“Why does our website seem so sluggish?” A client recently asked.
Much like the slow infected walkers on The Walking Dead, a hacked website can have a dramatically reduced loading speed. I set out to rid their website of it’s Walkers, Rick Grimes style.
First: Always CYA
I started by making a backup of their database. I never skip this step! If something goes wrong, your ass is covered.
[hr type=”single” margin_top=”40″ margin_bottom=”40″]
Lock It Down
[list type=”check”]
- CHANGE THE SALT KEY. The SALT key lives in the wp-config.php file. Doing this will log out any users currently logged into the WordPress install on the website. *Zap* Mutha F*ckers!
[/list]
[list type=”check”]
- CREATE ALL NEW PASSWORDS. This cannot be stressed enough. There are a number of passwords you will have to change, including the WordPress users, FTP, and the database password. Remove any unnecessary users and/or make sure anyone with administrator privileges should have them.
[Read more…] about Hacked: Has Your Website Become A Walker?