Activity Log Pro – User Activity Log, Audit Log & Security Monitor vs Kadence Security – Password, Two Factor Authentication, and Brute Force Protection

Activity Log Pro is a complete WordPress activity log, user activity log, and audit log plugin for user tracking and accountability. Track user logins, content changes, plugin and theme updates, settings changes, and other important site activity – and see who did what, when, and where from one clean activity dashboard. Activity Log Pro gives you a complete audit trail of everything happening on your WordPress site. See who logged in, what content changed, exactly when it happened, which plugins were updated and any suspicious activity – all in one place. Perfect for businesses, e-commerce stores, agencies, WordPress maintenance services, and multi-user sites that need full visibility into user and system changes. Agencies and freelancers managing multiple sites can use Log Channels (Premium) to centralise logs from every client site into a single logging platform like Datadog or Better Stack. Whether you’re troubleshooting issues, staying compliant, or monitoring for security threats, Activity Log Pro is your WordPress activity tracker and activity monitoring tool to keep your site secure and transparent. “This is a super slick plugin guys. Very simple to use, very clean interface. Super excited about it.” – Ryan @ InfluenceWP.com “Perfect! Robust and exemplary neat plugin! All the info that you need is in a clear overview.” – @mixha Why Use a WordPress Activity Log? Understand every action on your site, reduce security risks, and simplify compliance. Security & Compliance: Stay compliant with GDPR, HIPAA, and other regulations while detecting failed logins, role changes, and suspicious behavior. Troubleshooting & Debugging: See exactly what changed before something broke – track plugin updates, theme edits, and content changes. User Accountability & Audit Trails: Know exactly who did what, when, and from which IP address for complete transparency and legal compliance. Performance & Site Health: Monitor plugin installations, theme changes and modifications that impact your site’s speed and stability. Enhanced Backup Strategy: Create detailed change logs that complement your backups – know exactly what to restore and when changes occurred. WordPress Security Monitoring: Track failed logins, suspicious activities, user role changes, and potential security threats in real-time. Key Features of This WordPress Activity Log Plugin 🚀 Complete Core Activity Tracking User login/logout activities with IP tracking Failed login attempt monitoring for security Login Flood Guard (optional) — caps consecutive failed-login log entries during brute-force bursts; configurable threshold (20/50/100/200), on/off toggle, and an inline notice on the Activity Logs screen when suppression is active Post, page, and custom post type changes (create, update, delete) Media library activities (upload, edit, delete) Plugin installations, activations, deactivations, and updates Theme switches, installations, and customizer changes WordPress core updates Widget modifications and placement changes Menu creation, updates, and deletions User registration, profile updates, and role changes Comment activities (approved, spam, trash, delete) Settings and options changes Category and tag management 🔌 Advanced Plugin Integrations WooCommerce Activity Log: Complete e-commerce activity monitoring — track order modifications, product changes, inventory updates, customer data edits, payment gateway settings, and coupon usage for full store audit trails (Premium) Yoast SEO Activity Log: Monitor all SEO changes including meta descriptions, title tags, search engines follow links, Advanced Meta Robots, Breadcrumbs Title updates, focus keyword changes, and readability optimizations to maintain SEO integrity (Premium) Free Professional Features Real-time activity monitoring dashboard Advanced filtering and search capabilities Detailed activity metadata and context IP address tracking for security analysis User role-based activity permissions Customizable data retention policies Export capabilities (CSV, JSON, HTML and TXT formats) Clean, responsive admin interface Database optimization for performance 💎 Premium Features Upgrade to Activity Log Pro Premium for advanced security and privacy controls: Advanced IP Privacy Controls – GDPR-compliant IP anonymization and masking options IP Location Mapping – Geographical insights for visitor analysis and security monitoring Security Alerts – Security Alerts helps you detect important WordPress activity in real time with instant email notifications for security events, content changes, and core/plugin updates. Configure smart alert cooldowns, choose multiple recipients, and reduce noise while still catching high-risk behavior fast. Log Channels – Centralise activity logs from all your WordPress sites into one platform. Stream every log entry in real time to Grafana Loki, Better Stack, Slack, Papertrail, Loggly, Datadog, Syslog/SIEM targets, or your own custom webhook endpoint. Every event is automatically tagged with the site name and URL — so you can filter across all your sites inside your existing logging platform. Delivered asynchronously in background jobs with zero impact on page load times. Ideal for agencies, WordPress maintenance services, and freelancers managing multiple client sites. Enhanced Security Features – Real-time logs and suspicious activity logs (via Live Monitor) JSON Feed Export – SIEM integration with secure token-based access WooCommerce Logger – Comprehensive e-commerce tracking (orders, products, customers) Yoast SEO Logger – Complete SEO audit trails for meta data and schema changes Priority Support – Direct access to expert support with faster response times 👉 Compare Free vs Premium Features → | 👉 Try out the Demo → 🏢 Centralised Logging for Agencies & WordPress Maintenance Services Managing multiple WordPress sites? Log Channels (Premium) lets you stream activity logs from every client site into a single external logging platform — so you can monitor all your sites in one place, without logging into each WordPress admin individually. How it works: Install Activity Log Pro on each WordPress site, configure a Log Channel pointing to your preferred logging platform, and every activity log entry is forwarded in real time. Each event is automatically tagged with the site name and site URL, so you can filter, search, and alert by site inside your chosen platform. Supported platforms — bring your own logging stack: Better Stack — Stream logs to your Better Stack Logs source; filter by site in the Telemetry dashboard Datadog — Forward logs to your Datadog account; filter by site_name or site_url in Logs Search Loggly — Centralise logs in Loggly; tag and query by site across your entire client portfolio Papertrail — Route logs via HTTPS token or classic Syslog to your Papertrail destinations Slack — Push activity events to a Slack channel for real-time awareness across all sites Custom Webhook / Syslog / SIEM — Connect to any endpoint or enterprise SIEM platform Why agencies and maintenance services choose Log Channels: One dashboard, all sites — view and search logs from every client site in your existing logging platform No vendor lock-in — choose the platform you already use; no new SaaS subscription required Tamper-proof audit trail — if a site is compromised and an attacker clears the on-site logs, your external copy is already safely stored and completely out of reach Zero performance impact — log delivery runs asynchronously in background jobs; visitors and admins never wait for external services to respond Multiple simultaneous channels — send logs to Datadog for archiving and Slack for real-time alerts at the same time Per-channel test button — verify each connection is working before you rely on it View full Log Channels details: 👉 activitylog.pro/features → ⚡ Performance & Database Custom database table – Activity Log Pro uses its own dedicated table, keeping your posts and meta tables clean and queries fast. Low-overhead logging – Events are captured in real time using optimised queries designed to have minimal impact on site performance. Configurable retention – Set log retention from 7 to 365 days to keep your database lean and manageable. Automatic cleanup – Scheduled purges run automatically based on your retention settings, with no manual intervention required. 🧹 Clean Uninstall Full data removal – Uninstalling the plugin removes all log data, custom tables, plugin options, and scheduled tasks. No leftover clutter – Your database is restored to its original state with nothing left behind, so you can test the plugin with confidence. 🛡️ Security & Privacy Activity Log Pro takes your privacy and security seriously: IP Address Anonymization by Default – All IP addresses are automatically anonymized (e.g., 192.168.1.xxx) for privacy protection WordPress Standard Security – Database security practices (prepared statements, input sanitization) Configurable Data Retention – Meet your privacy requirements with customizable retention periods Administrator-Only Access – All plugin features require administrator privileges for security 📊 Perfect For Business Websites & Corporate Sites: Maintain GDPR compliance, PCI DSS standards, and audit trail requirements for regulatory inspections and security protocols. WooCommerce & E-commerce Stores: Track order modifications, product changes, inventory adjustments, customer data access, and payment processing for fraud prevention and compliance. Multi-user WordPress Sites: Monitor team member activities, role changes, content approvals, and administrative access for complete user accountability. WordPress Development & Staging Sites: Track plugin installations, removal, theme modifications. Digital Agencies, WordPress Maintenance Services & Freelancers: Centralise activity logs across all your client sites into a single logging platform like Datadog, Better Stack, or Loggly. Each log entry is tagged with the site name and URL, giving you a unified, searchable audit trail across your entire portfolio — without logging into each site individually. Use Log Channels (Premium) to stream logs from all your client sites to your existing stack. No new SaaS dashboard required — bring your own logging platform and stay in control of your data. Membership Sites & Private Communities: Track member activities, subscription changes, content access, and community moderation actions. Educational Institutions & Learning Management: Monitor student submissions, instructor activities, course content changes, and user enrollment modifications. News & Publishing Websites: Monitor editorial workflows, content publication schedules, author activities, and SEO optimization changes. 