Admin Safety Guard vs Really Simple Security – Simple and Performant Security (formerly Really Simple SSL)

Admin Safety Guard locks down the two places WordPress sites actually get broken into: the login form and the admin area. You don’t need to know what a firewall rule is to use it. Turn on a switch, pick a number, save. The plugin handles the rest and shows you, in plain words, what it blocked and what still needs your attention. If you have ever looked at your login log and seen hundreds of failed attempts for a user called “admin” that you never created, this plugin is for you. How WordPress sites get broken into Almost every automated attack follows the same three steps: A bot loads yoursite.com/wp-login.php, because that address is the same on every WordPress site in the world. It guesses usernames and passwords, thousands of times an hour, until one works. Once it’s in, it installs a backdoor, injects spam links, or quietly adds itself as an administrator. Admin Safety Guard breaks that chain at every step, and every feature below is free. Free features Limit login attempts (on by default) Lock out an IP address after a set number of failed sign-ins. You choose how many attempts are allowed, how long the lockout lasts, and what the person sees. Keep failing and the address is blocked for a full 24 hours. This is the one feature that switches itself on when you activate the plugin, so your site is covered before you configure anything. It doesn’t only watch wp-login.php. XML-RPC, application passwords and custom theme login forms all count towards the same limit, which is how most bots get around simpler login limiters. Add your own IP to the trusted list so you can never lock yourself out. Single addresses, CIDR ranges (203.0.113.0/24), wildcards (203.0.113.*) and IPv6 all work. Custom login URL Move your sign-in page to an address only you know, like yoursite.com/office-door. After that, wp-login.php and wp-register.php return a 404 for everyone, so scanners find nothing to attack. It works on root installs, WordPress in a subfolder, and multisite. Reserved slugs that would break your site are rejected before you can save them. Two-factor authentication by email After the password comes a one-time code, sent to the user’s inbox. A stolen password on its own becomes useless. You decide which roles need it (administrators and editors only, for example), how many digits the code has, how long it stays valid, and how many wrong guesses are allowed before it’s destroyed. The email is styled by default, and you can write your own subject and body if you’d rather. Google reCAPTCHA (v2 and v3) Add reCAPTCHA to your login form to stop bots before they ever submit a password. Both the “I’m not a robot” checkbox and the invisible v3 score check are supported. Paste in your site key and secret key, pick a version, done. Session security Everything above protects the sign-in. This protects what happens after it. WordPress keeps a session alive for two days, or fourteen if someone ticked “Remember Me” – however long the laptop sits open in a coffee shop. Sign people out after a period of inactivity, shorten the maximum session length, end every other session when someone changes their password, and optionally tie a session to the IP address it started from so a copied cookie stops working elsewhere. IP blocking Some addresses don’t deserve a second chance. Add them to the permanent block list and they never reach your login page again. You can also block an address in one click straight from the login log. Login logs and activity tracking A real audit trail: every successful sign-in and every failed attempt, with username, IP address, browser, and timestamp. Search it, sort it, page through it, export it to CSV for a client report, or clear out old entries by date range. You can also get an email the first time an administrator signs in from an address that account has never used before. That’s often the earliest sign that a password has leaked. Threats blocked Every block the plugin performs is recorded in one place: lockouts, blocked addresses, failed reCAPTCHA checks, wrong two-factor codes, blocked XML-RPC requests, username-discovery attempts. The dashboard shows what was stopped and when, so “is anything actually happening?” has a real answer. Security score The score grades your site, not the plugin. It checks the things that matter – HTTPS, whether core and PHP are current, whether an account is literally called “admin”, whether your usernames are public, whether file editing is still enabled – and weighs them against the protections you have switched on. Anything critical gets flagged at the top of your admin screen until it’s dealt with. Privacy hardening Nine one-click switches that close the small leaks attackers use for reconnaissance: Disable XML-RPC Block username discovery through ?author=1 and the REST users endpoint Show one generic error instead of telling people which half of the login was wrong Hide your WordPress version from page source, feeds and asset URLs Remove the RSD, Windows Live Writer and shortlink meta tags Disable pingbacks so your site can’t be used to flood someone else’s Disable the theme and plugin file editors Send browser security headers (clickjacking, MIME sniffing, referrer leaks, camera and microphone access) Disable application passwords Password protect the whole site Put a password in front of everything. Handy for staging sites, client previews and coming-soon pages. Choose how long access lasts and which roles skip it. Hide the admin bar by role Decide which roles see the toolbar on the front end. Hide it from subscribers and customers, keep it for editors and administrators. Brand your login page Swap the WordPress logo for yours, set its size, where it links to, and its alt text. Change the page background (colour or image), the form background, text, link and button colours, round off the corners, hide the links you don’t want, tick “Remember Me” by default, or write your own CSS. Ready-made templates are included if you’d rather not fiddle. Firewall and malware overview One screen showing your firewall status, with a link to our free Deep Malware Cleaner plugin for scanning and cleanup. If it’s already installed, the screen takes you straight to it. Pro features Admin Safety Guard Pro adds the tools agencies and busier sites tend to ask for. Passwordless login (magic links) Users click a one-time link in their email instead of typing a password. The link works once and then expires. 