While it’s true that a significant number of websites are facing risks today, it’s the eCommerce industry that is bearing the major heat. Currently, the Magento Content Management System (CMS) is powering 25% of all eCommerce stores across the world. Hence, it’s clear that it’s an admired platform for store owners. 

Being one of the leaders in the eCommerce space, it has become a coveted target. Not just that, it also acts as a sea of financial and personal data, making it even more appealing in the eyes of hackers.

Apparently, XSS is the major threat to Magento while code execution, directory traversal, SQL injection, Magento store redirecting, and CSRF following the suite.

Such thefts can be harming to your brand’s reputation as they can lead to identity theft, fake transactions, data theft and more such illegal activities. 

To counter these issues, you will have to make sure that your Magento eCommerce store is protected at all times. Don’t fret! There are several sets of best practices that can help you decrease such risks systematically. 

So, if you’re using a Magento store and wish to keep the platform safeguarded, you’ve stepped into the right place. In this extensive and comprehensive guide, let’s find out the top security tips for your Magento Store Protection. 

How to Secure Your Magento Store?

Jotted down below are some of the most successful and widely implemented Magento store protection tips. Let’s get started. 

1. Use the Latest Version of Magento

A lot of times, people would fill up your minds with their own notions regarding how the most recent version of Magento is not an appropriate one. The primary reason behind this would be people think that the new version may not be secured properly.

While this might be true to a certain extent, developers generally fix issues from the previous releases in the new versions. Thus, it is important that you be informed regarding the latest versions. 

Once a stable release comes out, you must perform the Magento testing before it can be implemented. 

2. Use Strong Passwords

Undeniably, a password would be the key to your Magento store protection. This is why you must pay specific attention when deciding upon one. When creating a password, you must use a mix of lower- and upper-case alphabets, numbers and some special characters. 

If you think you won’t be able to remember a difficult password, you can use password management software or tool and store the passwords in it. Also, keep in mind that you shouldn’t use the Magento store’s passwords to log into any other website. 

It’s always recommended that you keep Magento passwords different from that of the rest of the applications for Magento store protection. 

3. Use Two-Factor Authentication

Magento 2 platform provides a superb Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) extension that offers a layer of surreptitious movement or stealth. It only lets trusted devices access the backend of Magento 2 by using four varying authenticators. 

The inbuilt Magento Two Factor Authentication extension further lets you improve the admin login security of your eCommerce store through the security code and password from your smartphone. Also, make sure you’re only sharing the code with authorized users to access the admin panel.

If not the inbuilt extension, you can also try third-party extensions to integrate the two-factor authentication security layer and add to your Magento store protection.

4. Change Magento Admin URL

It’s obvious that you’ll be accessing the Magento admin panel by visiting thesite.com/admin, right? But this method is quite easy for hackers to get to the Magento admin login page and begin a brute force attack. 

You can avert this by changing your Magento admin URL to a more customized term. Make sure you use a keyword other than ‘backend’ or ‘admin’. This will not just be difficult for hackers to find the path to your store but will also refute their actions even if they’ve got hold of your password. 

If you’re using Magento 1, you can change the admin URL by editing the local.xml file. If you’re using Magento 2, you can edit the env.php file to change the URL. 

You can follow these steps to change the default admin URL:

• Visit the admin panel
• Choose System and then Configuration
• Go to the Admin Base URL section and:
  • Set the Use Custom Admin URL to Yes and enter the Custom Admin URL
  • Set the Custom Admin Path to Yes and enter the Custom Admin Path’s name. You can choose something that is difficult to guess.
  • Lastly, click the Save Config option 

You can now log into your Magento store using a newly created URL.

5. PCI-DSS Compliance

Considering that eCommerce sites are dealing with sensitive payment data of their customers, they need vigilant monitoring. Thus, the Payment Card Industry (PCI), which is an association of top credit card organizations, supervises Magento store protection of the sites. 

Being an online business owner, it is essential that you provide a guaranteed safe checkout to your customers. Thus, the PCI-DSS needs all Magento sites to use secure and standard credit card handling. If you don’t comply with the same, you will have to pay severe penalties and hefty fines. 

What is Included in PCI Compliance?

