Web Hosting Security – Issues and Prevention

In the world of Web hosting one has to be careful as there are many security issues which needs to be looked at in and also most importantly you should know about the issues and also the things with which you can prevent the same. So, let’s check out what are the issues which you need to know and what are the ways which can you can get out of those issues. Though most of the times the web hosting companies deals with the issues and finds the solution to solve the same but let’s check out how you can prevent by yourself in the due course of the article.

Threats:Most of the times, the Shared as well as VPS hosting accounts are vulnerable to the attacks as malwares and other data can be uploaded in the sites easily. These programs can also be introduced to a server through security vulnerabilities in a legitimate client’s site, and the malware is used for anything from stealing credit card data to launching a DDoS, or Distributed Denial of Service attack that then allows hackers to hijack an entire hosting server and use it for attacking other servers, either within the same network or on other networks. Also, additionally if the spammer abuses the hosting company then with the help of company resources it can black list the DNS by the major Email providers which will mean that customers will not be able to send even the most routine E-mails from their accounts, and for some customers this renders the account useless. Also, apart from these, there are numerous number of threats but you will have to be careful of those so that you don’t end up inviting the threats.

Precautions:
Both hosting companies and users of hosting accounts should periodically change all passwords used for access at whatever level they can access the server and files. Hosting companies should require employees to change passwords at certain intervals, and in the event of equipment or personnel change, all passwords used for server access should be changed.
Always you will have to ensure that the web account users should change the password regularly so as to phase out the threats of editing and to prevent the system to be attacked. Server hardening is essential to make sure that improvements are made to the default configuration of any web server. This applies to dedicated servers as well as to shared hosting servers, and standard procedures are recommended for both Linux web hosting and Windows hosting servers. So, server hardening too is an very important aspect which needs to be taken care of. With most of the extensions which are available on the server side, you can easily safeguard the servers.

Generally the web hosting companies are responsible for all sorts of threats as you have paid for securing the systems and other part too. As the potentially threat causing scripts and other details which needs to be taken care of. As PHP, which is hosted on Linux, is the most easily abused programming language, webmasters and business owners should be aware of the source of any code or software they are installing on their accounts. When new code is uploaded, it should be tested or screened if possible, whether it was written by hired PHP programmers, purchased as a standard off-the-shelf solution, or obtained as a module or other extension for an open source CMS. Also, additionally you can also check with your web hosting provider about the response time if any flaw is being detected, if any is detected then it should be fixed up as soon as possible so that the threat can be prevented.

About the Author:
Chetan Bhawani is a dentist, and a tech blogger who writes at several blogs and an adviser about web hosting. You can check out his favorite personal hosting service providing some unlimited plans, suitable for maintaining large websites, and having some good wordpress hosting packages.