
A regular WordPress maintenance service should include:
- WordPress core updates
Plug-in and theme updates - Website and database backups
- Security and malware checks
- Removal of unused or abandoned plug-ins
- Website performance checks
- Testing of important forms and features
- Monitoring for errors or suspicious activity
Waiting until your website has been hacked can lead to downtime, lost enquiries, damaged customer trust and costly repair work or even a new website.
Regular maintenance is a simple and cost-effective way to keep your website secure, reliable and up to date.
Is Your Website Being Properly Maintained?
We can check your WordPress website, complete the necessary updates, create secure backups, and identify potential security risks.
Contact us today to arrange a WordPress maintenance and security check before a small issue becomes a serious problem.
Tel: 01707 378455