Getting hacked is the worst thing that can happen to you. But there are ways to detect it at the earliest to minimize the damage. For the detailed article, check out this link - https://blogvault.net/ways-to-know-if-your-wordpress-site-has-been-hacked/

1. Ways to know if your WordPress
site has been hacked

2. • Having your site hacked is the worst thing to
happen to any site owner
• Sometimes it takes weeks/ months/ years to
detect a hack
• Easily identified only when front page is defaced
• Can cause extensive damage to your brand and
reputation

3. Look for the Obvious
● Some hackers like to work stealthily
● Some others like to announce their feats to the
whole world
○ Deface your site’s home page
○ Add unpleasant pop-ups
○ Redirect your site to a different URL

4. Defaced Home Page
• Most obvious sign that you’ve been hacked
• Change your home page for maximum impact
• Hackers often wipe out everything on your site, leaving just
an image on your home page
• Image used can also be distasteful or explicit

5. Site Crash
• Attackers may be using up all the server resources
• Some important parts of your site may have been deleted
• Such activities often results in a site
crash
• Users see a 404 page not found
error on accessing your site
• Crash may also be an outcome of a
developmental activity
• Analyze your logs thoroughly to
narrow down on the root cause

6. White Screen of Death
• WSOD is an error in
WordPress manifests as a
blank white page with no
information
• Akin to Windows’ infamous
blue screen
• Stops your website from
working and you cannot
access the WordPress
dashboard

7. Website Redirection
• Your visitors are taken to a new URL on accessing your
homepage
• Achieved by modifying the htaccess file on your server
• Attackers add a rule to the htaccess file by which all your
visitors will be redirected to a site of their choice
• Some rules only match search engine bots and not your own
requests - go unnoticed for a long time
• The longer they’re active the more potential it has at
affecting your search engine rankings

8. Weird Pop-Ups
• Frequent, unexpected pop-ups opening on your site
indicates a hack
• Pop ups can also gather data on your browsing pattern,
capture cookies and send it to the attackers
• Clicking these pop up ads may downloaded other malware

9. Site Blocked
• If your site is suddenly blocked by your hosting, you may
have been hacked
• Repeated brute force attempts or a sudden spike in
bandwidth usage are possible reasons
• Some hosts send you a notification but most providers just
stay mum after blocking you

10. Scan Frequently
• Scan your site frequently to check for any anomalies
• Many options available - Wordfence Security Plugin, Sucuri
SiteCheck, and WPScan
• Scanners cover all known security issues including malware
infections, spam, and irregular redirects

11. Monitor File Changes
• When hackers try to inject malware into your site, they
upload malicious scripts
• The TimThumb vulnerability is one such example where the
uploads directory was exploited
• These scripts are then executed remotely to wreak havoc on
your site
• You must constantly monitor your files for any updates
• Plugins like WordPress File Monitor and WP Changes Tracker
help you monitor file activity

12. Monitor User Activity
• Unusual user activity is another good indicator of a hacked
site
• Hackers usually create admin users using SQL injection or
remote file execution attacks
• You must monitor your site for new admin users
• Attackers can also change existing passwords or assign new
roles to users
• Quite tricky to monitor unless you have tools like WP
Security Audit Log to assist you

13. Track Your Traffic
• Traffic monitoring gives you detailed information about your
visitors and also about hacks
• If you see a sudden surge of traffic from a country that you
generally don’t cater to, something must be wrong
• If you see a sudden dip in traffic, that can’t be right either.
• Keep a watchful eye on the traffic pattern is a must

14. Constant vigilance is the key..
Stay protected, stay safe!