Due to its extensive third-party toolkit and open-source nature, WordPress is just as attractive to cybercriminals as it is to web developers and website owners. In fact, it stands as the most targeted CMS, with a shocking average of 90,000 attacks attempted per minute. Weak passwords, outdated plugins, and a poor security posture leave WordPress sites exposed - making them easy prey for hackers and malicious scripts.
That's where WordPress security plugins come into play. The digital equivalent of worker bees, these plugins do a lot of heavy lifting behind the scenes - tightening login security, blocking brute force attacks, scanning for malware, and more. With the right plugin, you can safeguard your WordPress site from all currently known online threats and any new ones that may crop up in the future.
The only question is - how do you settle on the right option to secure your website? Understanding the core security functions these plugins offer is the first step. So, let's quickly break down their main features before comparing the top security plugins for WordPress.
Disclaimer: The prices mentioned for the WordPress security plugins in this article are subject to change at the discretion of the plugin developers. Please check the official plugin websites for the most up-to-date pricing information.
Key Functions of WordPress Security Plugins
WordPress security plugins are designed to maintain a website's integrity by guarding against hacking and malware attacks. To do this, they employ various methods including:
- Firewall Protection: A firewall acts as your website's first line of defense, performing the task of monitoring and filtering out web traffic. It blocks all malicious content and ensures that only legitimate requests can access sensitive data/site areas.
- Reinforcing Login Security: Login areas are a commonly targeted entry point by hackers who often use brute-force attacks to try and break into websites. To counteract this, security plugins limit login attempts and use CAPTCHAS to make it harder for bots to crack passwords. Some plugins also enforce complex password policies and implement two-factor authentication (2FA) to add an extra layer of security to the login process.
- Malware Scanning: This involves checking for all types of malware infections, including viruses, spyware, and backdoors, which can be used to steal information, redirect traffic, or manipulate your website. When threats are found, security plugins either recommend fixes or remove them automatically. Some WordPress security plugins go a step further and check for vulnerabilities in your themes and plugins.
- Activity Logging and Reporting: Continuous monitoring and recording of all site activity is a feature usually offered by premium security plugins. Plugins with this feature typically notify you of suspicious activity like repeated failed login attempts or unauthorized modifications to files, helping you stay ahead of potential threats.
Each one of these security measures plays a crucial role in building a robust defense system. Firewall functionality and login security harden your site against break-ins and common attack tactics, while malware scanning and activity logging enable quick detection and response, effectively terminating successful attacks before they escalate.
Securing all protective measures for your website is essentially the best way to ensure it is well secured. Luckily, plenty of WordPress security plugins offer a nice stack of features, complete with proactive and reactive security strategies.
Among the many all-rounded options available, the following make up the best WordPress security plugins based on the range of features and performance.
7 Best WordPress Security Plugins
Staying on top of your website's security requires a proactive approach to preventing attacks and quick response to breaches and emerging risks. This round-up of plugins delivers that in varying degrees. Each one protects against cyber attacks from multiple fronts.
1 Wordfence
Thanks to its ease of use and range of features, Wordfence is a highly-regarded and widely used WordPress security plugin. It covers all security essentials through firewall protection, malware scanning, login security, and live traffic monitoring - all of which you get with its free version.
The premium package (at $149/year) comes with a few extras, including the ability to blacklist suspicious IP addresses or even block entire countries from accessing your site, deeper malware scans, and real-time updates to firewall rules, malware signatures, & malicious IPs.
Key Features:
The Good
With its real-time updates, Wordfence delivers a high level of protection. The firewall can block recently flagged IPs and the newest hacking exploits, while the scanner can detect the latest malware signatures within your files. Although live updates are a privilege restricted to premium users, Wordfence still stands as the best free security plugin for WordPress when it comes to the degree of protection offered.
The plugin's firewall is pretty advanced and allows you to set it to learn your site's traffic and thus effectively block real threats and not legitimate traffic. The scanner, in turn, is backed by a massive database of malware signatures, enabling it to catch all known malware and vulnerabilities in themes & plugins.
The Bad
Best For: For those looking for a decent free WordPress security plugin option, the all-in-one package deal of Wordfence is hard to beat. Alternatively, small businesses and blogs will find the firewall, malware scanner, and detailed real-time traffic monitoring combination of the Wordfence premium version valuable.
2 All-In-One WP Security & Firewall
All-In-One Security (AIOS) is another popular option and is often seen as a rival for Wordfence since it is a free WordPress security plugin. But does it live up to its name? Well, AIOS covers most security areas, including firewall protection, user account security, database security, and brute-force attack prevention.
