What do you try to find in a web host? A small price? Reliability and excellent support I think. If you’re anything like today’s grand webmaster, you’re looking for the most excellent features. There are many programs and management tools available to make your site standout but I bet there are a few features you don’t think about at all. A lot ignored but one should never fail to remember about important security features as they will help to keep your web hosting environment protected from a range of fear. Security features are plentiful but here are some you just can’t do without:
SFTP: Short for Secure File Transfer Protocol, SFTP is more efficient and secure variation of FTP. In its purest form, FTP only has the facility to transfer files, leaving them open to a range of security breaches for example eavesdropping, tampering and even interception of the entire file. A web hosting company offering SFTP provides you with the ability to secure your files in transfer with SSH (Secure Shell Host), a procedure that protects data with government recommended 128-bit encryption.
SSL: Secure Sockets Layer or SSL, must be integrated on any website that sells products or services. SSL is a standard encryption protocol designed to keep internet communications secure. If a web hosting company doesn’t support a shared or private SSL certificate, you have to turn in the opposite direction and search for another provider.
Data Backups: Data backup and restoration is not only somewhat that must be practiced with the files on your hard drive, but those on the web host’s server also. All it takes is one technical difficulty or demolisher for the web hosting company to lose a server and all of your website data. The good thing is that nearly all providers perform surplus backups to make sure that your data can be restored in the event of a failure. To be on the secure side, I advise looking into a web host that offers a utility that allows you to backup your own data.
Network Security: Apart from protecting your files and website transactions, you also need to keep an eye out for security features that protect the web hosting company’s network. Do some research to learn how the web host is protecting their infrastructure, keeping in mind that intrusion detection systems, firewalls, DDoS protection, virus and spam filtering are general features. Servers are main targets of hackers and malicious code writers so if the hardware is breached or goes down, your website will suffer right along with it.
These are just some of numerous security features a web hosting company must offer to ensure the security of your website data. Hackers are continually trying to crack into web servers whereas malware writers are releasing new infectious strains day by day. A web host that doesn’t take this into mind is basically leaving you unprotected for exploitation.