I was wrong.

That person kept trying for another couple days. He would get locked out for 24 hours and then try again, day after day. So, I decided to step things up a bit. I found a plugin called VSF Simple Block that automatically redirects a selected IP address to another website. So, I started thinking, “Where can I redirect this guy?”

I chose God.com. It is an old website that only has a few basic pages and is not a WordPress website (I checked).

Not too long ago, I checked the log of this plugin, which showed that he had been redirected to that website about a dozen times for a couple days before giving up.

Or, perhaps, he found God.

Another good plugin I came across to help guard against people from hacking into WordPress websites is the WebsiteDefender WordPress Security plugin.  It scans and monitors WordPress websites for security issues, is easy to use and it is free! I ran it on one of my WordPress websites and it told me that the database table prefix was still the default “wp-” which is a major no-no for WordPress users who want to help keep their websites from being hacked.  The best part is that I could choose to let it change the prefixes for me instead of me doing it manually.  That alone is a time-saver!

At any rate, those are some great plugins to use to help guard against hackers.

Thank you to chanpipat/FreeDigitalPhotos.net for the image on this page.

I looked up the IP address provided in the email on Whois and found out it comes from somewhere in Russia. The person was using the “admin” username, which is the default username when installing WordPress. Apparently that person was using a “brute force” attack by simply using easily available software that rapidly tries thousands, even hundreds of thousands of commonly used passwords freely available on the internet.

Fortunately, I had entered a unique username when installing WordPress and an uncommon password with a combination of lowercase letters, uppercase letters, numbers and special characters with close to 10 characters. (I use Roboform to remember passwords – an awesome password keeper). However, some of the first websites I made had “admin” as the username (I didn’t know any better at that time). I quickly changed them, however.

I had read that there are people out there who KNOW that many people use “admin” as the default username and they try to take advantage of that, as I found out first-hand from that email on the right.

Thank you to Eric Erikson with Lizardwebs Computer Services for pointing out Limit Login Attempts to me!

Hacking email accounts

Not too long ago, when I was using Outlook as my email client, I had forgotten a password for one of my old email accounts and I did not have it recorded in my password keeper. So, I googled “hack outlook password,” found a result with good reviews, downloaded it from CNET, installed it, and was provided with ALL my all of my Outlook passwords.

This whole process took less than 5 minutes from start to finish. It made me realize how easily someone could get into my Outlook email accounts if they had my computer. I switched to Thunderbird, which is more secure with an encrypted master password

Hacking Computer Passwords

Not too long ago, a friend notified me that she could not get into her computer because her password had been changed by her daughter – who was young and simply thought it would be funny to change her mother’s password. A quick search in google for “Windows 7 password hack” shows several results. The first result is an article on About.com listing several free tools to crack Windows 7 passwords – and Word docs, pdf’s, and zip archives. I used one of the free ones that had many positive results and again, within minutes I was able to get back into her computer.

Encrypting passwords is one of the best solutions. Use encryption software for sensitive information on your computer. Don’t use browsers to save passwords. Clean your internet cache regularly. (CCleaner is a great, free tool to do this!) Keep Windows, antivirus, and anti-malware software update. DO NOT use weak passwords. These  are a few, but effective tips.  There are many ways to easily, quickly, and sometimes free-ly protect your computer and information – just ask Google!

It is simple and that is how I like it. I used to listen to all the “pro’s” who say that your homepage is supposed to have “this” and it is supposed to have “that,” which basically means you are supposed to have a homepage with a lot of “stuff” on it (i.e., it is supposed to be complicated). I have always liked simplicity, but I usually deferred to the self-proclaimed “pro’s” who basically said that things have to complicated to be respected and effective. I listened to them because, well, they are the pro’s!

Then, Steve Jobs died. Like many people, I read about him after he died. I read that “simplicity” was his mantra as the CEO of Apple. He even threw prototypes back at his “pro’s” (the engineers) and yelled at them to “MAKE IT SIMPLE!” Then he would cry out, “SIMPLICITY, SIMPLICITY, SIMPLICITY!” Reading that was a turning point for me because I decided to embrace my simplistic nature and it has been guiding me ever since.

