If you have a website or are intending on building one then you may want to seriously consider taking steps to secure your website to prevent access from unauthorized users. This is true of Internet and Intranet sites.
In securing your website you have several options. There are many third party tools that can be used to make your site more secure. Here we will list some options that you have regarding Internet security.
- Right when choosing your web hosting company you need to ask about their servers and how secure they are. Do they update software quickly and automatically? What operating system is used and is it secure?
- Make sure that if you have sensitive data such as a customers credit card and/or personal information that is being transmitted or stored that you have Secure Sockets Layer protocol. Make sure the SSL is at a level that will keep data secure. The SSL is a way of encrypting information for security purposes. SSL is used for transmitted data only, this does not take care of your stored data that is on your server.
- You can use packet filtering and firewall settings to restrict the types of activity that are allowed on your site. This means that you can block FTP or make it password protected. You can also authorize only those IP’s or domain names that you want to have access to your site.
- Vulnerability scanners are used in some cases to find the weaknesses in your site’s security. These can be helpful if you have ecommerce and really need to be careful with your information. Scanners can be weak when it comes to web applications which means that this is one form of security measure to take but should not be solely relied upon.
- Most imperative is building web applications with secure coding. Some people are so worried about getting a site up and running that they don’t take the time to worry about security. This can bring devastating results.
- Unless you know about writing applications and other technical jargon, you may want to hire experienced professionals to meet the needs of your security. This isn’t something you want to take lightly and have your information or your customer’s be at risk.