🔧 Easy Setup & Configuration Get started in minutes: 1. Install and activate the plugin – it works out of the box with default settings 2. Configure which activities to track (optional) 3. Set your data retention preferences (optional) 4. Start monitoring immediately (There are various other Settings for you to explore) No complex setup required — this WordPress activity log works right away with sensible defaults while offering extensive customization options for advanced users. 💡 Use Cases This user activity log helps you answer the questions that matter most: Troubleshooting: “What changed right before the site broke?” Security Monitoring: “Who attempted to login with admin credentials?” Content Management: “When was this post last modified and by whom?” Compliance: “Show me all user activities for the past 6 months” Performance: “What plugins were recently activated that might be slowing the site?” Multi-Site Management: “Which of my client sites had a plugin deactivated, a user role changed, or a new admin added today?” System Requirements WordPress 6.3 or higher PHP 7.4 or higher MySQL 5.6 or higher (or MariaDB 10.0+) Minimum 64MB PHP memory limit (128MB recommended) Database Information Creates custom table: {prefix}actlogpro_activity_log_pro_all_logs Estimated storage: ~1KB per logged event Automatic cleanup: Based on retention settings (7-365 days) Uses WordPress database prefix: Follows WordPress naming conventions Privacy Policy Activity Log Pro logs user activities on your WordPress site. This may include: User login/logout times and IP addresses (anonymized by default) Content creation, modification, and deletion activities Plugin and theme changes Administrative actions Data Storage: Activity logs are stored locally in your WordPress database by default. No log data is sent to external services unless you explicitly enable a Log Channel (Premium), which can forward copies of logs to services like Datadog, Grafana Loki, Better Stack, and others. IP Address Privacy: IP addresses are automatically anonymized by default (e.g., 192.168.1.xxx) for privacy protection. Full IP addresses are only stored if explicitly enabled by administrators in the premium version. Third-Party Services: The plugin uses ipinfo.io for optional IP geolocation lookups when administrators manually request location information, and LemonSqueezy for payment processing when users choose to purchase premium features and for newsletter subscriptions when users voluntarily sign up. The ipinfo.io service is only used when explicitly requested and data is cached locally. LemonSqueezy is only used when users voluntarily initiate premium purchases, subscription management, or newsletter signups. Data Retention: You can configure data retention periods to meet your privacy requirements. You can configure a secure JSON feed, with access via a secure authentication token, available in Premium → activitylog.pro/pricing Support For support, documentation, and feature requests, please visit: Plugin Website → activitylog.pro Get Support → activitylog.pro/support Plugin Docs → activitylog.pro/docs Following on Twitter/X → x.com/ActivityLog Third-Party Services This plugin uses the following third-party services: IP Geolocation Service (ipinfo.io) – Purpose: Provides geographical location data for IP addresses to enhance security monitoring – Data Sent: IP addresses are sent to ipinfo.io for location lookup when administrators manually request IP location information – When Used: Only when administrators manually request IP location information via the admin interface – Privacy Policy: https://ipinfo.io/privacy-policy – Terms of Service: https://ipinfo.io/terms-of-service – Data Storage: Location data is cached locally for 24 hours to minimize API calls – User Control: This feature is optional and only available to administrators who explicitly request IP location data Payment Processing Service (LemonSqueezy) – Purpose: Handles secure payment processing, license validation, and subscription management for premium features – Data Sent: When users choose to purchase premium plans, payment information (credit card details, billing address), email address, and license details are processed by LemonSqueezy – When Used: Only when users voluntarily initiate premium plan purchases, license activation, or subscription management – Privacy Policy: https://www.lemonsqueezy.com/privacy – Terms of Service: https://www.lemonsqueezy.com/terms – Data Storage: Payment and license data is managed entirely by LemonSqueezy – no payment information is stored on your WordPress site – User Control: Users have complete control over whether to purchase premium features and can manage their subscriptions through LemonSqueezy’s customer portal Newsletter Subscription Service (LemonSqueezy) – Purpose: Allows users to voluntarily subscribe to product updates and educational content newsletters – Data Sent: Name and email address only when users explicitly choose to subscribe to the newsletter – When Used: Only when users voluntarily fill out and submit the newsletter subscription form in the plugin settings – Privacy Policy: https://www.lemonsqueezy.com/privacy – Terms of Service: https://www.lemonsqueezy.com/terms – Data Storage: Newsletter subscription data is managed by LemonSqueezy – no subscription information is stored on your WordPress site – User Control: Users have complete control over newsletter subscription and can unsubscribe at any time via email links or LemonSqueezy’s customer portal

