How To Fix Your Website When It Gets Hacked?

It's not uncommon for sites - even large ones with lots of protection - to get hacked. Security is a major problem these days. And if your site gets hacked, it can get damaged in a number of ways. You could lose all your data, or lose its ranking due to malicious activity. So while you can take periodic backups, you cannot prevent someone from hacking into your site. The best and most practical thing to do in such an event is to recover your site as fast as possible so that the effect of the attack is neutralized/minimized.

Here are some tips shared by Google for getting your website back on track after it has been hacked.

Clean up malicious scripts

Hackers can target your site for any number of motives. From taking down your website and deleting its content to simply adding backlinks discreetly, there's a lot that can be done. If you notice suspicious content appearing on your website, delete those unnecessary pages immediately. However, don't just stop there.

Hackers will often insert malicious scripts into your HTML and PHP files. These could automatically be creating rogue backlinks or even new pages. Make sure you check your website's source code and see for any malicious PHP or JavaScript code that could be creating such content.

Maintain your CMS

Websites often get hacked due to vulnerabilities in a CMS that get patched with updates. If you're running an older version, your site is more susceptible to attack. Make sure you keep your CMS updated, and use a strong password for login. If possible, enable two-step verification to secure the login process.

www vs. non-www

www and non-www URLs are not the same. http://www.example.com is not the same as http://example.com - the former refers to a sub-domain 'www', whereas the latter is the root of your site. When checking for malicious content, verify the non-www version of your site as hackers often try to hide content in folders that may be overlooked by the webmaster

Other useful security tips

• Avoid using FTP when transferring files to your servers. FTP does not encrypt any traffic, including passwords. Instead, use SFTP, which will encrypt everything, including your password, as a protection against eavesdroppers examining network traffic.


• Check the permissions on sensitive files like .htaccess. Your hosting provider may be able to assist you if you need help. The .htaccess file can be used to improve and protect your site, but it can also be used for malicious hacks if they are able to gain access to it.


• Be vigilant and look for new and unfamiliar users in your administrative panel and any other place where there may be users that can modify your site.

Got any questions? Feel free to leave a new thread in our discussion forum. You can read the post from Google along with a couple case studies here. Good luck (:

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What To Look For When Hiring Ghostwriting Services?

Are you looking to hire a ghostwriter? As you know, there are a large number of individuals and service providers offering such services, and businesses are increasingly hiring them to write business eBooks or blogs to serve their marketing purposes. However, the question remains: how do you hire a ghostwriter? A recent post by Vorongo posted by Cameron on what do you need to look for when hiring a ghostwriter inspired us a lot and we thought we can share our experience on this subject to better help webmasters in hiring authors for their blogs.Check out these five must-have qualities your ghostwriter should have.

1. They Must Have Industry Knowledge

Your ghostwriter should understand the genre or industry you need them to write for. Having a firm understanding of the in�s and out�s will make your manuscript, blog post, or article stand out.

An exceptional ghostwriter is one who intentionally follows up on industry news and current trends. Your ghostwriter should not have to do a vast amount of research to take on your project. Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses, so it will not make them a bad person if they do not meet your qualifications. It just means they are not meant to work on your project.

2. They Must Sign and Respect the Confidentiality Agreement

You are hiring this person to be your writer and make your publication stand out. You, however, don�t want the masses to know that it was not you doing the writing. So signing a confidentiality agreement is a must and may not be a complication for them to do so. However, just because they have signed one, does not mean they are adhering to it.

Conduct a thorough interview with the potential writer. Remember, your ghostwriter must not only sign a non-disclosure agreement with you, but must adhere to prior ones they have signed as well. So in asking for their published articles, if you find they are showing you pieces of work they�ve completed for others, it means they would turn around and do the same to you. This is not ethical practices, and they are not the ghostwriter for you.

3. They Must Show Proof of Publishing

Now, although it�s been stated that they should not show off their ghostwriting work, they can, however, show you their own publications and other writing pieces. A ghostwriter does not become one overnight. In fact, they may have had a terrible time writing as a career for themselves so turned to ghostwriting. Ask to see their portfolio of which should include:

• Their current publications


• Articles, blogs, novels, and other literature pieces clients have given permission to use


• A list of references

You want to see proof they can write better than you can. Check for organization of their writing and if they have ideas to help you shine.

4. They Are Flexible and Able to Meet Your Needs

Flexibility is key in the writing industry. You have deadlines to meet and need your ghostwriter to help you maintain them. The ghostwriter that you choose should understand and be capable of showing you that your time is valuable. They should:

• Coordinate with you for interviews, transcription, and idea creation


• Work around your schedule


• Show patience with revision requests you may have

5. They Represent You Well

Finally, your ghostwriter should match your voice and represent you well. When someone reads your work, it should accurately reflect you to the point where a close friend or family member believes you wrote the piece. In the samples they show you of their work using their name, it should reflect one particular style. If they show you ghostwritten pieces, keep in mind it�s meant for that particular client, so the style of writing will change.

Remember, the purpose of your hiring a ghostwriter is to reflect your story on your timetable. Choose one that will compliment your unique style and respect the relationship you two must build to create the perfect story.

Questions and feedback is warmly welcomed! Do share your precious views on ghostwriting buddies!

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How To Get Great Content Ideas For Your Blog?

Brainstorming for content ideas can be tough. You easily get distracted and everything seems to have already been written! To make matters worse, requirements to content concepts and titles have become much more complicated. With the growing importance of referral traffic, we now have to rethink title strategies and how they appear on social sites. If you're feeling strapped for content ideas, here are a few that can help.

Check your Comments Section

When you let people share and comment on your site, you could end up with some great blog post ideas. Your readers might ask for more information about a specific item you didn�t cover clearly in your first post, or they might share their own opinions about the topic, which could make your fingers itch to write. Reading those bits carefully could make your blogging much easier.

Check out the Competition

According to 2014 stats, more than half of all small businesses don�t have a website. As a result, your top competitor may not have a blog that you can follow. But that same competitor might be active on social media sites like Twitter and Facebook. The posts you find there could give you great ideas about topics you should cover.

If you grab an idea from someone else, be sure to tweak it or amend it or somehow make it your own. Stealing outright could get you in hot water, both with your competitors and with Google. But borrowing a good idea could help you to come up with the story idea that�s been eluding you.

Yelp Pages

People with reputation management problems are likely accustomed to the idea of using Yelp as an early warning system. When they see a poor review pop up, they know they must get to work generating content that either refutes or explains the complaint. But Yelp can also help you write blog posts about issues people either like or have questions about.

Read through your reviews and look for items that get a lot of mentions. Not all Yelp comments will contain blog gems, of course. Some might just contain complaints or random bits of praise you can�t build on. But, watching the comments closely could give you some great ideas for writing that will really resonate.

Targeted Keyword Research

And ofcourse, nothing beats good ol' fashioned keyword research. This is a fundamental part of the writing process, as it helps you find the right terms which will perform better on SERPs. But more than SEO, your searches can also help you to find out what people are looking for, and that could give you some excellent blog post ideas.

With Google AdWords� Keyword Planner, you can run a simple search on a topic you�re planning to cover. Your results page will give you keywords that are similar to the topic you�ve hit, but they come with just a few changes.

We'll soon publish an entire section dedicated to keyword research in the SEO process, so stay tuned!

Coming up with new content ideas is not easy. But if poke around and are receptive enough, with enough luck you will soon find great content ideas to go on your blog! Good luck :)

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