How Do Hackers Hack Into Your Website?

One of the biggest fears that website owners have is getting hacked. The question most people want to know is how do hackers hack a website? There seem to be so many ways that it can happen, but if you were to ask someone on the street how they do it most people wouldn't know the answers. By learning and understanding the ways that hackers can get into your website, hopefully you’ll gain insights into the ways you can prevent it from happening in the first place.

Uplevel Your Website Protection from Hackers

It goes without saying that you need to protect your website. However, many people don't understand just how important it is, or all the ways they can be attacked by a cybercriminal. It can happen to anyone, regardless of their company’s size and if it happens to you it can cost more than money.

A prime example of this is people using the same password on all of their accounts. One breach later, all of your systems are compromised and you have to spend a significant amount of time and effort trying to recover things. Bottom line - protecting your website is a serious matter, and you should always think of it as such.

How do Hackers Hack a Website? A Brief Overview

Hacking is a multifaceted process. However, there are several distinct methods cybercriminals might use to “break in.” These methods include but aren’t limited to: social engineering, software exploitation, and brute force attacks. The overwhelming majority of all of the methods of hacking websites we’ll cover below fall into these three categories. If you understand how they work, you will be able to better protect your online property.

10 Ways a Hacker Can Compromise Your Website 

1. Social Engineering

The first and most popular method that hackers use to get into your website is called social engineering. The other name for this is “human hacking.” It is essentially done by persuading people to do something that would lead to them getting hacked.

For example, dressing up as a contractor and going to a building pretending to work on it. In this case, the would-be cybercriminal would then be given access to a lot of places a person wouldn't actually be allowed to enter under normal circumstances. In the context of a website, the main way they use this method is to send you messages and pretend to be someone important such as a security consultant or IT manager. They would then try to get personal information from you that they could then use to get into your website.

2. Denial of Service and DDOS

Denial of service is a method of flooding your website with so much fake traffic that it crashes the web server. This is typically done as a threat or to extort money. The sophistication of these attacks has gotten better in recent years, but there are still defenses you can implement against them. Sometimes, it is as simple as routing and filtering your traffic using software or hardware.

3. Brute Force Attacks

With a brute force attack, hackers try a variety of passwords in hopes they can get one that lets them inside. One method of deciphering your password is to use what is known as a rainbow table to crack your password. A rainbow table is a large file containing a list of possible passwords and the associated hashes that allows the would-be hacker to let their computer do the work. A great defense against a brute force attack is to use a combination of characters and uppercase and lowercase letters in your password.

4. Phishing

Phishing is a subset of social engineering. It occurs when a hacker sends you an email that looks like it’s from a legitimate source when in fact it’s not. This method sadly can fool a lot of people. Read our post “How to Tell if an Email is Fake or Legitimate” to evade phishing.

5. Clickjacking

There are hundreds of websites with hidden malware links. It’s quite common with embedded video links. You click to play the video and are led to a nefarious weblink instead. These links often put malware on your computer if you have automatic downloading enabled. Sometimes. this malware then gets to read all of your keyboard inputs giving criminals the keys to your online kingdom.

6. Spoofing DNS

If a hacker has access to your computer, they can poison your DNS cache and use it to redirect you to bad websites. These malicious websites would then be able to inject malware onto your computer.

7. SQL Injection

This is considered an old school hacking method, but it’s still causing many businesses trouble. SQL injection involves injecting “bad code” into your database library. The good news is this method is often eradicated with software. 

One way to defend against an SQL injection is to regularly check input forms on your website to make sure that it is impossible for hackers to enter any damaging commands. The main way hackers exploit forms is to enter a string of letters that they then use to create a database command giving them root access to a web server. When they have that, they can access all passwords and other personal data on a website.

8. XSS or Cross Site Scripting

Using this method, the hacker injects JavaScript into your browser and then uses that code to steal your personal information from other websites. It can also lead to your sessions being taken over, which could potentially mean getting access to even more personal information.

9. Forging CSRF Requests

This method involves the hacker sending a forged cross-site request after you have logged in. It is usually sent in the form of a hidden web form or image tag. This is one of the many methods of website hacking that is becoming less of a threat as security companies are improving defense techniques.

10. Stealing Cookies

A hacker can potentially create a malicious browser add-on to steal your cookies. When that happens, they will be able to read your session information and passwords. They would then be able to get access to other logins. Because of this, it is crucial that you never download anything to your computer that you don't trust 100%.

Can You Protect Yourself Completely?

The short answer is no. Unfortunately, as businesses get smarter about protecting themselves, hackers keep getting more clever in their method of attaching. Still, it’s better to know the current methods and actively work to defend yourself against them. Then, as the methods change, make the shifts necessary to continue protecting your website. And, if you are careful and keep your software up to date, you minimize the risk of a hacker breaking into your digital property.

Security Testing is just one aspect of protecting an organization. Learn more about how the Rivial Platform can help you level-up your cybersecurity management with one place to manage, track, automate, and report cybersecurity.