The 5 most significant security flaws in shared hosting and how to fix them

In the world of web hosting, shared hosting is often the best option for both people and businesses. This is primarily due to the fact that it is inexpensive and simple to operate. But shared hosting has some problems, just like many other things that seem too good to be true. Some prominent security holes in your digital area can let all cyber threats in.

This article will go into some of the more complicated parts of even the best shared hosting platforms and show you five significant security flaws that could put your website at risk.

What exactly does “shared hosting” mean? 

It would help if you had a web server to make your website live, which you can buy from hosting companies like MyResellerHome and others. If something goes wrong with your page, this server is to blame. For example, when someone visits your site and wants to see your homepage, the computer gets the information it needs and shows it to them.

The process uses some of the server’s resources. But only some websites need a whole server; many are small and only have a few pages and posts, so they only need a small part of what an entire server can offer. So, getting a single server can be expensive and pointless, like buying an entire apartment building when you only need one unit. This led to the creation of shared hosting, a way for many websites to share a computer.

The number of websites that can be hosted depends on how many resources are given to each site, but thousands of websites could be hosted simultaneously. This lets hosting companies offer shared hosting plans at much lower prices, making it the cheapest option.

Best 5 Risks for Security and Speed in Shared Web Hosting

To use the room as an example again, let’s say you live in a building with many other people. Everyone uses some places, like the lobby, the lift, and the stairwell.

Someone could break in and get to the shared areas if one person needs to follow safety rules and close their windows. There is a thief inside who is trying to break into other homes.

In the same way, hackers can use their access to one website on the server to attack other websites that share the same server.

You have to worry about more than just safety, though. Basic upkeep can be a security risk in and of itself. Say someone has a plumbing leak and only fixes it briefly. The leak could then spread to the flats next to it and cause problems there, too.

In the same way, other websites on your shared computer could make yours not work right. Here are the five most significant risks to your security and speed when you use a shared hosting service:

1. The shared directory

Each WordPress site has its own folder with WordPress files, content, and other information. Your web host has something called a “directory” that this folder is in.

Dedicated servers have a single directory that holds the files for one page. But with shared hosting, there will be one directory with folders for more than one page.

It doesn’t matter that your website has its own domain name and content; it is connected to the other websites on your server because they share this path.

Hackers can go after all the sites on the same computer if they can get into this leading directory. Hackers do this by running programs on all the sites in the list to see if they are vulnerable. This could be an old feature that was added to the site. Once they know the weakness, they use it to enter the site.

2. Slow loading of website

Another website on your shared computer could be hacked, which could make your website run slowly, too. When hackers get into a website, they can use it to do bad things like store illegal files and folders like the wp-feed.php file, send spam emails, and attack other websites.

The hacked website uses more of the server’s resources than it should. Your website’s performance will probably suffer as a result of this. It will make your site load much more slowly. Also, your site might stop working, and users might need help getting to it.

3. Denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks

If other sites on the same server are getting a lot of visitors, yours may take longer to load.

When hackers want to shut down a website, they set up thousands of bad bots and devices to send a lot of traffic. A DDoS attack is the name for this kind of online crime. The website being attacked will start using more server resources to handle the quick increase in traffic. This will always mean that your website has fewer tools to use, slowing it down and making it less effective.

The website in question is not the target of the attack; rather, it is only being exploited as a target.

4. IP address shared

An IP address is a unique number that tells the internet what kind of device it is, like your computer or cell phone. Servers are also computers that connect to the internet, so each has its own IP address.

One IP address would belong to a shared computer, meaning all the websites that connect to it would use the same IP address.

If a nearby website does something illegal or sends spam to its customers, the IP address is marked as insufficient and put on a blacklist. This is going to hurt your site in several ways:

• Firewalls will see your website as harmful and stop users from reaching it.
• Some email companies, like Gmail, will put your IP address on a “blacklist.” Any emails you send will end up in your customers’ spam folders.
• Search engines like Google will put your site on a “blacklist” and mark it as not safe.

Protecting Your Website from The Security Risks of Shared Hosting

The easiest thing to do might be to never use shared hosting, but not everyone can pay for their computer and IP address. Here are four steps you can take on your website to lower the risks of shared hosting:

1. Install a Security Plugin

When you make changes to your site, you need to do this, whether you use shared hosting or a private server.

If you have a good protection plugin for WordPress, hackers, and other bad people will not be able to get into your site. The security tool should be able to tell if someone on your shared platform is trying to hack into your site or run malicious code.

2. Check your Shared Host

Pick web hosting providers with a good reputation and a history of providing dependable shared hosting services and following fair usage guidelines. The leaders in the field are very worried about their reputations and won’t work with people known to be wrong. They also have many steps to take to remove junk websites from their platforms.

Staying with top web hosting providers will make your website much less likely to be shut down. Always read reviews on separate websites when looking for a shared hosting plan.

3. Configure File Permissions

Hackers can try to get into your WordPress files if they are on a shared computer, as we already said. You can prevent this by ensuring that only you, the website owner, can view the files by setting the correct permissions.

You must go to cPanel to change file rights in your hosting account.

4. Prevent PHP execution in unidentified folders.

Hackers will use any weaknesses on your website to create their files and folders. This will let them do bad things on your websites, like sending people to other sites or sending unwanted emails to customers.

A computer language called PHP is usually used to run code. Even though your website needs to run PHP, it’s only used in specific files. By blocking PHP execution in folders that aren’t known, you can stop hackers from doing their work.

5. Run a malware checker.

Use tools to protect yourself from malware and viruses. The company that hosts your website will have a list of programs that can run on their servers. These apps are an extra layer of security for your website.

Set up the permissions for your files as well. This will change the settings on your cPanel homepage so that you can only see your files. Online, there are a lot of tips that are easy to follow, and the process itself is pretty simple. This will help you in the long run, so take a few minutes to do it.

6. Plan for backups and disaster recovery.

Backups and emergency recovery plans must be developed and used to keep shared hosting safe. These steps are essential to support business operations in case of a security breach or other disaster and to avoid losing data. If you want to set up and manage backups properly, here are some tips:

• Regular backups should be planned.
• It is important to maintain multiple copies of the files.
• Check that your backups are correct.
• Keep your backups safe.
• Set up automatic copies.

Here are some steps to make a disaster recovery plan:

• Make a plan of action for every possible risk.
• Test the disaster recovery plan often, and make changes as needed to account for changes to your website.

Conclusion

Shared hosting might be a cost-effective choice for small businesses and personal websites. However, it introduces several significant security problems, such as data breaches, DDoS attacks, inadequate user isolation, a lack of control over server configurations, and delayed loading. We may prevent these security weaknesses by installing plugins, checking the web hosting service provider, configuring file permissions, running a malware scanner, and other measures.