As a result, some “pro’s” discount the design of the homepages I create. “It doesn’t have ‘this’ and it doesn’t have ‘that’!” they cry out. They go on to say that “It is supposed to have ‘this’ and it is supposed to have ‘that.’” I usually politely nod and listen to their persuasive argument for a more complicated homepage (they are persuasive because they are pro’s, after all). Inwardly, however, my inner voice (Steve Jobs?) is screaming “SIMPLICITY, SIMPLICITY, SIMPLICITY!” And that is how I stay, because that is who I am and what I like to create in my websites.

Besides, people like the homepages of the websites I create a lot more than theirs – and people choose to do business with my clients more than theirs.

Simple websites are so much more effective than the websites that follow all the “rules” of how a web site is supposed to look (according to the “pro’s”). Simple websites are much easier to absorb, understand, and navigate. Yes, there are some very important “behind-the-scenes” rules to follow for SEO purposes and that is where a knowledgeable and competent web designer comes into the picture, especially since the SEO rules are always evolving.

Ford has a great website (homepage, anyways)

The Ford Motor Company website is just fun to look at. In the artistic world, it is called “aesthetically pleasing to the eye.” It is not cluttered and packed with words, or even graphics. It is readily obvious what Ford does (sells cars) and why their cars are so awesome (in their eyes anyways – because their new cars get 40+ miles to the gallon). The website has a simple navigation bar at the top and four small panels at the bottom of their homepage (“above the fold”) which highlight their four most important messages. It has only one piece of “bling” on the bottom left corner, which allows Ford lovers to download a Ford logo. That’s it – VERY few words. I love it!

Simple websites, like Ford’s, give off a strong, professional impression upon the viewer. They COMMUNICATE to the viewer in a way that is practically instantaneous, without overwhelming the viewer with a lot of words and graphics, which the viewer has to take the time to read. The first impression is utterly positive, professional and clean. And, oh so easy to navigate!

Simplicity – it was the mantra of Steve Jobs while he was at Apple. It worked very well for his company. It can work for you too!

One reason that this is a great website is because for the home construction and home remodeling business, appearances are very important. Someone looking for a builder of new homes wants to build a home that looks great and it is readily apparent that the owner of this website understands that by incorporating that element (appearance) into the website. Appearances matter!

Here is an example of a bad website:

(I blurred all identifying information – not that it really matters, since this belongs to a landscaping company in Texas and they only work locally). This kind of website is seen far too often and is the kind of website that was made frequently up until a few years ago. To me, it is like looking at the interior of a house decorated in the 70’s. It makes me cringe. My first reaction when looking at this website was, “Are you kidding me?!” I even wondered if it was made by a teen-ager. It is VERY cluttered and has NO positive visual impact – which is critical, particularly for a landscaping business.  A good landscaping business creates property that has a strong visual impact when landscaping property and their website should also have a strong, visual impact.

This is the type of website created by someone who has a strong technical background, but who has almost no concept of effective web design and layout. There is NOTHING aesthetically pleasing to the eye. The creator of this website basically slapped some text on various parts of the screen with a very unflattering, unimpressive background image (which almost looks like a Halloween image). The one image of the landscaper’s work is simply some plain wood stairs with pine trees in the background – what is impressive about that?! (Nothing). This website is informational only, however, it is one that forces the viewer to search for the information around the page. Not good!

Making a good website isn’t hard, however, there are a lot of “behind-the-scenes” work that must also be done for SEO purposes. That is why a competent web-designer is necessary, especially since the SEO rules are constantly evolving. Having a great looking website that is not on page one of the Google search results is just as effective as having a great looking billboard in the desert. I urge you to take an honest look at your own website and find a good web designer to re-work it, if needed. A great looking and SEO effective website will pay for itself very quickly – and then many times over, much more than a bad website that ranks poorly. A bad website actually hurts a company’s business, since people prefer to do business with the owner of a professional looking website, which reflects the professionalism of the owner.