The Digital Housekeeping: Ensuring a Secure and Reliable Website

As a small business owner with no background in technology, you've embarked on an exciting journey to create your own website. You've done your research and chosen a hosting plan that comes with a convenient one-click installation of a popular Content Management System (CMS). With everything ready and available in today's digital age, you've taken the next steps to purchase or install free themes, plugins, and extensions to enhance your website's functionality and appearance.

Styling and fine-tuning your website has become a breeze with a user-friendly interface, offering drag-and-drop functionality, along with an intuitive array of buttons and fields. The end result is a fantastic website that you can be proud of. But have you ever paused to ponder the origins of these add-ons and extensions that you've incorporated into your website's framework?

Consider this: just as you scrutinize the origins of the products you consume, from cosmetics to food, cars, cellphones, and computers, it's essential to care about the quality, sustainability, security, and privacy of the digital components that constitute your website. In the world of website development, there are thousands of developers, small agencies, big companies, and enthusiastic individuals creating themes, plugins, and extensions for popular CMS platforms like WordPress.

In your quest to build a website, you may not have thought about the individuals or entities behind these plugins. You might wonder, should you actually care? The answer is a resounding yes. Your website could be handling sensitive information such as names, addresses, phone numbers, and potentially demographic or health data of your site's visitors. It's crucial to be aware of the potential risks and pitfalls that come with third-party extensions.

Do you know what each file in the installation directory of your CMS does? Are you equipped to notice if your website is silently sending data to third parties in the background, or worse, engaging in unauthorized cryptocurrency mining? Can you fathom the repercussions of a hidden backdoor that could allow unauthorized access to your website by nefarious actors?

These are nightmare scenarios that every website owner should consider when incorporating extensions into their CMS installation. The foundation of your online presence and the trust of your visitors hang in the balance.

So, what should you do? Begin by scrutinizing the background of the developer or company providing the plugin. Research their past work, and conduct a thorough online investigation by Googling their name and their products. Check whether their products have been involved in any exploits, hacks, or data breaches. By doing so, you're taking a proactive step in safeguarding the integrity, security, and privacy of your website and its users.

In the digital realm, just as in the physical world, it's paramount to prioritize quality, sustainability, security, and privacy. So, while you're crafting your online presence, remember that a little due diligence in vetting the origins of your digital components can go a long way in ensuring a trustworthy and resilient website.