Reduce your WordPress website’s risk to nearly zero with Kadence Security Formerly iThemes Security. Looking for iThemes? Learn more here. On average, 30,000 websites are hacked every day.* Cyberattacks in the US increased by 57% in 2022.** Bad actors who want to hack your site, steal your data, and cripple your business are a 24/7/365 threat. You need a proactive, strategic approach to WordPress website security that protects your site from brute force attacks, malware infections, and other cyber threats. Kadence Security shields your site from cyberattacks and prevents security vulnerabilities. It automatically locks out bad users identified by our Brute Force Protection Network that is nearly 1 million sites strong and leverages your own blacklist. It secures and protects your most commonly attacked part of your WordPress website – user login authentication. With Patchstack integration (Pro) protects your site before you even have a chance to address vulnerabilities and before a plugin or theme vendor or developer can even issue a patch. That’s 24/7/365 always-on truly Kadence Security. 🌐 Secure your Website in Minutes The Kadence Security setup and onboarding experience allows anyone to secure their WordPress website in under 10 minutes, regardless of technical acumen. Knowing that you have enabled all the right security settings for your website will leave you feeling like your site has never been more secure. 📚 Security Site Templates to Fit Your Type of Site Enabling the correct security settings based on the type of website you are building or maintaining is essential for proper security. An eCommerce site requires a different level of security than a basic blog. Kadence Security Site Templates make it quick and easy to apply the right security settings for your website. Choose from six different site templates to apply the type of security your site needs: Ecommerce – websites that sell products or services Network – websites that connect people or communities Non-Profit – websites that promote your cause and collect donations Blog – websites that share your thoughts or start a conversation Portfolio – websites that showcase your craft Brochure – simple websites that promote your business ⌚ Real-Time Website Security Dashboard Every day, lots of activity is happening on your website that you can’t see. Many of these activities can be related to your site’s security, so monitoring these events is vital to keeping your site secure. The Kadence Security Pro plugin provides a real-time WordPress security dashboard that monitors security-related events on your site around the clock. The Kadence Security Dashboard is a dynamic dashboard with all your WordPress website’s security activity stats in one place, including brute force attacks, banned users, active lockouts, site scan results, and user security stats (Pro). 🗝️ WordPress Login Security Setting up and maintaining proper WordPress configurations and managing user account access are essential aspects of hardening your site against threats and vulnerabilities. Basic and Pro include features that address both of these factors. Two Factor Authentication (2FA) – Make your WordPress login nearly impenetrable to attack by requiring users to enter a security code along with a password to login. The Kadence Security plugin allows you to add two-factor authentication to your WordPress login with several authentication methods, including mobile apps like Authy and Google Authenticator, email, and backup codes. Password Requirements – Create and enforce a password policy for your users in less than a minute. reCAPTCHA (Pro) – Stop bad bots from engaging in abusive activities on your website, such as attempting to break into your website using compromised passwords, posting spam, or even scraping your content. Passwordless Logins (Pro) – WordPress security made easy. Secure your user accounts with 2fa & strong passwords while allowing real users login with a click of a mouse. Trusted Devices (Pro) – Identify the devices you and other users use to block session hijacking attacks and limit Administrator privileges to Trusted Devices. Automated Vulnerability Patching (Pro) – Kadence Security Pro includes Patchstack which patches vulnerabilities before you have a chance to and applies fixes even before a plugin developer or vendor has issued a patch. Learn more about how passwordless login is the future and how Kadence Security can help you implement it today. 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 The Right Amount of Security for Every User Level Different types of user levels require different levels of security. During the Kadence Security setup process, you can identify your website’s key user groups. Once the different types of users are identified, you can apply the level of security that is just right for each user group. Here are a couple of examples of how User Groups are useful for securing your site: For Clients – Let’s say you are configuring Kadence Security on a client’s website. You will decide whether or not they are required to use two-factor authentication and if they should have access to the Kadence Security settings. For Customers – If you have an eCommerce website, you will decide whether or not you want to protect customer accounts with a password policy. Privilege Escalation (Pro) also adds a safe, secure way to grant temporary admin-level access to your website. 