It’s never something a site owner wants to see or hear about, but a situation of being hacked requires quick action to minimize the impact rather than regretting any decisions that may or may not have been taken. For recognizing the situation for what it is, there are certain signs and symptoms that a WordPress site owner should be aware about and be on the lookout for to confirm the situation. A WordPress site security audit can help you to avoid such hack incidents
- The hosting platform has suspended your site
You may try to log in one day only to find out that yourhosting has taken matters into their own hands and suspended your site because of the detection of the malicious code either in certain sections of a single page or throughout the website. This will be done to discourage the malware from spreading to other users or site visitors.
- Google messages you
An official mail from Google will lie in wait for you in your mailbox – that is, if you’ve linked your site to the Google Search Console. The mail 10 Common will contain the warning that your site is potentially hacked with malware and since it has been detected by Google, you’re required to take it offline and solve the issue before requesting for a review process. Until then, your site will be blacklisted to ensure that the content doesn’t harm others. For more info on Google blacklist visit- Getastra,com
- Slow Website and Error messages
Your site isn’t functioning at its usual speed anymore – possibly even stops working with no explanation. It could just be poor performance, but the other possibility is a hacking incident, especially if the site used to previously function at better speeds and has now slowed down or even crashed.
Multiple error messages are also a key indicator of a hack. If there are many of these crowding your site and looking unsightly, hackers are pushing into your site, and they’re making a total mess of it.
- Customer complaints
This is an indirect sign of your WordPress site being compromised, but definitely important. Some of your loyal customers may have approached you with the complaint or concern that the site doesn’t show what it used to, or there are warning screens visible discouraging them from using the site. Some may even raise complaints about loss of credit card details after they completed a transaction with you as a side-effect of the hacking. Most WordPress site owners come to know of the hacking episode only through such reminders by their customers.
- Strange-looking code
If you’re checking your website code and see strange portions that you don’t remember adding in, see this with suspicion. If it looks strange, you’re unable to decipher it or its purpose, then this is even more of a true possibility. Such issues will only pop up if you’re someone who checks their code regularly, so make sure that you’ve set a periodic timetable to verify this yourself.
- Spam Emails – from you
Your emails are now all spam, thanks to the hackers. They have used your address to forward multiple emails to millions of others, most 10 Common probably heavily-laden with viruses, and immediately leading to the blacklisting of your email id by major email providers.
- Unknown modification to your files
Possibly, any action taken on your site without your knowledge should be seen as a problem. Especially if these are important administrative or core files, then you need to make sure that your backups are ready for a possible clean-up. Also, make sure to check these regularly to ensure that the files remain the way they were.
- You’re being redirected without your permission
If you’re forcefully being redirected to other sites that are potentially dangerous with viruses and SEO spam-filled external links without your permission instead of reaching your own site, then this is a major cause for concern. This also puts your customers in even more dangerous situations as they will be unknowingly redirected and possibly be infected as well, thus making them lose their trust in your reputation.
- Unwanted ads and pop-ups
These are a sure sign of something gone wrong on your site, since there’s no way that you’ve put or signed up for advertisements on 10 Common gambling, rummy, or loans that instantly offer full cash. However, customers may place trust in your site and click on these links, leading them to compromising situations.
- Sudden spikes with no explanations
This is yet another significant indicator to prove that a hack has compromised your site – a high surge of website traffic or trickling figures with absolutely no reasoning should push you to be cautious. While it is something to be happy 10 Common about, high and quick spikes means hackers are using your site traffic and the visitors to push them to redirects and external links. This will eventually reflect on your site’s reputation and visitors will gradually stop checking your site altogether, in addition to the blacklisting warning by Google and other major search engines.
