If you have visited this website before maybe you have noticed a renewed look – and possibly even the fact that the website has been down for a couple of days.
The reason behind was a hacker attack, that forced me to rebuild it totally.
In case you are interested in the topic, here you find more details.
What happened exactly?
A malicious counterpart created several fake articles linking to external website, selling services that I do not endorse.
How do they do it?
This web runs on WordPress, a blog platform. WordPress use several “plug ins” to add functionalities. These plug ins are made by third parties, and sometimes they are not written properly (i.e., they have vulnerabilities that allow hackers to “inject” malicious code and take control of the site.
Why do they do it?
Because internet traffic means money. If the hackers can bring a lot of traffic to other sites they will be paid for it.
Who did it?
I have no idea.
How did you solve the problem?
I basically restarted from zero. First I have done a new, “clean” WordPress installation. Then, using a backup of the content, I uploaded the articles and the images. If you happen to use WordPress, I suggest you to use the Updraft plug-in.
Is it the first time that happens?
No, actually it is the second. My feeling is that the frequency of attacks increased in the last years.
Will it happen again?
Most likely yes.
What countermeasures did you put in place?
I installed a very good, anti-hacker plug in – Wordfence.
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