Is Shared Hosting a Secure Option for Your Website?
Whenever the terms ‘Shared Hosting’ and ‘security’ come up in the same sentence, it is usually to highlight the security issues with Shared Hosting plans. While there are certain disadvantages of hosting your website on a Shared Server, website hosting companies ensure that they offer the best security within a Shared Server setup. Today, we are going to talk about how web hosts ensure that your website hosted on a Shared Server gets a secure hosting environment.
Shared Hosting is an affordable hosting service where multiple users share a physical server. To ensure a secure hosting environment in a shared service, hosting companies follow these practices:
1. Restricted access
Most web hosts ensure that they offer limited access to the servers in their infrastructure. Usually, apart from authorised technicians, everyone else is restricted. They also use SSH or Secure Shell Access for logging into the server. Further, they whitelist IPs that are permitted to carry out maintenance tasks on the server. Root access is provided sparingly if any.
2. Regular monitoring of network
Another crucial process that ensures the security of a Shared Hosting service is regular monitoring of the network by the web host to identify any unauthorised activity. It nips the problem in the bud and helps avoid major disasters.
3. Firewall and SSL
Web hosting providers use a firewall as the first line of defence against online threats. It monitors the HTTP requests flowing through the web applications. Further, they also use SSL to encrypt the connection on the network.
4. Detecting and removing malware
Usually, web hosting companies run regular file scans on the client’s accounts to detect the presence of any malware. Once identified, they inform the client and work toward the removal of the same.
5. Preventing DDoS attacks
In recent times, a Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack has evolved as a significant threat to websites. These attacks flood the server with so much traffic that it becomes unavailable to real visitors. Once a site is under a DDoS attack, it becomes challenging to handle. Hence, the best option is to prevent it. Most Shared Web Hosting providers use the latest tools to keep DDoS attacks at bay.
6. Running regular updates
Web hosting companies always remind site owners to uninstall any software or applications that they don’t need as these can be breeding grounds for viruses and malware infections. They also run all server updates as soon as they are released, ensuring maximum protection against security threats.
Apart from the security measures taken by the hosting company, as a site owner, you can help boost the security of your site by using strong and difficult-to-guess passwords, using two-factor authentication, and creating regular backups of your website.
Summing Up
Remember, no hosting service is 100% secure. The level of security depends on the security protocols followed by the web host and the steps taken by you to ensure that your site remains safe. Hence, before you buy a web hosting plan, ensure that you research the security performance of the hosting company and be prepared to follow certain processes regularly yourself. Good Luck!
