There’s a common misconception that WordPress is prone to getting hacked. Do you think the official White House website, and Nasa’s new website would be running WordPress if it was inferior and prone to security issues? If you’re following best general security practices, you will rarely run into issues.
On the other hand, if you’re running 57 third-party plugins on a shared GoDaddy plan, neglecting software updates, and haven’t audited your user accounts in a decade – you’re probably going to be dealing with security issues (not just with WordPress, but with any platform).
We take managing your website very seriously and do not want your reputation damaged. There can even be legal implications if customer data is stolen. An additional security layer, even in the form of a free plugin like Wordfence, can absolutely help tighten up your security on a WordPress website and is usually a good idea to implement – if nothing else, as a precaution.
It’s also helpful to have a rock solid web host – whether you’re running WordPress or another CMS. All of our managed WordPress packages include optional WP Engine hosting. They exclusively work within the WordPress ecosystem. In our experience, the level of support that WP Engine provides is miles above the usual bargain-bin suspects in the shared hosting space (GoDaddy, Hostgator, Bluehost, etc), and they’re constantly innovating on all technology fronts, including security.
One final note on this is that WordPress is not commonly hacked due to poor security practices, but rather it’s popularity. WordPress now powers over 40% of all websites on the internet, making it an attractive target for bad actors. The folks who are not following best security practices are going to be the most vulnerable. Think of it like parking your car in a big city and leaving the door wide open. Don’t give the bad guys a shortcut.