Web Hosting Box

Every day web hosting providers spend countless hours trying to secure the transactions and communications of their customers in order to maintain a reputable business reputation online. Likewise, every day thousands of hackers try their hardest to find new exploit so that they can intercept and decode encrypted data, and gain access to the administrative interface of innocent webmasters’ web hosting accounts. Thus, security is not something that should be overlooked when selecting a web host, especially if you plan on conducting e-commerce with your website. The following are three of the most dangerous web hosting security problems that web hosting providers and webmasters have to be aware of on a regular basis.

Financial Fraud

The first and foremost security concern of a hosting company is the protection of financial data that is transferred and stored on their Web servers. The Internet is a gigantic cyber marketplace that has millions of online stores and hundreds of millions of customers shopping at any given point in time. Hackers thrive in such an environment by exploiting any possible loopholes as much as possible. A single security flaw can result in hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars lost in a single day, especially if the integrity of a web server used to facilitate high volumes of e-commerce is compromised. Thus, hosting companies provide state-of-the-art encryption technology to their customers to ensure that their checkout pages are completely secure. Keeping the credit card and payment details of your customers safe at all times should be your primary concern as an online business owner.

System Overloads

One of the oldest, yet most common and troublesome security concerns in web hosting is the dreaded DDoS (distributed denial of service) attack. This attack bares its name because the hacker is actually distributing a denial of service by overloading a web server with massive amounts of traffic or requests within a certain period of time. This causes the web server to temporarily shut down in response to restrictions and limitations put in place by the web hosting provider, in order to ensure that each customer has access to an adequate amount server resources at all times. In other words, if one website or a single web server is using too many server resources at once, it can be shut down. Thus, hackers attempt to send large amounts of requests to specific Web servers in an attempt to cause server downtime, affect the performance of the hosting service, and possibly gain administrative access to the Web servers in the process.

Malicious Scripts

Another serious security problem that web hosting providers have to face on a regular basis is malicious scripting, which has the potential to gather an immense amount of data for hackers and cyber criminals in a short period of time. Usually these scripts are attached to web applications that are used by webmasters to increase productivity and enhance certain website management capabilities. These scripts utilize popular programming languages and platforms such as PHP to send and receive data from webmasters’ websites. Viruses can also be spread on Web servers in a similar fashion, jumping from website to website until a solution is found. When a web server is infected with a virus, many of the websites on the server will attempt to inject a virus onto visitors’ computers, thereby affecting the reputation of the sites. Thus, malicious scripts need to be proactively combated in order to ensure a high quality of service and the safety of web hosting customers.

Running a business with your website causes many different types of scammers, phishers, hackers and other malicious attackers to come out of the woodwork. As a result, network security should be one of your top priorities. When managing network security, you must be proactive in revealing any potential threats that could or are emerging. This begins with a thorough assessment of your website and network.

Ensuring your network and website is secure can literally make or break your business. If your site is breached by a hacker and a customer is scammed, negative word of mouth experience travels great distances; far enough to put you out of business. Security also involves keeping the wireless network at your office or store secure.

Many issues can arise in an unsecured network. Users that do not adhere to the security policy often allow attackers compromise networks. There are many examples of high-profile, large companies falling victim to internet attackers and almost ruining their organization. A few examples include RSA Security, OpenBSD, NASDAQ, Playboy Enterprises and Cryptologic.

In these instances, attackers used the following methods:

• Compromising a poor configuration
• Utilizing traffic
• Attacking specific network component
• Abusing a network
• Accessing user account passwords

Attackers compromised a poor network configuration related to a target host by utilizing scripts and other publicly available exploits. Also, they compromised traffic by evading security measures and using network sniffing methods. Additionally, attackers targeted a specific network component utilizing customized malicious scripts

Furthermore, by abusing the network configuration or bypassing a shoddy firewall, they were able to access vital information from public folders. Finally, attackers accessed user account passwords to concede additional hosts where that user may have an account.

To fully protect your network, you need to ascertain the technical expertise or hire someone with that knowledge, adhere to a security policy and develop an incident response procedure. These will help you prevent most attacks as well as correctly respond to them when they do occur. Once again, it comes down to being proactive as opposed to reactive in these situations.

Network security is one of the most important areas to develop within your website. Having an air-tight security policy and procedures mixed with extensive technical knowledge is like having a tornado shelter at your home. You will be protected in the case of an incident by building a secure, air-tight entity.

