A secure website is not just a benefit, it’s a necessity. Whether you're running a blog, an online store, or a business website, keeping your WordPress site secure protects your data, maintains uptime, and builds trust with your visitors.
In this article, we’ll walk you through a complete WordPress security audit checklist. You’ll learn how to manually inspect your site for vulnerabilities and automate the auditing process using trusted security tools and plugins.
What is a WordPress Security Audit?
A WordPress security audit is a comprehensive process used to evaluate the security status of your website. It involves identifying vulnerabilities, detecting suspicious activity, scanning for malware, and confirming that your security protocols are functioning as expected.
By regularly auditing your website, you reduce the risk of:
- Malware infections
- Unauthorized access
- SEO blacklisting
- Data breaches and customer information leaks
When Should You Perform a Security Audit?
Performing a security audit isn’t just a one-time task. To maintain a secure WordPress site, it's essential to conduct a full audit:
- Quarterly (every 3 months).
- Immediately after a major plugin/theme update.
- Right away if you notice any unusual behavior
Common warning signs that indicate it’s time for an audit include:
- Sudden drop in traffic or search engine rankings.
- Sluggish website performance or unexpected downtime.
- Suspicious user accounts or login attempts.
- Unauthorized content appearing on the site.
- Frequent password reset requests or alerts from your hosting provider.
Manual WordPress Security Audit Checklist
Performing a manual audit allows you to get hands-on with your site and review key areas where vulnerabilities often hide. Below are the steps to follow.
1. Ensure WordPress Core, Plugins, and Themes Are Up to Date: Keeping your website software current is your first line of defense. Updates often include critical security patches that fix known exploits.
To check for updates:
- Log into your WordPress admin dashboard.
- Navigate to Dashboard → Updates.
- Install any available updates for WordPress, plugins, or themes.
Tip: Enable automatic updates for plugins and themes to stay ahead of threats.
2. Review All User Accounts and Login Permissions: Unauthorized users with admin privileges pose a serious risk. Always monitor who has access to your website.
Steps to review user accounts:
- Go to Users → All Users.
- Scan the list for unfamiliar usernames or roles.
- Remove any suspicious accounts that don’t belong.
If your website doesn’t require open registration:
- Visit Settings → General.
- Ensure “Anyone can register” is unchecked.
Additionally:
- Change your admin password regularly.
- Require strong passwords for all users.
- Enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) to secure login access.
3. Run a Malware Scan on Your Website: A critical part of any WordPress security check is scanning your website for malware and malicious code. Use reliable tools that can detect infections even if your site looks normal on the front end.
Recommended online malware scanners:
- IsItWP Security Scanner
- Wordfence Free Scanner
- SiteCheck by Sucuri
Note: These scanners can only detect vulnerabilities on publicly visible pages. For in-depth scans, use a plugin-based scanner that accesses server-side files.
4. Analyze Website Traffic and User Behavior: Tracking your traffic helps you spot irregular patterns. A compromised site may show:
- A sharp decline in page views.
- New traffic from unknown or spam sources.
- Blocklisting by Google or other search engines.
Use analytics tools like:
- Google Analytics (via MonsterInsights).
- Jetpack Stats.
- Matomo for WordPress.
Note: Look for metrics such as bounce rate, average session duration, and unusual spikes or drops in traffic.
5. Verify WordPress Backup System: A working backup is your safety net if something goes wrong. You should not only install a backup plugin, but also confirm that it’s saving files regularly and storing them securely.
Key actions:
- Ensure backups are scheduled (daily or weekly).
- Test your backups periodically to ensure they’re restorable.
- Store copies offsite (e.g., Google Drive, Dropbox, Amazon S3).
Popular WordPress backup plugins:
- UpdraftPlus.
- BackupBuddy.
- BlogVault.
- Jetpack Backup.
How to Automate your WordPress Security Audit
Manual audits are useful, but time-consuming. Automation ensures ongoing protection with minimal effort. Here's how to automate security auditing in WordPress using two powerful plugins.
1. Use WP Activity Log for User Activity Monitoring
WP Activity Log is a real-time tracking plugin that logs every action taken by users on your site.
What you can monitor:
- Login attempts and IP addresses.
- Changes made to posts, plugins, and settings.
- WooCommerce order actions and customer behavior.
- Active sessions of each user.
Benefits:
- Identify compromised user accounts immediately.
- Lock out suspicious sessions in real-time.
- Maintain an audit trail for troubleshooting or compliance.
Note: This plugin is ideal for eCommerce, membership sites, or multi-author blogs.
2. Use Sucuri for Firewall Protection and Malware Scanning
Sucuri Security Plugin offers a full suite of features that go beyond just malware scanning.
Key features:
- Web Application Firewall (WAF): Blocks malicious traffic before it hits your server.
- Malware Scanning: Detects unauthorized changes and suspicious files.
- Blacklist Monitoring: Alerts you if your site is flagged by search engines.
- Free Malware Removal (included in all paid plans).
Sucuri also improves your site speed by offloading traffic and filtering out threats early.
Optional: Consider a Professional WordPress Maintenance Service
If you're managing a high-traffic or mission-critical website, you may want to hire a team of professionals to handle the technical aspects of site security. These are the benefits of a WordPress maintenance plan:
- 24/7 security monitoring and threat detection.
- Scheduled updates and patch management.
- Automated backups and malware cleanup.
- Uptime monitoring and performance optimization
This is a stress-free solution for non-technical users or business owners who don’t have time to handle security manually.
If you have questions or need assistance implementing any of the steps in this guide, our 24/7 support team is always here to help.