🤖 Block Bad Bots & Ban User Agents with Lockouts Ban Users (Basic and Pro) – Permanently block repeat offenders from accessing your site. Local Brute Force Protection – Automatically identify and stop the most common method of attack on WordPress sites. Local Brute Force Protection (Basic and Pro) – Automatically identify and stop the most common method of attack on WordPress sites. Network Brute Force Protection (Basic and Pro) – The network is the Kadence Security community and is nearly one million websites strong. If someone tries to break into websites in the Kadence Security community, Kadence Security will block them across the network. Magic Links (Pro) – Security shouldn’t get in your way. Magic Links allow you to log in to your WordPress site while your username is locked out by the Kadence Security Local Brute Force Protection feature. 🔍 Monitor Your Site’s Security Health File Change Detection (Basic and Pro) – Kadence Security logs changes made to your website that can help detect malicious activity on your website. Site Scanner (Basic and Pro) – Schedule checks to run four times per day (Basic) or hourly (Pro) for known vulnerabilities of WordPress core file, plugins and themes. Using the Google Safe Browsing API, the Site Scan also checks your Google’s blocklist status and will alert you if Google has found any malware on your website. Patchstack integration (Pro) – Automated virtual patching of some vulnerabilities before you even have a chance to address them yourself, and before a plugin or theme vendor or developer can even issue a patch. Site Scanner (Pro) – Unlock Version Management to automatically apply a patch to vulnerable software detected by the Site Scan when one is available. User Logging (Pro) – Keep a record of user activity in your WordPress security logs, including login/logout, user registration, adding/removing plugins, switching themes, changes to posts and pages, and more. Version Management (Pro) – The Version Management feature in Kadence Security Pro allows you to auto-update WordPress, plugins, and themes. Beyond that, Version Management also has options to harden your website when you are running outdated software and scan for old websites. 🧠 Smarter, More Actionable Vulnerability Prioritization Not all vulnerabilities pose the same level of risk, and the traditional Common Vulnerability Scoring System (CVSS) score doesn’t always reflect the realities of running a WordPress site. Kadence Security now uses the Patchstack Priority score, which goes beyond CVSS to provide a real-world risk assessment tailored to WordPress. It factors in how likely a vulnerability is to be exploited and its actual impact on your site. With Patchstack Priority, you get a clearer picture of what really matters, helping you focus on the vulnerabilities that pose the greatest risk, and worry less about noise from low-impact issues. 🛠️ Website Security Utilities Enforce SSL – Force all connections to the website to be made over SSL/TLS. Database Backups – Create backups of your WordPress database. (Not a complete backup.) Geolocation (Pro) – Improve Trusted Devices by connecting to an external location or mapping API. 🚀 Advanced Security Tools Identify Server IPs – Prevent issues caused by inadvertently locking out your server IPs. Change User ID 1 – Change the user ID for the first WordPress user, potentially preventing attacks that assume the user with ID1 exists and is an administrator. Change Database Prefix – Change the database prefix that WordPress uses, potentially preventing attacks that assume the database prefix is “wp_”. Check File Permission – See the file and directory permissions of key areas of your site. Server Config Rules – View or flush the server security rules generated by Kadence Security. wp-config.php Rules – View or flush the wp-config.php security rules generated by Kadence Security. Change WordPress Salts – Secure your site after a successful attack by changing the WordPress salts used to secure cookies and security tokens. Hide Login URL – change the login URL of your site, making it harder for bots to find your login page and attack it. 🛟 Need Help? Free support may be available with the community’s help in the WordPress.org support forums. Our Kadence Security support team provides top-notch technical support to all our Kadence Security Basic users there. Our Help Center will help you become an iThemes Security expert. Get additional peace of mind with professional support from our expert team and pro features to take your site’s security to the next level with Kadence Security Pro. Recover From a Hacked Site Kadence Security makes regular backups of your WordPress database, allowing you to get back online quickly in the event of a hack or security breach. Use Kadence Security to create and email database backups on a customizable schedule. For complete site backups and the ability to restore or move WordPress to a new host or domain, check out Solid Backups. Solid Central Integration Manage more than one WordPress site? Release lockouts and keep your themes, plugins, and WordPress core up to date from one dashboard with Solid Central. *Zippia. “30 Crucial Cybersecurity Statistics [2023]: Data, Trends And More” Zippia.com. Jun. 15, 2023, https://www.zippia.com/advice/cybersecurity-statistics/ **https://blog.checkpoint.com/2023/01/05/38-increase-in-2022-global-cyberattacks/ License Released under the terms of the GNU General Public License.