Web hosting security is an extremely complex technical field, as it is constantly evolving. Every time someone finds an exploit or a security loophole, the web hosting company has to counteract that action with a security measure. Thus, what is true this year for web hosting security may not be true next year.

Hackers employ tools that are just as complex, if not more complex than the web hosting companies themselves, so it can be almost impossible to be completely immune from a highly skilled hacker. Nonetheless, the risks that are posed by security breeches are extremely serious, especially in the world of eCommerce. A compromised website could mean the loss of thousands of dollars, and several unnecessary lawsuits against the site owner. In fact, some people have even lost their online businesses due to hackers! When it comes to hacking exploits, there is one that does not appear to be going away any time soon.

What is a DDoS Attack?

A DDoS attack is a Distributed Denial of Service attack. These attacks have been known to take down entire corporations, and even entire web hosting companies in some instances. They work because they mimic realistic traffic habits to a certain extent, so there is no way to spot them until it is too late. When a hacker employs a DDoS attack they send a massive influx of artificial traffic to a site or to a web server, so rapidly that the server simply cannot handle the load and shuts itself down. The result is near instant downtime, and the loss of revenue for anyone that is hosting their site on that server. The reason why it is called Distributed Denial of Service is because the hacker is distributing a server load that causes automatic denial of services on behalf of the web server.

Who Gets Hit With DDoS Attacks?

The sad fact is, anyone can get hit with a DDoS attack, and even more alarming is that this attack is usually the direct result of the nefarious actions of a competitor. In other words, if you have a powerful competitor, then you are already at risk for a DDoS attack. Perhaps even more startling is the fact that these attacks happen all the time on sites that are not even business oriented. Hackers use smaller sites with less security to practice their skills, and send out DDoS attacks to these sites in an attempt to perfect their DDoS skills. If you are not properly protected, then you are at risk for a DDoS attack.

How to Protect Yourself form a DDoS Attack

Perhaps the best way to protect yourself from a DDoS attack is to use a web hosting company that emphasizes their ability to counteract such attacks. Some web hosting companies will offer a good price, however their security is lax. In the web hosting industry there is no room for error, especially if you own and operate a thriving online business. One mistake could result in the loss of thousands of dollars, so it is important that you seek out the most qualified web hosting companies.

Perhaps the most important aspect of operating an online business is keeping your investments secure at all times. The internet is a very dangerous place, especially for business that conduct hundreds or thousands of dollars in eCommerce each and every day. Having a secure website not only prevents the loss of profits, but it also boosts sales as your customers will be more confident when shopping with you if they know that your site is safe.

Considering that most hackers spend hours every day trying to find new exploits, hacking into sites and looking for opportunities to steal cash form hard working business owners, you need to put forth the same effort to protect your website. Since most do not have the time to work around the clock in keeping their website secure, you need a web hosting company that offers state-of-the-art server security. There are however some things that you can do to protect your website from  hacking attacks.

Firewalls

Many people overlook the importance of securing their operating system when dealing with their website’s security. Having a strong firewall is very important to the security of your operating system, and your website. When you upload information from your hard drive to your website, it can be intercepted if you do not have a solid firewall protecting you from the outside world. There are many firewalls available, and your web host will often have one setup on your server by default. However, it is best to have a high quality firewall set up on your server and your operating system for maximum security.

Securing Your Login Credentials

When security experts talk about keeping your website protected, they are actually referring to securing the control interface of your website, as this is the area that can be used to hijack or destroy your website if accessed. When a hacker gains access to your administrative interface they are capable of executing any task that you as an administrator could do. This means they can upload content, delete content, and even steal your entire domain by transferring it another host! Thus, the first line of defense is having a strong password. Make sure your password is at least 8 characters long, with two special symbols and two upper case letters. The best way to create a secure password is to use a password generating software. You can find these online for free, and they generate highly secure passwords at the click of a button.

Strong Antivirus Software

Having a solid password and firewall will do you no good if your system is vulnerable to viruses. Viruses like keyloggers can infiltrate your system and collect personal information, such as your passwords Even if your password is 20 characters long, it can still be hacked if your computer is infected with spyware and keyloggers. Keyloggers actually log everything that you type into your computer, which means that every time you enter your passwords, the info is sent to the hacker. To prevent something like this from happening, you’ll need a strong antivirus working to protect your computer at all times. Some antivirus suites come with a firewall and a password generator, so it is possible to handle all of the above precautions with a single powerful antivirus suite.