The plugin's defense capabilities are up to scratch, with the firewall stopping bots, spam, and scrapers. AIOS also features a login screen, which offers several settings for blocking brute force attacks.
The plugin is easy to set up, only requiring you to activate a few basic security measures in the settings menu. Once the installation is complete, the plugin offers a visual grading system, allowing you to see how well your site is secured and which areas need improvement.
Key Features:
The Good
All-In-One WP Security & Firewall is quite generous for a free WordPress security plugin. It helps harden a site's defenses, blocks malicious traffic, and monitors critical files for unauthorized changes.
Furthermore, this plugin provides a customizable security solution, allowing users to apply different protection levels based on their needs. The interface is well-organized and intuitive, giving users flexibility without overwhelming them.
The Bad
Best For: Personal blogs and small businesses can get sufficient security using AIOS. The plugin mainly targets budget-conscious and non-techy individuals who prefer a plugin with clear security recommendations.
3 Sucuri Security
Sucuri has a packed list of features that make it a complete security solution, though a few of its best defense measures are reserved for paid users.
Sucuri puts a strong emphasis on site hardening, where it assesses your site's state of security right off the bat (after installation), flags modified or outdated files, and suggests fixes. The plugin then proceeds to monitor the integrity of core WordPress files and track all login activity, promptly alerting you to any unauthorized changes or unusual activity that might be the result of malware or hacking attempts.
Additionally, Sucuri provides remote malware scanning and post-hack recovery tools and guidelines to help restore a compromised website and strengthen its security moving forward.
On top of all that, Sucuri premium plans (starting at $199.99/year) add automatic malware scanning, unlimited cleanups, blacklist removal, and a DNS server to the list of features.
Key Features:
The Good
Aside from auditing your site and offering clear recommendations and tools to strengthen your security posture, Sucuri has a customizable site hardening tool. It helps to fortify your site by adding a set of security rules directly to the .htaccess file (a text file that allows you to make changes to the configuration of your web server). These rules aim to keep out intruders and prevent malware injections by plugging vulnerabilities.
Sucuri's DNS-level firewall is another advantage, as it blocks malicious traffic before it reaches your server. Unlike standard plugin-based firewalls that operate at the application level, Sucuri's firewall filters threats at the network level, effectively mitigating DDoS attacks, SQL injections, and cross-site scripting (XSS) exploits. This proactive approach helps reduce server load and website slowdowns, ensuring both security and performance.
The Bad
Best For: If you want enterprise-grade security management with unlimited cleanups and are willing to pay for it, Sucuri is worth considering. It is a good fit for business websites, e-commerce platforms, and high-traffic sites that need advanced security features, proactive protection, and fast recovery from security breaches.
4 Shield Security
Shield Security stands out for packing a collection of premium features in a lightweight plugin optimized to minimize the impact of scans and firewall functions on your server. The plugin also operates in the background, with most security processes automated and the option to reduce false alarms and unnecessary notifications included.
This plugin's primary strength lies in being a strong defense against malware and other cyber attacks. It features login security enhancements, bot-blocking technology, spam protection, and a firewall designed to recognize and block attacks that target WordPress-specific vulnerabilities or components such as file paths and database queries.
The firewall is also customizable, allowing you to choose from a selection of rules or even write your own for more tailored protection.
Another great feature of this plugin is its intelligent malware scanner. It relies on behavioral analysis and rule-based detection to catch suspicious code, file modifications, and other anomalies. It also uses machine learning technology to register the signature of new attacks and updates them to its network, ensuring all users stay ahead of evolving threats.
Key Features:
The Good
The beauty of Shield Security is that it is designed to improve with time. Its intelligent firewall adapts over time, learning which requests to block without disrupting regular site traffic. The scanner also continuously learns from previously identified threats and refines its understanding of what qualifies for malicious activity over time - making it one of the few WordPress security plugins that offer protection against zero-day attacks.
Shield Security is also ideal for users of all levels. It is easy to set up and has intuitive controls that make it beginner-friendly. Advanced users, in turn, will love its extensive customization options.
The Bad
Best For: Shield Security is well-suited for websites concerned about spam and those that experience significant bot traffic, such as e-commerce sites, popular blogs, and websites with high user registration rates. It is also a good choice for novice website owners who want a hassle-free solution with automated functionality.
5 MalCare
MalCare falls high on the list of the best WordPress security plugins. Not only are its malware detection and removal capabilities second to none, but it also has a next-level firewall that constantly updates its rules to block WordPress-specific threats as they happen. MalCare also blocks bad bots, limits login attempts, and monitors all installed plugins and themes for vulnerabilities, resulting in a plugin that adequately covers your website across all attack surfaces.