Under PCI compliance, the security requirements comprise procedures and policies, network architecture and software design. In simple language:

In the end, if you don’t adhere to the above-mentioned guidelines as drafted by PCI-DSS, you will be, knowingly or unknowingly, opening doors for hackers, hurting your Magento store protection.

6. Backup Regularly

Taking stringent preventive measures to ensure Magento store protection is great. However, you should also have a functioning backup regularly. You can have an hourly offsite backup plan along with downloadable backups.

However, to make these backups more functional, you will have to look into a few things, such as:

• The files that can be included
• The backup’s functionality
• The backup’s frequency

In case, for any reason whatsoever, your site is hacked or gets crashed, a backup will make sure that there are no major interruptions in your service. By arranging backups via an online backup provider or storing the site’s backup files in an offsite location, you can easily avert data loss.

 You can also check with your hosting provider if they have a backup strategy. Most probably, you’ll find a good one with them. Also, before you begin backing up the site, make sure you understand the important factors. 

A backup should comprise all the files that are important for the configuration, workings and look of your site. With a Magento site, you can take four types of backups:

• System backup (comprises source code, database and media)
• A system without media backup
• Database backup (only for the database)
• Database with media backup

Also, keep in mind that you:

• Put the site in maintenance mode before taking the backup. Your site will automatically come out of this mode post the backup.
• Ensure that the database and server are backed up to an external location rather than the server.

A system backup is the most vital backup as it comprises both the database and the source code. But, you can choose the type according to your requirements. 

As far as the frequency is concerned, it varies based on how frequently you are updating the site’s content. You can either go for daily, weekly or monthly backups. 

7. Disable Directory Indexing

Another vital method to improve Magento store protection is by disabling directory indexing. Once you have disabled this option, you can conceal varying paths via which your domain’s files are stored. 

It simply discourages cyber crooks from gaining access to the core files of your Magento eCommerce store. However, know that they can still access the data if they’re already familiar with the entire path of the data.

8. Limit Magento Login Attempts

Another secure method to lock the admin panel and keep it away from attackers is to restrict the number of failed attempts to log in. You can also limit the number of password reset requests if you want. 

In a way, it will help you safeguard the site from unauthenticated login attempts. Here is how you can do it:

If you’re using Magento 1.x, follow these steps:

• Log into your Magento admin panel
• Go to System
• Click on Configuration
• Visit Advanced > Admin
• There, click on the Security option to expand it
• Change the relevant settings

If you’re using Magento 2.x, follow these steps:

• Log into your Magento admin panel
• Go to Stores > Settings 
• Click on Configuration
• Visit Advanced > Admin
• There, click on the Security option to expand it
• Change the relevant settings

9. Apply Magento Security Patches

If you’re running your store on vulnerable and outdated versions, it will be the biggest cause of harm and hack in your CMS. Thus, make sure you always run the store on the latest version of Magento.

This way, you’ll make sure that your installation doesn’t have any vulnerability. Every update will have the latest security improvements. For that, you can visit – https://magento.com/security to find the latest updates. 

However, regardless of the reason, if you’re unable to upgrade to the latest version, ensure that you’ve installed all the security patches as Magento has recommended. Though Magento releases security patches to resolve significant problems, new product releases also have extra improvements that can help you in securing the website. 

10. Manage the Users and User Roles

Defining the right user roles is helpful in segregating responsibilities and duties. It also improves the security of the store as every user isn’t going to be happy with all the available permissions. And then, there are varying levels of permissions as well.

You can assign roles to every user on the basis of their duties and your preference. To set up the correct user roles, follow these steps:

• Log into your Magento website and open the dashboard
• Visit System
• Click Permissions
• There, you’ll get to see two options: Users and Roles
• Roles is the area where you can define the roles for everybody in your team, and Users is the area where you can assign them those roles

So, handle accordingly.

11. Use Magento Security Extensions

Security extensions are extremely helpful as they provide a variety of features that look after diverse dynamics for Magento store protection. One of the best things here is that you will find these extensions for a variety of purposes.

Whether you want something to avert break-in attempts or to ensure proper implementation of two-factor authentication, you have a gamut of options available to choose from.

Also, these plugins are designed in such a way that they safeguard both the site’s data and the data of your customers as well.

