Around 13,000 WordPress websites are hacked every single day. The majority aren’t large corporations with dedicated IT teams. They’re small and medium-sized businesses that assumed their site was safe, or simply hadn’t thought about security at all.
If your website runs on WordPress, an automated bot is likely scanning it right now, looking for known weaknesses. These aren’t human attackers targeting your business specifically. They’re software tools running through millions of sites in seconds, looking for any with vulnerabilities. If your site has any of the mistakes below, they’ll find them.
Why WordPress Security Matters More Than You Think
WordPress powers over 40% of all websites on the internet, which makes it a high-value target. The UK Government’s Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2025/2026 found that 43% of UK businesses reported a security breach or attack in the past 12 months, equating to around 612,000 organisations. Not all of those came through websites, but a poorly maintained WordPress site is one of the most commonly exploited entry points.
There’s a legal dimension to this too. If your website handles personal data, which includes contact form submissions, email sign-ups, or customer enquiries, a breach could trigger your obligations under UK GDPR. The ICO has the power to issue substantial fines where a breach occurs because an organisation failed to take adequate technical security measures. Your website is part of your data processing setup, whether you think about it in those terms or not.
Mistake 1: Not Keeping WordPress, Plugins, and Themes Updated
The vast majority of successful WordPress hacks come through third-party plugins, not WordPress core itself. When a vulnerability is found in a plugin, security researchers publish the details publicly so developers can issue a patch. The problem is that hackers read those same disclosures. If you’re still running the old version after a vulnerability has been made public, you’re leaving an open door.
Automated bots scan millions of websites around the clock, checking which version of which plugins is installed. It takes seconds. You don’t have to be a well-known business to be targeted. You just need to be running software with a known flaw.
Keeping WordPress core, your theme, and every active plugin up to date is the most effective security step your business can take. The NCSC’s 10 Steps to Cyber Security consistently places patch management as one of the top priorities for any organisation. If you’re not doing this regularly, everything else matters less.
Mistake 2: Weak Passwords and Default Admin Usernames
Brute force attacks on WordPress sites are relentless. Security researchers have recorded tens of billions of automated login attempts annually, with bots running through millions of username and password combinations per site every day. Your login page is a constant target.
Default usernames like “admin”, “test”, or “administrator” are the first entries on every brute force list. If your admin username is still “admin” and your password is something short and memorable, your site is at risk. The fix is straightforward: change your admin username to something unique, use a long and complex password, and set a limit on login attempts so bots can’t keep hammering the login page. Adding two-factor authentication takes around five minutes to set up and makes brute force attacks near-impossible to carry out.
Mistake 3: No Reliable Backup System
If your site is compromised and you don’t have a clean backup, recovery becomes a long and expensive process. You may lose pages, content, and customer data that can’t be recovered. Rebuilding from scratch takes time and money, and your search rankings can take weeks to return even after the technical issue is resolved.
A solid backup system keeps copies of your site files and database stored somewhere separate from your hosting server. Backups kept on the same server as your website are near-useless in a serious hack. Attackers often compromise the whole server environment, which means a backup stored there is compromised too. You need off-site or cloud-based backups taken frequently enough that you wouldn’t lose weeks of content if the worst happened.
Mistake 4: Too Many Plugins You Don’t Actually Use
Every plugin installed on your site adds to your attack surface. More plugins means more code, and more code means more potential entry points. Many businesses install a plugin to solve a one-off problem, then forget it exists. Those forgotten plugins sit on the server, often outdated and sometimes vulnerable, causing risk even when they’re switched off.
A deactivated plugin is not a safe plugin. If it’s installed on your site, its files are still accessible and can still be exploited. Regularly checking what’s installed and removing anything you’re not actively using is a practical habit worth building. If you can’t remember why a plugin is there, that’s a strong sign it should probably go.
Mistake 5: No Control Over Who Has Admin Access
Every admin account is a potential entry point. If a web developer you worked with a couple of years ago still has full admin credentials, or a former employee has a login that was never removed, that’s a live vulnerability you might not even know about.
WordPress has different user roles for good reason. An editor doesn’t need admin rights. A copywriter doesn’t need to install plugins. Review your user list regularly, remove accounts that are no longer needed, and make sure each person has only the level of access their role actually requires. This is one of the quickest security improvements a business can make, and it’s one that’s almost always overlooked.
What These Mistakes Mean Under UK GDPR
If your WordPress website collects any personal data at all, a successful attack becomes a data protection issue, not just a technical one. Your website’s contact form, booking system, or sign-up page means you’re processing personal information. A breach that results from inadequate security measures puts you at risk of regulatory action.
UK GDPR requires certain types of data breach to be reported to the ICO within 72 hours of becoming aware of it. Missing that window, or not having appropriate technical measures in place to begin with, makes the situation worse. Poor security on your website doesn’t have to be malicious to result in consequences. It just has to be negligent.
How to Fix This Without It Taking Over Your Time
None of these five mistakes needs a major overhaul to address. Most can be fixed in stages, and having someone look after your WordPress site on an ongoing basis means they don’t quietly return over time.
Our WordPress maintenance services cover updates, backups, security monitoring, and access management, keeping your site protected without you having to check it manually. If you think your site may already be compromised, our WordPress malware removal service cleans it up properly and hardens it against repeat attacks.
For ongoing protection, a WordPress care plan gives you consistent cover rather than reactive fixes when something goes wrong. If you want broader security for your business beyond just the website, our cyber security services provide cover at the business level too.
Not sure where your site currently stands? Get in touch and we’ll take a look at what it needs.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know if my WordPress website has been hacked?
Common signs include your site redirecting visitors to a different website, search engines flagging your site as dangerous, unexpected admin users appearing in your WordPress dashboard, or your site running noticeably slower than usual. Your hosting provider may also send a warning about suspicious activity. If anything feels off, get it checked quickly rather than waiting to see if it sorts itself out.
How often should I update WordPress plugins?
As soon as updates are available. Plugin updates frequently contain security patches for known vulnerabilities. Leaving a plugin unpatched after a vulnerability has been made public gives attackers a known entry point. A managed WordPress maintenance service applies updates promptly and checks that nothing has broken as a result, so updates don’t create problems of their own.
Is WordPress secure enough for a business website?
WordPress core is actively maintained and receives regular security patches from a large team of developers. The risk comes from how individual sites are set up and looked after. A WordPress site that’s kept up to date, uses strong access controls, has reliable backups, and is monitored can be a sound platform for a business. One that’s left to run itself is a different situation.
What should I do if my WordPress site gets hacked?
Take your site offline if you can, to stop it spreading malware to visitors. Contact your hosting provider straight away. Don’t attempt to clean it yourself unless you have the technical knowledge to do so thoroughly. Partial clean-ups often miss backdoors that attackers leave behind. A professional malware removal service will clean the site properly and address the vulnerability that was used to gain access.
Do I need a WordPress security plugin?
A security plugin adds a useful layer of protection but it isn’t a replacement for proper maintenance. Security plugins can block brute force attacks, scan for malware, and alert you to suspicious activity. They work best as part of a broader approach that includes regular updates, strong passwords, controlled access, and reliable backups. A plugin alone won’t protect a site that hasn’t been updated in months.
How much does WordPress security cost?
It depends on the level of cover you need. A managed WordPress care plan typically starts from around £50 per month, covering updates, backups, security monitoring, and support. Dealing with a hack after the fact, including malware removal, potential data loss, and damage to your search rankings and reputation, almost always costs significantly more. Prevention tends to be far cheaper than recovery.