Terry and Clarence Low, Bits ‘N’ Bytes: Steps to take if website is hacked

Q What should I do if my website is hacked?

A Widespread hacking of websites is an unfortunate reality today. The hack may be obvious — your page is defaced, visitors are redirected elsewhere, you notice strange traffic in your web logs (especially from overseas) — and so on. But it can also be fairly unnoticeable, and indeed a recent survey shows that nearly two-thirds of website owners who were victims of hacks didn't even know it happened.

The first step is to not panic and call in technical reinforcements such as your hosting provider or website developer. Gather as much information as you can for them including CMS login information, passwords, user names, web logs, any custom software codes that may have been installed (often a culprit as many don't contain adequate security features) as well as any backups you have that can aid in data recovery.

Next, temporarily take your site offline by accessing your hosting control panel and password-protect the main directory — this will block any visitors from getting onto your site while it's being fixed. Then, initiate a comprehensive scan of your local computers for viruses and malware using up-to-date software such as one of the Norton products and, if you're communicating with your host or web designer, insist they do the same for the server your site works through.

Lastly, change each and every one of your passwords, back up the site once again, ensure your software extensions are running on the most current updates and remain in close touch with your IT professional. Too often, experts note, a site is repeatedly hacked by the same individual because the proper fixes weren't put in place and the site was properly cleaned after the first attack.

Q Can you tell me some of the pros and cons of digital wallets?

A It's no secret that a cashless society is likely in our immediate feature, another hallmark of our evolving technological capabilities designed to make life easier and more convenient. However, streamlining our society with tools like Coin, Google Wallet, Apple's Passbook and Venmo, while beneficial in so many ways, isn't without pitfalls.

Utilizing a digital financial system eliminates the need for people to carry cash and even credit cards, and if your digital wallet — which lives on your smartphone, for instance — does fall into the wrong hands, it's easy to shut it down quickly, unlike the process of cancelling credit cards when your purse or physical wallet is stolen. And, of course, there's the sheer convenience of going digital: you can pay for purchases with the tap or wave of your phone or other handheld device or even loan and borrow money without having to go to a brick-and-mortar bank.

But then there's the downside. The technology is still new and experts are already noting that security features to protect from hacking haven't yet been perfected or simply aren't functioning completely just yet. Also, some digital wallets work on a biometric ID system such as fingerprints, and those systems are proving to be far from perfect — imagine not being able to access your accounts when you need to. And, of course, there are practical concerns that haven't been addressed: what do you do if your phone dies and you can't pay for anything? What are the steps to take if your digital wallet does get hacked? And once you've given out biometric information such as a fingerprint or a digitized scan of your real signature, how do you "get it back" if you choose to return to a cash- and credit card-based existence?

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Although the advent of a cashless society is certainly exciting, it's still too early to tell just how safe it is, and that's why many industry insiders recommend waiting until verifiable statistics show the technology to be a little more reliable and secure.

Terry and Clarence Low are co-founders of Byte Technology, a web design firm based in Monterey, Denver and Minneapolis. Their personal technology column appears on alternating Saturdays. Read more news on their blog at www.byte-technology.com/blog. Send questions to tlow@byte-technology.com, or write to Bits 'N' Bytes, 400 Camino El Estero, Monterey 93940.

Source: Terry and Clarence Low, Bits 'N' Bytes: Steps to take if website is hacked