123-reg is helping website owners to protect themselves – and their visitors – against the scourge of malware with a new tool that spots, pinpoints and helps to remove malicious code from legitimate websites.For more information on how to monitor and protect your website from malware, take the Site Scanner Tour.The domain registrar will provide the anti-malware Site Scanner software directly to website owners. The service alerts site owners via an automated email of any dangerous code that has been injected on their site, and advises them on how best to remove the threat.
The threat of websites being infected with malicious code has become more apparent over the past 12 months. This risk has been widened by the news that a major security provider listed Harry Potter star Emma Watson as the ‘most dangerous’ celebrity on the internet. In a celebrity obsessed world, a greater number of people are taking to the internet to catch up with the latest gossip, photos and stories about their favourite celebrities, something which represents a growing security risk.
6,600 benign websites are hacked every single day, with legitimate websites being turned into distributors of malware by hackers. Most modern websites will use frameworks like WordPress or Joomla. This third party software can contain vulnerabilities, allowing hackers to break into websites. For those who are running a legitimate celebrity fan site, Site Scanner instantly notifies website owners if they have been infected with malware, allowing them to take easy, but crucial steps to protect users who may come to their sites. Furthermore, Site Scanner provides the website with a trusted Site Seal to increase visitor confidence.
Site Scanner is integrated with all major malware registries, which are constantly updated with the latest threats. This gives users peace of mind that they are always protected from the latest identified threats – something that cannot be guaranteed with free open source software.
To counter the most sophisticated malware, which subtly change elements of their code to escape detection, Site Scanner’s premium version features sophisticated Artificial Intelligence to highlight all instances of unrecognised, unauthorised scripts, and notifies users with a breakdown of the potential threats. The premium version also enables website owners to pinpoint the exact line of code the malware/viruses starts and ends on for quick resolution.
“The consequences of a corrupted or compromised website are potentially extremely serious, especially for organisations that drive much of their business through the web,” explained Thomas Vollrath, CEO of 123-reg’s parent company Host Europe Group. “Embedded malware is one of the main causes of security and data breaches, which can severely compromise a business’s operations.
“Meanwhile, compromised websites can infect visitors with malware, and this is one of the most common reasons why search engines, browsers and security vendors will blacklist a site,” he continued. “Google alone blacklists 9,500 websites every day, a large number of them legitimate sites that have been infected by malware. It’s not just e-commerce and corporate websites that are at risk – hackers and criminals often go for smaller sites, including blogs and social media, because they are less likely to be protected.
“The impact on an organisation’s business, and its reputation, is potentially catastrophic, so we are encouraging website owners and designers to take responsibility for their safety, and that of their users, by providing a simple tool that enables them to monitor for any security breaches,” said Vollrath.
For more information on how to monitor and protect your website from malware, take the Site Scanner Tour.