2FA with an authenticator app Google Authenticator, Authy and anything else that speaks TOTP. Users scan a QR code once and generate codes on their phone from then on – no email delivery to wait for. Social login Let people sign in with Google, Facebook or other accounts they already have, while you keep control of which providers are allowed. Database prefix check The default wp_ prefix is known to every attacker and makes SQL injection easier to write. This finds your current prefix and walks you through changing it safely. Strong password enforcement Set a minimum password strength. Weak passwords get rejected at the point they’re created, not after an incident. Advanced web application firewall Inspect incoming requests and block SQL injection and cross-site scripting payloads before WordPress ever sees them. Run it in monitor-only mode first, whitelist trusted addresses, block user agents, and cap request size. Malware scanning and cleanup Handled by our separate free plugin, Deep Malware Cleaner, rather than a second half-built scanner in here. Upgrade to Pro to unlock all Pro features. Who uses it Bloggers and content creators – protection that runs in the background with nothing to maintain. Small business owners – your site is your shopfront. A hack costs you customers and takes days to clean up. WooCommerce stores – customer records, addresses and order history sit behind that login form. Lock it properly. Freelancers and web designers – hand over a site that’s already hardened and branded, without a security bill attached. Agencies – the same repeatable setup across every client site, with logs you can export when someone asks what happened. Developers – every limit, message and redirect is configurable, and the features are built on standard hooks and filters you can extend. What’s different about it Light. Admin assets only load on the plugin’s own screens, and only the code for the screen you’re actually looking at. Nothing is added to your front end. Useful straight away. Limit login attempts switches itself on at activation. You’re protected before you open the settings. Honest about free vs Pro. Pro features are visible and clearly labelled. Nothing pretends to be free and then asks for a card. Written to WordPress standards. Inputs sanitised, output escaped, nonces on every request, prepared statements on every query, and a real uninstall routine that removes its own data when you delete it. Support Free support is on the WordPress.org forum. For anything Pro-related or urgent, use our contact form. External Services This plugin uses the following third-party and external services: 1) Google reCAPTCHA (Google LLC) Purpose: Used to protect forms from spam and automated abuse. When it is used: – When reCAPTCHA is enabled in plugin settings – On login forms and support forms protected by reCAPTCHA What data is sent: – User IP address – reCAPTCHA response token generated by Google – Browser information as required by Google reCAPTCHA Service provider: Google LLC Terms of Service: https://policies.google.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy 2) ThemePaste API (Plugin Author Service) Purpose: Used for: – Collecting optional admin email addresses for plugin updates and notifications – Sending support requests from the plugin support form – Collecting optional feedback when a user attempts to deactivate the plugin – Managing plugin-related notifications (only if the user provides contact details) When it is used: – When a user submits the built-in support form – When a user opts to send diagnostic information – Submitting the optional deactivation feedback form What data is sent: – Name – Email address – Phone number (if provided) – Message content – Site URL – Plugin name – Feedback text (if provided) – Support message content – Deactivation reason (if provided) No data is sent without user action. Service provider: ThemePaste.com Terms of Service: https://themepaste.com/terms-condition Privacy Policy: https://themepaste.com/privacy-policy Development / Source Code This plugin ships compiled JavaScript bundles in: – assets/admin/build/*.bundle.js The original, human-readable source files are included in this plugin under: – spa/admin/ They are also available at https://github.com/themepaste/admin-safety-guard Build Tools – Node.js (LTS recommended) – npm – Webpack + Babel Source Entry Points The admin SPA bundles are built from the following entry points: spa/admin/login-template/Main.jsx -> assets/admin/build/loginTemplate.bundle.js spa/admin/login-logs-activity/Main.jsx -> assets/admin/build/loginLogActivity.bundle.js spa/admin/analytics/Main.jsx -> assets/admin/build/analytics.bundle.js spa/admin/security-core/Main.jsx -> assets/admin/build/securityCore.bundle.js spa/admin/firewall-malware/Main.jsx -> assets/admin/build/firewallMalware.bundle.js spa/admin/privacy-hardening/Main.jsx -> assets/admin/build/privacyHardening.bundle.js spa/admin/2fa-using-mobile-app/Main.jsx -> assets/admin/build/twoFAUsingMobileApp.bundle.js React and the webpack runtime are extracted into shared chunks (framework.bundle.js and runtime.bundle.js) so they are downloaded once rather than being inlined into every bundle. Install Dependencies From the plugin root directory (where package.json lives): 1) Install dependencies: npm install Build (Production) To generate the production bundles: npm run build Output Location Webpack outputs the compiled bundles to: assets/admin/build/[name].bundle.js Important Notes – Do not edit files in assets/admin/build/ directly. They are generated files. – Edit the source files under spa/admin/ and re-run the build command. – For WordPress.org distribution, production builds should be used (mode=production). Links Website Documentation Pro Version Facebook Pinterest LinkedIn Instagram

