Having a secure website will give you peace of mind as you run your business. You never have to worry about hackers gaining access to proprietary data or your website crushing because of exploits. Website security guarantees that your website runs as smoothly as it was meant to. However, these are not the only things that make website security important. There are a couple of things that makes web security so important.
Impacts ranking
The first thing you need to note is that the security of your website will impact your ranking. Back in 2014, Google updated its algorithm to favor websites that used HTTPS over those that used HTTP. Although the security of your website will only impact your ranking by approximately 1%, this is a huge percentage. Needless to say, improving the security of your website will give you a better edge in ranking.
Away from the Google algorithm, there are so many hackers out there who are only interested in damaging your reputation. This is done by implementing bad SEO behind your back. It is not uncommon for hackers to contact the sites you link to using your name and compromise your linking plan. They may also make alterations to your website's code and content so that your ranking drops. Keeping your website secure is one way of avoiding these problems.
A business thrives on its reputation
Your customers will not react well to the news that your website has been hacked or is insecure. When your website is hacked, people don't take time to think about the measures you have put in place to boost security. They simply assume that your website is insecure. Out of fear of their sensitive data being leaked, most customers will choose not to do business with you.
Heightening the security of your website is the first thing you need to do. The last thing you want is for your customers to feel like you don't care about their privacy. Having a secure website will help build trust with your customers. Although there will always be security vulnerabilities, if you are seen as an entrepreneur who takes security seriously, you will win the trust of customers. Failing to address security issues is simply committing commercial suicide. This is a decision that will haunt you at one point in time.
Security flaws cost more than just customers
The fear that most webmasters have is that of losing customers because of a bad reputation. One important point you have to understand is that security flaws will cost you much more than just loyal clients. It may attract fines, may lead to loss of data, the collapse of your website or even the end of your business.
Keeping your website secure is the most important thing you need to do at all times. You have to take the necessary technical and organizational measures to ensure that there is no unauthorized access to your website. Start by shifting to HTTPS, use SSL connections and use stronger passwords.
Author BioTerry Godier is an experienced web development expert focusing on website security. He works for libertylending.com, a finance website. You can connect with James on LinkedIn.