A key detail of the MalCare security plugin is that it is structured to strongly encourage users to upgrade to its range of paid subscriptions. Aside from the firewall and malware scanner, all other features (including its one-click malware cleanup, bot protection, and login protection) are locked behind a paywall (starting at $149/year).
Key Features:
The Good
With MalCare, you get to reap all the rewards of a heavy-duty security plugin with none of the burden, technical expertise, or constant monitoring. The plugin is designed to take all the work out of security with malware scans automatically scheduled to run once a day. An alert is sent to your email if issues are found, at which point you only need to click a button for automatic malware removal.
MalCare is also easy on your servers since scans are run on its cloud platform, ensuring zero performance impact on your website. The scanner syncs your website data to its cloud platform to access the database and all files (including those of installed themes & plugins). It then uses a signal-based algorithm to analyze the behavior of files and code, looking for suspicious patterns and actions such as obfuscated codes, file modifications, unauthorized database changes, etc. With this approach, not a single piece of malicious code is missed.
The Bad
Best For: MalCare is a powerful security plugin that works for any instance, be it a high-traffic blog, e-commerce store, company website, or even agencies managing multiple websites. This plugin's ability to detect and quickly resolve even zero-day attacks makes it indispensable for big businesses where malware attacks that take root could have serious repercussions.
6 Patchstack
Patchstack is easily one of the best Security plugins for WordPress since it is designed for this CMS. It specializes in identifying and patching security flaws in WordPress core, plugins, and themes before they can be exploited. The plugin provides real-time alerts on vulnerabilities and applies virtual patches (protection rules) to secure your site without waiting for official updates.
Patchstack also offers API integration, allowing you to connect multiple websites (up to 10 with its free version) and manage all security-related actions from a centralized dashboard. And at $5 a month per site, the plugin throws in automated virtual patching and deep security insights.
Key Features:
The Good
Plugins, themes, and core files are oftentimes the weakest point of a WordPress Installation. Patchstack's pre-emptive approach bridges the gap between vulnerability discovery and official fixes, offering a unique and valuable security layer that prevents malware from ever getting into your website. The plugin addresses vulnerabilities based on the threat level, ensuring your site is secure, even against zero-day attacks.
Another plus is that Patchstack operates with minimal resource usage, making it an excellent choice for websites where performance is a top priority. Since it focuses on vulnerability management rather than traditional malware scanning, it doesn't slow down your site with intensive scans.
The Bad
Best For: Since Patchstack concentrates on the security of plugins, themes, & WordPress core files, it is particularly valuable for developers, agencies, and website owners who rely on or manage multiple third-party plugins. It is also worth considering as a complement to other security plugins.
7 Security Ninja
Security Ninja is a multifaceted plugin that prioritizes vulnerability assessment, the implementation of security best practices, and extensive threat detection.
After installation, this plugin runs a series of tests to expose weak spots in your site's security and provides detailed reports and actionable fixes, most of which you get to apply at the click of a button.
Security Ninja also monitors your site for threats and has a multi-functional scanner that checks for changes in core WordPress files, detects vulnerabilities in WordPress themes & plugins, and scans for malware.
The scanner, along with a firewall, login protection, and activity logging, are only available with this plugin's premium options, with the lowest tier set at $39/year.
Key Features:
The Good
The combination of thorough security testing and vulnerability scanning makes Security Ninja a good pick, especially considering it is one of the more affordable security plugins for WordPress. It is built as a prevention-focused tool and is excellent at identifying security risks and helping website owners improve their security posture.
The Bad
Best For: Security Ninja is ideal for individuals looking to proactively identify and address security vulnerabilities or ensure their website complies with security best practices. That mostly includes developers, website administrators, and advanced users who want detailed security insights.
Final Thoughts
Securing your WordPress website is a must since this platform's popularity makes it a prime target for cybercriminals. Fortunately, WordPress security plugins are proficient at shielding your site from all online threats.
But as you've seen from our review of the best security plugins for WordPress, these tools vary significantly in terms of what they bring to the table. The best choice for you will depend on your specific needs. So, before making your pick, take a moment to:
- Assess your risk: Do you handle sensitive customer information, or is your site more content-focused? More complex sites handling sensitive data require stronger security measures like those offered by MalCare and Sucuri.
- Identify your priorities: Is your major security concern malware, brute-force attacks, or bot traffic? Focus on plugins that effectively address the specific threats that your website faces.
- Consider your budget: Are you willing to pay for first-rate security? Free plugins like Wordfence and AIOS offer solid protection, but premium ones go the extra mile with advanced features.
Picking the right plugin makes all the difference in keeping your website safe. So, consider our recommendations here and take the time to choose wisely.
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