How to Build a Secure Website
Building a secure website is important for businesses and individuals who plan to hold sensitive information or do not want their content to be tampered with. According to the Federal Deposit Insurance Company, nearly ten million Americans in 2003 alone found out they were victims of identity theft, which left businesses holding a bill of close to $50 billion. Unfortunately, there is no magic formula to building a secure website. You have to stay up-to-date with the latest security measures to stay a step ahead of hackers. However, you can take some measures to keep your website as secure as possible.
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Instructions
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Check your server configuration. A server is the computer you keep your website information on. If your server is compromised, so is your website. Make sure the directory permissions on your server include authentication and encryption. Whether you are using Apache, the most popular web server software, Microsoft's version or any other, make sure you are following their latest suggestions on maintaining your server safely.
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Stay up-to-date with the latest software updates and patches. Webmasters, people that manage websites, often forget to upgrade the software they use to run their website. Whether you are using simple content management systems like Wordpress or Blogger or are writing your own code, make sure you have the latest version of whatever software you are using. Software upgrades are often designed to solve known security weaknesses, so it pays to be up-to-date.
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Use public-key encryption to protect any sensitive information. This is especially important when you accept credit cards or hold other personal data. Not using a suitable encryption on your website is like leaving your client´s credit card numbers and passwords on the counter---not a good idea. SSL is a popular public-key encryption that can easily be implemented. Companies like Verisign, GoDaddy SSL and Thawte offer this service for $20 to $1,000, depending on what your business requires.
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Use secure protocols. Protocols are methods used to transfer data to your server. Google recommends in its webmaster security blog to use SSH (secure shell) and SFTP (secure file transfer protocol) instead of unencrypted protocols like FTP (file transfer protocol).
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Keep up-to-date with the literature on website security. Keeping yourself informed in this business is crucial because hackers and identity thieves are constantly finding new ways to breach Internet security protocols. Google's Online Security blog is a good place to start.
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Tips & Warnings
Designing a secure website is a specialized job. If you are planning to accept credit cards and hold sensitive information, it is a good idea to hire a professional web programmer or use a third-party company like PayPal or Google Checkout to deal with that side of the business.
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Resources
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