Easily improve site security with WordPress Hardening, Two-Factor Authentication (2FA), Login Protection, Vulnerability Detection and SSL certificate. Really simple, Effective and Performant WordPress Security Really Simple Security is the most lightweight and easy-to-use security plugin for WordPress. It secures your WordPress website with SSL certificate generation, including proper 301 https redirection and SSL enforcement, scanning for possible vulnerabilities, Login Protection and implementing essential WordPress hardening features. We believe that security should have the absolute minimum effect on website performance, user experience and maintainability. Therefore, Really Simple Security is: Lightweight: Every security feature is developed with a modular approach and with performance in mind. Disabled features won’t load any redundant code. Easy-to-use: 1-minute configuration with short onboarding setup. Security Features Easy SSL Migration Migrates your website to HTTPS and enforces SSL in just one click. 301 redirect via PHP or .htaccess Secure cookies Let’s Encrypt: Install an SSL Certificate if your hosting provider supports manual installation. Server Health Check: Your server configuration is every bit as important for your website security. WordPress Hardening Tweak your configuration and keep WordPress fortified and safe by tackling potential weaknesses. Prevent code execution in the uploads folder Prevent login feedback and disable user enumeration Disable XML-RPC Disable directory browsing Username restrictions (block ‘admin’ and public names) and much more.. Vulnerability Detection Get notified when plugins, themes or WP core contain vulnerabilities and need appropriate action. Login Protection Allow or enforce Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) for specific user roles. Users receive a two-factor code via Email. Improve Security with Really Simple Security Pro Protect your site with all essential security features by upgrading to Really Simple Security Pro. Advanced SSL enforcement Mixed Content Scan & Fixer. Detect files that are requested over HTTP and fix them to HTTPS, both Front- and Back-end. Enable HTTP Strict Transport Security and configure your site for the HSTS Preload list. Firewall Really Simple Security Pro includes a performant and efficient WordPress firewall, to stop bots, crawlers and bad actors with IP and username blocks. 404 blocking – Blocks crawlers as they trigger unusual numbers of 404 errors. Region blocking – Only allow/block access to your site from specific regions. Automated and customisable Firewall rules. IP blocklist and allowlist. Security Headers Security headers protect your site visitors against the risk of clickjacking, cross-site-forgery attacks, stealing login credentials and malware. Independent of your Server Configuration, works on Apache, LiteSpeed, NGINX, etc. Protect your website visitors with X-XSS Protection, X-Content-Type-Options, X-Frame-Options, a Referrer Policy and CORS headers. Automatically generate your WordPress-tailored Content Security Policy. Vulnerability Measures When a vulnerability is detected in a plugin, theme or WordPress core you will get notified accordingly. With Vulnerability Measures, you can configure simple but effective measures to make sure that a critical vulnerability won’t remain unattended. Force update: An update process will be tried multiple times until it can be assumed development of a theme or plugin is abandoned. You will be notified during these steps. Quarantine: When a plugin or theme can’t be updated to solve a vulnerability, Really Simple Security can quarantine the plugin. Advanced Site Hardening Choose a custom login URL Automated File Permissions check and fixer Rename and randomize your database prefix Change the debug.log file location to a non-public folder Disable application passwords Control admin creation Disable HTTP methods, reducing HTTP requests Login Protection Secure your website’s login process and user accounts with powerful security measures. Two-Step verification (Email login) 2FA (two factor authentication) with TOTP Passwordless login with passkey login Enforce strong passwords and frequent password change Limit Login Attempts With Limit Login Attempts you can configure a threshold to temporarily or permanently block IP addresses or (non-existing) usernames. You can also throw a CAPTCHA after a failed login (hCaptcha or Google reCaptcha) Access Control Restrict access to your site for specific regions. Add specific IP addresses or IP ranges to the Blocklist or Allowlist. Useful Links Documentation Security Definitions Translate Really Simple Security Issues & pull requests Feature requests Love Really Simple Security? If you want to support the continuing development of this plugin, please consider buying Really Simple Security Pro, which includes some excellent security features and premium support. About Really Simple Plugins Our mission is to make complex WordPress requirements really easy. Really Simple Security is developed by Really Simple Plugins. For generating SSL certificates, Really Simple Security uses the le acme2 PHP Let’s Encrypt client library, thanks to ‘fbett’ for providing it. Vulnerability Detection uses WP Vulnerability, an open-source initiative by Javier Casares. Want to join as a collaborator? We’re on GitHub as well!