Have you ever came up with a scenario where the Google Webmaster Tools’ “security tab” is displaying– now issues found—while a Google search of your website is showing–“This site may be hacked”?
Don’t worry you aren’t alone, there are far many who are witnessing the same scenario. While there are fair chances this is an error, a purported hack can’t be ignored either. Actually, in most circumstances the latter case is more likely.
Although the error can be easily rectified hitting “fetch as Google” in Google Webmaster Tools, a security check of your website using a third party website scanner is always a better option before proceeding with the step.
Are you using the latest version of WordPress?
From time to time, the security experts at WordPress check this content management tool for vulnerability. If found any, the experts release patches in the form of security update. Alongside, the update package, in addition to security patches, adds several new functionalities, bugs, and stability fixes.
Thus updating WordPress timely is recommend to keep bugs away and to make your site more secure. The current version of WordPress is 4.2.2. Make sure you’re on the latest version. If you can’t update WordPress regularly, at least consider updating the plugins. Plugins’ updated are just as WordPress updates comprise of security, bug, and stability fixes.
Check Website with SecuriCheck
No doubt, there are hundreds of such scanners in the market. SecuriCheck is, currently, the most popular solution in the market. It’s simple, fast and robust.
Scanning your website with Securicheck is as easy as visiting https://sitecheck.sucuri.net/, entering your website’s domain name in the box provided, hitting the “scan website” button, and waiting for the results.
If your site comes clean, simply hit the “fetch as Google” button in the Google Webmaster Tools and you’re good to go. After a week, search your website on Google and the warning should be gone by now.
However, if SucuriCheck comes down with anything red, well, time to reconsider your website’s security protocols and, above all, start working on that warning.
Clean the Website
Tens of reasons your website is showing a warning. It might be a
- Hacking
- Malicious code
- SQL injection
- Plugin Vulnerability.
Depending on the SucuriCheck’s result start cleaning your website; work on the result, refer “Known Spam detected. Details:” section just below the main results box for a deep insight on the problem. If there is an hack or a malware, it will be displayed in this section.
Plugin Vulnerability, on the other hand, can be easily rectified and avoided by:
- Constantly updating the plugins
- Only using plugins from a trusted source: Downloading a premium plugin free from a torrent site is a hearty invitation to malwares
- Replace the plugin if not updated for a long time.
Once you have cleaned the site thoroughly of malwares, recheck the website with Sucuricheck if the warning still persists.
The Site is clean, what now?
Check your website a few more times and if it comes clean every time, head straight to Google Webmaster Tools’ security tab and “fetch as Googlebot”.
Although Google updates its index every then and now so the warning should be gone robotically after sometime, “fetch as Googlebot” will accelerate the process of finding the fix and removing the hack warning, just make sure–“you specify Googlebot to index the entire site.”
Wait for at least a Week and check the search results for your website once again. Is the warning gone? Put in the comment section.