12. Use a Web Application Firewall

By now, you’d know that eCommerce stores are the favorite targets of hackers. In fact, a study conducted back in 2003 claimed that the internet is attacked every 39 seconds. In such a scenario, using a web application firewall can help evaluate the traffic and find out any suspicious patterns.

With a firewall, you can easily block malicious IPs and traffic that would attempt to hack the store. This way, you can protect the store from a variety of threats, including SQL injection, RFI, LFI, XSS, and more.

The presence of a firewall on your site is nothing less than a security shield. It is, undoubtedly, the best method to deploy a website monitoring mechanism that works in real-time. 

13. Always Use an Encrypted Connection (SSL/HTTPS)

The moment you send data across an unencrypted connection, be it login details or anything else, there is always a risk of the data being seized. Such an interception can provide assailants with a glance into the credentials. To remove such issues, it’s important to use a secure connection on your Magento eCommerce website.

In the Magento platform, you can get a secure SSL/HTTPS URL by simply checking the “Use Secure URLs” tab available in the configuration menu. It’s also a vital element in making the site compliant with the data security standards set by the PCI and safeguarding online transactions. 

14. Enable Magento CAPTCHA

Abbreviated for the Completely Automated Public Turing test, CAPTCHA tells the difference between humans and computers. Rather, it’s self-explanatory. Thus, CAPTCHA is the best way to discourage any bot attack on your admin panel.

You can enable CAPTCHA on your Magento store by following these steps:

If you’re using Magento 1.x:

• Go to Systems
• Click Configuration
• Visit Advanced >> Admin
• Expand the section of CAPTCHA
• Select Yes to enable it

If you’re using Magento 2.x:

• Go to Stores and click Settings
• Click Configuration
• Visit Advanced >> Admin
• Expand the section of CAPTCHA
• Select Yes to enable it

15. Invest in a Good Hosting Plan

When running an eCommerce business, shared hosting is never a good idea. Generally, if you’re just starting out, opting for shared hosting may seem like a perfect option. However, investing in it will simply mean that you’re compromising on the security of your store.

While you can go for the dedicated hosting as well, it might turn out to be inefficient since you’ll be limited to a single server. It restricts the resources. And, if there’s a sudden spike in the store traffic, the entire site will crash.

On the other hand, a managed cloud provider could be your best bet. It guarantees substantial security with periodic patches at the level of the server. Keep in mind that hosting plans available at a lower cost doesn’t offer promising features. Thus, keep your distance from these plans as they may give up during times of security problems. 

16. Turn on Session Expiration

Magento, by default, automatically logs out all the admins when connections are left idle for a certain time. Thus, if you have not turned on session expiration yet, it is time to do so. Also, you can even decrease or increase the interval as per your own requirements. 

If you are using Magento 1.9 or any older version, follow these steps to change the session timeout interval:

• Log in to the platform through the administrator account
• On the top menu bar, go to System and click Configuration
• On the left side, scroll towards the end of the page
• Under Advanced, click Admin
• Choose Security
• In the Session Lifetime text box, enter the session timeout interval (in seconds) that you wish to use. For example, if it is 20 minutes, you can put 1200
• Click Save Config

Log out of the site and log back in again. 

If you are using Magento 2, you can change the session timeout interval using these steps:

• Log in to the platform through the administrator account 
• In the left sidebar, click Stores
• Under Settings, choose Configuration
• Click Advanced and choose Admin
• Go to Security, and in the Admin Session Lifetime (seconds) text box, enter the session timeout interval (in seconds) that you wish to use. For example, if it is 20 minutes, you can put 1200
• Click Save Config

After that, simply log out of the site and log back in again. 

17. Whitelist IP Address for Magento

Another smart way to secure your Magento eCommerce store is by whitelisting only chosen Ips to reach the admin panel. Hence, you can use IP whitelisting along with .htaccess password protection to stop access to any testing, staging or development systems. 

