If your blog utilizes a market place for customers, it could be a target for hackers. While you may think hackers have bigger fish to fry, there is no reason you should overlook the security and recovery potential of your blog, as hackers aren’t the only danger. Servers can crash, content can be deleted and your readership can be lost. Be proactive in protecting your content. Here’s how.

Backup Your Content

Blog backup works differently depending on the platform you use. For the majority of popular blog services there is an export option. Export options typically save your content as an .xml file which can be stored on your hard drive. If, for some reason your blog service crashes and content is lost or if you simply change blog services, use the import option to migrate your blog.

Another option is a cloud backup system, which is in case of complete disaster. Just because you’ve exported your blog as a .xml file, doesn’t mean your computer can’t be wiped, broken or stolen. A cloud storage service keeps your content safe with state-of-the-art security and lets you access your saved files from anywhere in the world.

Secure Your Content

Your content is legally your possession. Copyright laws protect your content from being stolen or plagiarized, but only if you enforce it. There are a host of online plagiarism checkers; with theses services you can check entire URLs for plagiarism, and you can even put a badge on your blog that warns people that the site is protected. If these services let you search URLs for source material, then how do you identify the sites you should search?

Google Alerts lets you enter key phrases, sentences and even paragraphs, and when another site uses your entered material on their site, Google will send you an email alert. Once you’ve identified the site, you must determine if their use of your content devalues your own site. If some pages on your blog are private, for instance, and a user has taken material off a page you only allow paying or private members to see, then it has likely devalued your site.

Protect Your Customers

Hackers aren’t after your created content, they’re after personal information, and if you host a market place on your blog for wears or services, you may be a target. First — and the most important aspect of security — is your password and point of access to your blog. A randomly generated password is only the tip of the iceberg. It’s recommended to use a two-factor authentication service. When you sign in with your user name and password, the site will redirect you and ask for a number code which is then texted, emailed or updated on the authenticator app. This is a one-time-use code, and is timed as well.

Even if a hacker gets his hands on your username and password, he won’t get past this extra step. Another area of potential concern is the plugin options. Many plugins will be accredited and secured by your blog service, however, there are a host of third parties that make plugins as well. If you use a third-party plugin, make sure they are trustworthy, as third-party plugins and widgets can be used to gain access to personal and private information.