5 Shared Hosting Security Risks You Must Know (And How To Prevent Them)

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There was never a better time to start an online business than 2023, even for those on a budget. YOu can basically buid a website for free, and all web hosting providers offer very affordable web hosting plans where the only catch is that you will share the same server with other customers.

Is that a problem? 

Maybe.

You see, cheap usually comes at a cost. In the case of shared hosting, having your website hosted on a server together with other unknown website owners brings a lot of dangers to your security, and your visitors’ online privacy.

Web hosting providers themselves keep saying that the risks involving shared web hosting are not to be taken lightly, like the CEO of CloudyHost did recently.

It’s therefore important to look at the most important security risks associated with cheap shared web hosting services, and what you can do to prevent them. We are going to do just that in this article.

Let’s dig in!

1. Cross-Site Scripting (XSS)

Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) attacks have been one of the most common threats faced by websites hosted on shared servers for a long time. 

What happens in an XSS attack is that malicious scripts get injected into your web pages. These pages are visited by unsuspecting users, who will see their sensitive data being stolen by the bad script. Or will they?

Actually no, they are not going to see a thing until they stumble on their login credentials and/or personal information that have been spread out all over the dark net.

Now, just imagine what you would do if you had that kind of personal data at your fingertips and you wanted to make some quick money…

How to prevent Cross-Site Scripting attacks:

  • Block any form of external script from being added to your website’s code in the backend. You can achieve this by implementing an input validation policy.
  • Browsers may see your output data as simple code, but it shouldn’t be like that. Encode your output!
  • Never allow your website operators to get lines of code and scripts from sources you don’t trust. Implementing a Content Security Policy (CSP) is a great way to avoid that and therefore limit the chances to become the target of an XSS attack

2. Insecure File Permissions

Your files should be accessible only to you and your collaborators, so you must set up a strict permissions policy. Do this wrong and your data will be at the mercy of merciless hackers who will mercilessly steal your data and compromise your websites.

How to prevent fraudulent access to your files:

  • Files and directories permissions should be audited regularly. Make sure access is granted ONLY to authorized personnel (even better, only to yourself)
  • Establish a (possibly low) minimum threshold for permissions to access your files. This is called “Principle of Least Privilege”

3. Outdated Software and Plugins

You know when they tell you to always update your plugins, WP theme and software? Yes, they are probably trying to sell you those, but they have a point when it comes to your website’s security.

The reason is that hackers update their techstack and strategies frequently, which means that an outdated piece of software can easily become victim of a newer, more sophisticated attack any time soon. The developers of your tools are striving to keep their products safe with constant updates, and it would be foolish of you not to take advantage of that. It’s an investment.

How to prevent plugins and themes vulnerabilities:

  • Keep all your techstack always updated. This includes CMS, theme, child themes, plugins, etc. 
  • Keep only what you need. There’s no need to bloat your site with plugins you’re not using, and most importantly less is more when it comes to website security, yor mental sanity, and ROI.

4. Distributed Denial of Service Attacks (DDoS)

Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks goal is to overwhelm your server’s resources, making your website stuck and therefore unavailable. Shared hosting environments are particularly vulnerable to DDoS attacks, as an attack to a single website can affect others on the same server. A great way for hackers to scale their efforts. Bad for you because you have no idea of what can happen to your neighbors sharing your same server.

How to prevent DDoS attacks:

  • Check that all your traffic sources are legit. It’s probably the best way to quickly identify a DDoS attack. Do it regularly. Once is not enough.
  • You can also limit the amount of traffic to some parts of your site with Firewalls and Load Balancers. Ask your web hosting provider about this.
  • A CDN (Content Delivery Network), can hep you mitigate the impact of a DDoS attack by spreading your traffic over different locations.

5. Weak Passwords and Brute Force Attacks

Failing to use a strong password will make you the hacker’s dream – he can simply deploy a Brute Force attack in the attempt to programmatically figure out your weak password(s) and get access to your data. No wonder this is a very common threat: it’s low effort, and so many people are still quite dumb when it comes to hiding and strengthening their passwords.

How to prevent Brute Force Attacks:

  • Impose some strict rules for those creating new passwords on your sites – passwords should always have uppercase and lowercase letters, special characters and possibly numbers too. Anything that can force them to create very strong passwords
  • Implement 2FA (Two Factors Authentication) or, even better, MFA (Multi Factor Authentication). Wanna take it a step forward? Biometrics are the next level of security, and you will feel a bit like Ethan Hunt (but don’t try to bungee jump in a top-secret facility!)

Conclusion

Shared hosting is an excellent choice for budget-conscious website owners, but it comes with security risks that should not be underestimated. 

Be proactive and follow the preventive measures outlined in this blog post, and you will be able to significantly reduce the chances of falling victim to these security threats and mitigate their effects (because no matter what, shit happens). 

Regular monitoring, constant updates, and strong security practices will go a long way in safeguarding your website’s data, your users’ information, your online reputation, and your business’s continuity.

Budget is a concern, of course, but saving on your security is not a wise investment and you will end up losing more than you think. 

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