We explain how to know if a website is safe with 7 steps

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It is a fact that websites are no longer used solely for entertainment, as they were in the 2000s. Nowadays, a lot of business is done over the Internet. Therefore, it is important to know the top secure website platforms, such as WordPress .

The problem is that the dynamics of technological changes means that threats also change rapidly and, in some cases, become camouflaged in front of a reliable design.

In other cases, it doesn't matter how careful entrepreneurs are, as customers overseas chinese in uk data end up taking risks in untrustworthy environments, often because they are interacting with the digital world for the first time.

Despite this, there are a wide variety of signs to know if a website is safe. Knowing them is essential to avoid losses. If you want to learn more about how to know if a website is safe, you are in the right post, in it we will tell you:

Why do companies need to have a secure website?
How to know if a website is safe?
Keep reading!

Why do companies need to have a secure website?
Whenever you visit a website and see a closed padlock next to the URL , it means that the website is secure. Although some people think that it is only essential for online stores — because they require entering personal data and credit card information — the reality is very different.

Since 2018, website security has become a ranking factor in search engines like Google. For this reason, to make your website more likely to appear among the top results, you must have a security certificate.

On top of that, secure websites instill trust in your audience, making them more likely to do business with you.

How to know if a website is safe?
1. Check the SSL certification
Check your website URL and see if it says "HTTPS" at the beginning of the address (instead of "HTTP"). This means that the website is secure with an SSL certification . This is what protects all data that transits from the browser to the website server .

If you look at your browser's address bar right now, you'll see that there's a little padlock before our blog address . Clicking on it will bring up a message saying that "your connection to this site is secure" - depending on your browser, of course.

But what does that mean? That there is a company that guarantees that the communication between you and the company responsible for the website cannot be intercepted or modified.

Imagine you go to a shopping website and tell the company about your personal data. Without SSL certification, this information could be copied, without you or the store even noticing the hack .

Therefore, the first step to knowing if a website is secure is to check that it has that certification. Google already considers this security element when ranking sites in the SERPs .

So, if you are wondering how you can get your WordPress site to appear on Google, you already know that having a security certification is one of the criteria.

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2. Analyze if the site has a reliable topic
You may be wondering what this has to do with website security. Themes , as well as everything that makes up a website, are made with code. Over time, some of the settings written in the code become outdated, which can make the page vulnerable.

That doesn't mean that one platform is worse than another, but as with any system, the website owner must be careful when choosing themes and plugins .

Many times we don't even suspect that these elements leave a website vulnerable, so in addition to considering the web design, you should always evaluate the security offered by the theme.

Needless to say, using pirated themes is a bad idea . While they are identical to the originals, it is tantamount to leaving a door open to invaders, as well as being a criminal attitude towards the intellectual rights of the developers.

So, learn the right way to add a WordPress template before you download any theme, okay?


3. Use security tools to evaluate the website
You probably have an antivirus installed on your computer. Most digital security companies develop systems that show the user whether a website is safe.

In some cases, these tools prevent browsing from continuing when there is no security certificate at the address or it has already expired.

Other companies allow the Internet user to evaluate the site and decide whether to continue browsing or not. These tools are usually installed automatically with the antivirus, like browser add-ons. In addition, there are many VPN services and pentesting features that can be useful.

Before choosing an antivirus, do some research on the company on the Internet. There is a very interesting website called Virus Total . By pasting the URL into the search field for that address, you can run a scan and generate a report on whether the site poses risks to visitors or not.

Another tool similar to the previous one is Google Safe Browsing . Its advantage is that it uses Google's database, which generates an analysis of billions of pages, increasing the chances of finding malicious sites or attempts to steal information from these addresses.

4. Check the URL
Knowing that many users do not pay attention to details, some criminals take advantage of this behavior when implementing scams. A missing letter, a typo, and in some cases, serious grammatical errors are clear signs that the site is not safe and that a scam attempt better known as Cybersquatting is likely to occur .

In some cases, fake addresses replace characters, for example, changing the letter "o" to a zero "0". For those in a hurry, the g0ogle.com website may be something that doesn't even catch your attention.

5. Be careful with security seals
Many companies certify sites with security seals. However, it is not difficult to create a fake seal in editing programs and place it on the pages.

The ideal course of action is to check the authenticity of the stamp by clicking on it and checking if it redirects you to the website of the company that issued it or if it offers more information. Fake stamps are images that do not provide any of these details.

You should also search for the badge on Google, checking if that certification actually exists. This is essential on ecommerce sites .

6. Find out who owns the site
Verifying this information is fairly easy. Each website must be registered to a natural person or legal entity. Companies like Whois Lookup allow you to search the Whois field for the ownership of a website.

7. Escape spam
Certain elements, such as banners that flash incessantly, exaggerated promises, or very low product prices, are classic indications that a website, email, or advertisement is not secure.

Even though they look like something from the 1990s and 2000s, there are still people who ignore the features and trust websites that use these tricks .

It's a fact that tech companies are investing in security, which is why it's so important for users to do their part when browsing. While a secure website is very important, the big issue is browsing between different sites safely. To that end, the 7 steps in this article can help you protect yourself on the web.

Now that you know how to identify if a website is secure, how about thinking about how to make your website more efficient? Download our ebook on how to improve your website's performance right now and become an expert on the subject.