In recent years, Cybercrimes have increased in number, and it is high time to protect your Drupal site. Drupal is an open-source content management system trusted by global brands like NASA, Tesla, Oxford University, Nokia, etc., to enhance their user experiences. However, organisations always have to be conscious about their cyber security.

Ransomware attacks have been rising since the beginning of 2022 and are at their peak now in 2024. Drupal has always been known as one of the most secure CMSs, and it has proven less vulnerable to cyber-attacks than WordPress to safeguard its Drupal sites from cyber-criminals and hackers.

Common security threats facing websites today

The most visible security threat faced by all websites is DDoS. Acquia Edge Security addresses it by introducing a web application firewall (WAF) that filters out bad traffic before it can access the web server or balancer, thus reducing the risk of DDoS attacks. The organisations using Drupal should also patch or review their code to avoid any vulnerabilities through which an attack can be possible. We recommend using supported modules and monitoring the site for vulnerabilities via an application security scan. Acquia offers a Remote Administration facility for managing updates and maintenance, thus allowing clients to scan their websites on their platform to test their application’s security. Implementing these measures can significantly reduce the risk of DDoS attacks and protect websites from potential threats.

Common mistakes made when securing websites

Patching is crucial to secure any website from potential vulnerabilities. Recently, we have seen a significant rise in vulnerabilities being published all over the globe, and organisations should be alert and immediately patch their code for any possibilities and stay protected from attacks. Organisations must focus on tracking the End-Of-Life (EOL) components and incorporating advanced versions to their code and processes, thus saving them time and improving their uptime. The priority should be security and compliance from start to end, and it should be incorporated into daily operations as well. Whenever any new product or service is created, these tasks must be planned, designed, prioritised, budgeted, and implemented as part of the daily tasks to lower the possibility of attacks and improve uptime.

Best practices for securing cloud-hosted Drupal sites

For the protection of Drupal sites hosted in Cloud-Host, we can use several practices, such as Secure Development Framework, Dynamic and Static Code Scan, Penetration Test, and Manual Test. For the Secure Development Framework, we suggest the use of OWASP for Payment Card Industry (PCI) cardholder data. An internal team of testers can help organisations in application testing by implementing dynamic and static code scanning, penetration testing, and manual testing, identifying and addressing potential vulnerabilities. Penetration testing your system and testing it with an external third party can help you understand possible threats and address any surprises. Organisations can establish a threat management team that looks inward at technical vulnerabilities and outwards, such as monitoring hot spots in countries like Russia, Ukraine, the Middle East, and Central America. This helps organisations stay informed about potential threats and ensures they are not surprised by potential threats. Drupal sites can better protect their data and maintain a secure environment by following these practices.

Resources for keeping your Drupal site safe

Acquia offers security-specific tools for managing, scanning, and reporting on its platform, which is expensive but worth it due to the complexity of the platforms and the potential human errors. Acquia offers tools like Acquia Edge Security, a WAF and DDoS protection solution, and Acquia Code Studio, a full-stack platform for developing and ensuring data protection. Other resources include distribution lists that publish common vulnerabilities and exposures daily and Drupal’s security page as an open-source platform. Drupal benefits from ongoing scrutiny and input from developers worldwide and a dedicated staff of security experts who address and release security fixes.

Conclusion

This blog discussed the importance of Drupal Security due to increasing threats and the necessity for organisations using Drupal for websites to understand the best security practices.

If you have any doubts about the security of your benefit, our team of Drupal experts can help you protect your Drupal website from increasing cyber-attacks. Let’s get in touch today!