5 Cybersecurity Practices Your Business Should Adopt for Your Website in the New Financial Year
As we kick off the new financial year, businesses need to remember that their cybersecurity can’t be overlooked, especially when your website is the digital front door to your organisation.
Last year there were 46 million data breaches in Australia alone, and we have a higher rate of cyber attacks, compared to the global average.
Securing your website is now essential for protecting your customer data, maintaining trust, and avoiding costly downtime or legal consequences. The good news? Proactive website security doesn’t need to be overly technical or expensive.
Here are 5 cybersecurity practices every business should adopt in the new financial year to ensure their website, and reputation stays protected.
1. Keep Your Website Platform, Plugins, and Themes Updated
Outdated software is one of the biggest entry points for cybercriminals. Whether you’re using WordPress, Shopify, Joomla, or another platform, cybercriminals often scan for vulnerabilities in outdated versions of content management systems (CMS) and plugins.
What You Should Do:
- Enable automatic updates where possible for core CMS features.
- Manually check for updates on plugins and themes at least weekly.
- Delete any outdated and unused plugins and themes to reduce your risk exposure.
2. Enforce Strong User Access Controls
If multiple team members or contractors have access to your website, poor access control can become a significant risk. Weak passwords, shared logins, or unused admin accounts are all vulnerabilities that cybercriminals can exploit.
What You Should Do:
- Use strong, unique passwords and change them regularly
- Implement Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) for all admin accounts
- Set appropriate user roles and permissions (e.g., not every user needs admin access)
- Review and remove old or inactive accounts quarterly
*For businesses using WordPress, plugins like WP 2FA or Loginizer can help secure login processes.
3. Install a Web Application Firewall (WAF)
A Web Application Firewall acts as a shield between your website and malicious traffic. It filters out suspicious users, bots, and common attack types like SQL injections or cross-site scripting (XSS), helping protect your site even before the attack hits.
What You Should Do:
- Choose a reputable WAF provider such as Sucuri, Cloudflare, or Wordfence.
- Regularly review your firewall’s activity logs to detect abnormal patterns.
- Combine WAF with real-time malware scanning to enhance security coverage.
Cloud-based firewalls like Cloudflare also offer performance improvements such as caching and DDoS protection, which is a bonus for site speed.
4. Regularly Backup Your Website
Backups are your last line of defence. If your website does get hacked, infected with malware, or accidentally deleted, a backup ensures you can restore it quickly without costly downtime or data loss.
What You Should Do:
- Schedule automatic backups daily or weekly, depending on how often your site is updated.
- Store backups off-site or in the cloud, not just on your hosting server.
- Test the restore process periodically to ensure backups are working.
*Backup tools like UpdraftPlus, BlogVault, or Jetpack Backup can simplify this process for WordPress users.
5. Secure Your Site with HTTPS and SSL Certificates
Google now considers HTTPS as a ranking factor, and browsers often warn users when visiting non-secure sites. An SSL certificate encrypts data transferred between your website and users, protecting login credentials, contact forms, and payment details.
What You Should Do:
- Make sure your site has an active SSL certificate and loads over HTTPS.
- If you haven’t yet made the switch, most hosts offer free SSL certificates or paid certificates with added protection.
- Force HTTPS for all pages using your CMS or through your server configuration.
Once implemented, check for mixed content errors (where some assets still load over HTTP), as this can affect security and performance.
Cybersecurity doesn’t need to be an afterthought. As we step into the new financial year strengthening your website’s security posture is a smart, cost-effective investment that protects your business, customers, and brand reputation.
Whether you run an eCommerce store, manage client data, or simply generate leads through your site, these 5 cybersecurity practices can help reduce your exposure to threats and set your business up for a more secure and resilient year ahead.
If your business lacks the internal resources to manage cybersecurity, consider engaging a website partner to provide support and maintenance. This investment can save you from major headaches in the long run.
Need help securing your website for the new financial year?
Contact us for a website security audit, maintenance, or ad hoc or ongoing support to keep your online presence secure, fast, and reliable.