Considering that they are extremely sensitive systems, any compromise to them can turn into a bad brutal attack or data leak. To modify the .htaccess file to safeguard specific URLs from attackers, follow these methods:

If you’ve a single-store view Magento installation:

#####Secure admin RewriteCond %{REQUEST_URI} ^/(index.php/)?admin/ [NC,OR] RewriteCond %{REQUEST_URI} ^/downloader/ [NC] RewriteCond %{REMOTE_ADDR} !^my.ip.add.ress RewriteRule ^(.*)$ http://%{HTTP_HOST}/ [R=302,L]

In case your Magento is installed in a sub-directory or the store view as a virtual sub-directory of the primary domain, for example:

https://www.magento.com/features/

https://www.magento/com/en

https://www.magento.fr/

#####Secure admin RewriteCond %{REQUEST_URI} ^/(downloader shop/ en fr/)?(index.php/)?admin/ [NC,OR] RewriteCond %{REQUEST_URI} ^/downloader/ [NC] RewriteCond %{REMOTE_ADDR} !^my.ip.add.ress RewriteRule ^(.*)$ http://%{HTTP_HOST}/ [R=302,L]

Another important method to whitelist IP addresses is to use a Magento extension. Such a tool can grant store access to certain IP addresses. With this tool, you can effortlessly block traffic from unsolicited IP addresses, regions and countries. Furthermore, you can even choose to either block access to the whole store or to certain products and web pages. 

18. Set Recommended Magento File Permissions

To suit Magento for your certain business requirements, you might need to customize the store. Folders and files, along with their relevant permissions, play an integral part in the entire scenario. However, it is even more complicated.

To ensure utmost security, experts recommend having 755 permission for directories and 644 permission for files. Having said that, there are such files on your site that may need diverse permission than the ones mentioned above.

You can set the Folder permissions as 700 through this method:

• Open the site through FTP
• Go to the Magento installation folder, example /path/to/your/Magento/install/
• Now, on the folder, right-click and choose the File Permissions option
• Once you’ve clicked on the option, a new window will open up
• Insert 700 in the field of Numeric Value
• And then, enable the Recurse into subdirectories option
• Choose the checkbox labelled as Apply to directories only
• Click OK

If the files are several, this process might take a few minutes to get complete.

You can set the Folder permissions as 600 through this method:

• Open the site through FTP
• Go to the Magento installation folder, example /path/to/your/Magento/install/
• Now, on the folder, right-click and choose the File Permissions option
• Once you’ve clicked on the option, a new window will open up
• Insert 600 in the field of Numeric Value
• And then, enable the Recurse into subdirectories option
• Choose the checkbox labelled as Apply to files only
• Click OK

If the files are several, this process might take a few minutes to get complete.

19. Install Only Trusted Extensions

Vulnerable and unupdated third-party extensions could be the root cause of several hacks. So, make sure you’re installing extensions only from sources that are trusted. In this case, you can use Magento security extensions. 

In case you’re installing any plugin or extensions from an unknown source, make sure you check the reviews and statistics from Magento Marketplace to identify the credibility of the developer. 

Also, avoid using any paid extension that gets published on external or torrent sites. Keep a check for the support that the extension is offering. Not to forget the frequency of updates and maintenance that the extension gets. When reviewing the extension, always look for security issues before you install it. 

20. Magento Security Audit

Maintaining a Magento eCommerce store also means that you should audit it periodically. A security audit assists you in identifying backdoors, loopholes and broken security structures before these vulnerabilities are discovered by a hacker. 

If you’re not a professional, you can avail of security audit services by HumCommerce. This platform has several experts who are competent enough to conduct an in-depth security audit while you continue doing your business.

This security audit is meant to uncover every vulnerability, backdoor and loophole that your store might contain. HumCommerce’s security engineers will also assist you in fixing these issues. 

Hire Magento 2 / Adobe Commerce Experts

Now that you have understood the importance of keeping your Magento store protected and away from the evil eyes of hackers, know that hiring a professional to do this job is always worthwhile. 

At HumCommerce, you can find a variety of affordable Magento 2 / adobe commerce services. Getting in touch with HumCommerce simply means handing over your store to experts. 

They are adept at a variety of services, such as performance audit and optimization, Magento migration services, theme development, customization services, eCommerce PWA development, testing, and much more.

Conclusion

Undoubtedly, developing an attractive online store needs a huge number of efforts. And, as far as maintaining it is concerned, it is even more burdensome. But surely not impossible. With these best security tips for Magento store protection, you will surely get to take a step forward towards blocking out all the troublemakers from your site.

If you wish to deal with things even more professionally, get in touch with HumCommerce today and ensure the utmost Magento store protection of your eCommerce store. 

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