There are plenty of ways to compromise the security of a Magento site: skipping updates, installing questionable extensions, or even just having an easily-guessable password. Hackers could use ransomware to take control of your website, steal customer data, or turn your site into a personal phishing hole. However, if there aren’t obvious vulnerabilities to exploit, hackers will (usually) move on in search of low-hanging fruit.
You can follow common methods to secure your Magento site, but the best way to keep your site secure is by monitoring site activity (e.g., users, servers, applications, network devices), establishing response protocols for different types of security threats, and implementing the right safeguards when risks are detected.
Our Magento development agency, IronPlane, offers comprehensive security and 24/7 site monitoring to cover those bases for you. Not only that, but as your agency partner, we can also help you follow Magento best practices to lock down your site, add users (with the appropriate roles), backup site data, and formulate disaster recovery plans.
In this post, we:
- Explain known Magento vulnerabilities
- Define the different types of malware attacks
- Review best practices to keep your Magento site secure
- Discuss IronPlane’s Magento security services
Or, you can have our team of experts assess your Magento site security and determine areas for improvement by scheduling a free consultation and site audit.
Magento Vulnerabilities
Cyberattacks are a numbers game: most hackers would rather search for poorly-guarded websites than spend time and effort going after a secure one. Here are some website security vulnerabilities they tend to watch for:
1. Outdated infrastructure
Magento 1 is no longer updated and requires constant monitoring to keep secure. But even on Magento 2, neglecting updates and Magento security patches can compromise security.
For example, the TrojanOrders attacks in early 2022 targeted almost 40% of Magento 2 websites. In response, Adobe released a security patch to address the vulnerability and secure sites. However, unpatched sites remain at risk.
2. Third-party elements
Magento sites are only as secure as their weakest link; extensions and third-party integrations can cause problems if they are poorly designed or not updated. Therefore, it’s important to research reliable vendors so you can be sure all code you add to your site is trustworthy.
A development partner can be a valuable resource to assess extensions for your Magento site.
3. Poor password management
All the most advanced software in the world won’t protect your site if you give the wrong person your password. One common tactic to get people to hand over their information is to impersonate legitimate sources (AKA phishing). For instance, a hacker might send an email from “IT support” claiming your site will be shut down unless you provide your login info. Legitimate organizations, however, will never ask for your password.
Types of Cyber Attacks
Here are the most common types of cyberattacks to be aware of:
- Ransomware — software used to block users’ access to their site until they pay the hackers to restore it.
- Direct Denial of Service (DDoS) — a type of server attack in which traffic is artificially increased until the server overloads and crashes.
- Data breach — the unauthorized access of user or customer data by a third party (e.g., when hackers steal credit card data).
- Vandalism — alteration or defacement of the frontend of your online store.
- Botnet — a group of infected computers or servers used to either spread malicious code or perform (usually illicit) tasks for the hacker controlling them.
- Remote code execution and cross-scripting — the process of adding unauthorized code or scripts to a site. Cross-scripting is more common in Magento 1. This allows hackers to do anything from adding a keylogger (to see what users type into input fields on your site) to altering links and redirecting customers to their domains.
Magento Security Best Practices: What You Can Do to Secure Your Site
Above all else, the most important thing you can do to maintain site security is to treat the associated costs as an integral part of your digital commerce budget. It is easy to say you don’t need strong security when you have never been hacked, but waiting until after the hack is much more costly. The scope of Magento vulnerabilities can be daunting, but whether you’re setting up your site or managing an existing one, there are several things you can do to keep it secure.
- Make sure your site is hosted through a provider you can trust, like Amazon Web Services (AWS). Also, keep on-site external backup servers to secure your data in the event of a main server crash.
- Only add extensions or other code to your site after verifying the source. You should also keep an eye on new installations to make sure they’re working as intended. Finally, when adding multiple extensions to your site, double-check their compatibility to make sure they don’t cause complications with site code.
- Use strong passwords containing a mix of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. Don’t include personal information or anything that’s easy to guess, like “P@ssw0rd.” If you’re worried about remembering your login info, it might be worth using an encrypted password manager.
- Enable two-factor authentication (2FA) to add a layer of protection to your site and authenticate users with a second account or device. Also, enable 2FA for the email account linked to your Magento login.
- Be aware of phishing attempts and avoid clicking suspicious links.
- Develop a disaster recovery plan for how to mitigate damage if your website is compromised. For each worst-case scenario, consider who will need to be brought in to repair the damage and how these teams will communicate. Make sure to update this plan at regular intervals and after any major changes to the site. It is particularly important to consider customer and public notification approaches to ensure you stay ahead of any bad news.
IronPlane Magento Security: How Our Agency Boosts & Manages Site Security
As a dedicated Magento development agency, IronPlane can completely manage your Magento website — from choosing the right hosting provider to maintaining your site (including site security) over the long haul.
