Stories of virus and malware infections, data loss, systems compromise and unauthorized access dominate headlines, and your WordPress website may be contributing to the problem. I could share the percentage of WordPress-powered sites that become compromised, but the statistic is so high you might think I’m exaggerating. The fact remains: WordPress sites are among the most attacked and infected on the internet. Protect your WordPress site, and your data, readers, users and company, by regularly auditing your WordPress site’s security configuration.

Sometimes addressing tough challenges proves so daunting that actual action is delayed. While you should always be monitoring, evaluating and adjusting any audit process, get started by not overthinking the problem. Immediate action that at least addresses fundamentals is always a smart first step. Continual review and refinement can occur as you go.

WordPress sites, which leverage databases and ecommerce packages and enjoy support from third-party themes and thousands of plugins, quickly become complex, making it harder for some to know how to begin. That’s true with so many practices and technologies.

Fortunately, checklists are proven tools that help practitioners consistently complete expert behaviors. While not foolproof, checklists eliminate many common errors. It’s important to introduce a corresponding checklist into your regular recurring WordPress security auditing routine. Check out the accompanying WordPress security checklist template from TechRepublic Premium.