When you first partner with us, we’ll conduct a free consultation and site audit to understand the concerns you have with your Magento site and security features, and gauge your current website “health.” We can dig into your site code — looking at your Magento version, theme, third-party extensions, and custom modules — and identify any notable security risks. Then we can plan the best action items to address any vulnerabilities.
Once we have an idea of where we want to begin, we can plan the next steps with your team. We’ll usually suggest completing one of our more comprehensive audits as well, so we can get a holistic view of what’s happening on your site (on both the front and backend).
You can view our audit options below:
Click here to learn more about our Magento Site Audits.
Once we’ve taken a closer look at what’s going on behind the scenes, we can outline:
- Current website issues — not just specific to site security, but across the board; we can identify issues that impact conversion rates, suggest UX updates, and more.
- Recommended solutions (for now and into the future) — we don’t just point out “what’s going wrong,” we also provide suggestions to improve site security, performance, and design.
- Strengths of your Magento store — understand where your store is performing well and build upon that momentum.
During our collaborative brainstorming, we can talk about improving site security, revamping your site design, adding integrations, creating custom functionality, and so on. We’ll touch on all of the findings and suggestions from our code audit so you can make the best decisions for your eCommerce site.
You’re always in the driver’s seat during this partnership; we confirm and schedule website projects based on your business priorities. So your short and long-term goals are always what’s driving our efforts.
Then, we’ll get to work!
Beyond addressing your current website issues and security risks, we’ll work with you after the fact to monitor and keep your site secure. We do that by:
1. Implementing Magento updates
We install necessary features and security updates and make sure you’re always running the latest version of Magento. This protects your site from hackers targeting out-of-date sites (re: the 2022 TrojanOrders attacks).
2. Managing architecture and user permissions
IronPlane manages technical aspects of site security — including file permissions, secured file transfer protocols, configuration settings, access to staging sites and development systems, and custom paths for admin panels. This means the only people who can access your site are authorized Magento admin users, preventing both deliberate sabotage and accidental damage.
3. Monitoring your site
When it comes to identifying and responding to cyberattacks, speed is essential. That’s why IronPlane provides live monitoring and alert systems, with different levels available depending on your site’s needs.
- The Essentials package includes core services like server monitoring, web monitoring, and a status page.
- The Advanced package is a robust service that delivers automated notifications for a more rapid response, it also adds in the eComscan.
- The Enterprise package is best suited for companies with minimal risk tolerance and high volume. It includes additional web surveillance and a real user monitor.
Click here to learn more about our Security Monitoring.
Beyond Magento Security
As an eCommerce development company with experience with Magento Open Source and Adobe Commerce, IronPlane offers a full suite of services to enhance every aspect of your site.
These include:
- Custom Magento development — we create custom themes, extensions, and integrations to meet your business’s unique needs.
- Magento migration services — whether you’re on Magento 1 or a different platform like Shopify or BigCommerce, we can ensure a smooth transition to Magento 2.
- Magento site optimization — we can help you enhance performance, engagement, and conversions from your website (e.g., boost site speed, optimize Javascript and CSS, increase checkout rates, etc.).
- UX review & design — we can improve the user experience by addressing any issues with your website theme, navigation, usability, or accessibility.
- Optimized Magento hosting — our managed AWS cloud hosting comes with 24/7/365 monitoring and support.
- Magento rescue — we can restore “broken” Magento sites and get you back up and running again.
Contact us to start a free consultation and site audit — our team will identify any current security risks and provide actionable insights to address existing vulnerabilities.
FAQs
1. How Secure Is Magento?
Magento is one of the most popular eCommerce platforms because it’s highly secure, stable, and well trusted. However, it does have known security risks, so it’s a good idea to take extra measures to secure your site.
Now, when we look at Magento 1 vs. Magento 2…
Magento 1 is considered less secure than Magento 2 because it is no longer updated. Despite this, knowledgeable users who carefully monitor their Magento sites can keep hackers out. Magento 2 is generally more secure, as long as users install updates and follow best practices.
2. Are There Magento Security Scanners?
Adobe offers a Magento Security Scan tool that can be accessed through your Adobe Commerce Marketplace account (for free). This service lets you check your Magento site for known security issues and missing updates. However, this tool may not be super helpful if you don’t have the knowledge or resources to resolve the issues it detects.
3. What Are the Top 4 Recommendations to Keep a Magento Store Secure?
- Keep Magento up-to-date and install new security patches.
- Protect your login by using strong passwords and enabling two-factor authentication.
- Only install trusted third-party content from reliable vendors.
- Ensure that only admins and developers have access to the site code and infrastructure.
See how our team of expert developers can bolster and maintain your Magento site security, schedule a free consultation and site audit.
Related reads:
Shaping eCommerce with Christian Lelaidier, Strategic Partnerships Manager at Front-Commerce
How to Tell if You Need a Magento Consultant for Your Online Store
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