Is HostPapa Secure? We Take A Look

HostPapa has earned its place as one of the best web host providers out there.

But how does it stack up against the best in the industry when it comes to web host security? Read on to find out!

What Are HostPapa’s Basic Security Features?

HostPapa is a great web host for small businesses because it includes a good set of basic security features in their basic pricing plans.

1. All HostPapa plans come with free SSL certificates

SSL certificates are essential to all web host providers. HostPapa is no different!

An SSL certificate ensures that the connection between your site and your external visitor is secure. It essentially encrypts the data so that data passing between the two parties is secure. It also adds the “S” to your “HTTP” code which signals to your customers that your website can be trusted.

This works whether you build a website with HostPapa’s website builder or build it on WordPress.

Pro and Ultra pricing plans have access to the Premium Wildcard SSL as an extra layer of protection.

2. You get server firewall and monitoring

HostPapa provides a firewall for your server to protect your network. If the firewall detects any suspicious activity, the data will be prevented from reaching your website network.

3. ModSecurity will filter your traffic

ModSecurity is a web application filter that protects your website from regular malicious attacks, like cross-site scripting (XSS). There’s no extra cost for this service – even at the lowest pricing tier.

4. You get DDoS attack prevention

DDoS attacks are a real problem in the tech world. It can be devastating to your business if a hacker gets through. HostPapa creates many layers of protection to shield against DDoS attacks.

Note: this feature isn’t available on the lowest pricing plan, but it’s included as standard from the Plus tier and up.

What About HostPapa’s Advanced Security Features?

Now for the more advanced, premium security features. These extra security features have an extra monthly cost to them. You can add them during checkout but I would recommend speaking to a HostPapa team member about the security your business needs.

As a small business owner, you may be perfectly fine with the basic security features that HostPapa include with their shared hosting plans.

Upgrade to get automated website backups

Automated website backups ensure that you’ll never lose your data if you have a site error or data breach. Out of all the extra security measures, this one is probably the most valuable.

You can restore previous versions of your website at any time if you make a mistake or have an emergency situation.

It’s not just your website that’s backed up either! With this service, you get daily automated backups for all your MySQL databases and emails too.

You can add this to your Start or Plus plan for $47.99 per year. Or it comes included with Pro and Ultra plans.

Protection Power Security Software makes your website hack-proof

Protection Power Security Software is HostPapa’s main security product. It’s a suite of tools aimed at safeguarding your website and network from hackers.

It includes:

You can add Protection Power to your website from as little as $35.88 per year. Here are the prices for the other tiers:

Domain privacy protects your personal data

Did you know that your personal data is publicly accessible when you register a domain?

Yep, it’s held on a database that anyone can access. Domain privacy shields you against all that!

It’s an additional service for shared web hosting plans that costs just $9.99 per year.

SiteLock Website Application Firewall is a super shield

SiteLock is great for inspiring more confidence in your website visitors and protecting your website against malicious code.

How does it work? There are four different tiers.

With the Detect plan, the system will do a daily malware scan and a yearly vulnerability scan. The Remove plan takes things a step further by both detecting and removing malware automatically.

The top monthly tier is the Shield plan. The Shield plan includes all the features of Detect and Remove but adds on DDoS protection and a web application firewall (WAF).

The biggest package is the SiteLock911 package. This is an emergency fix for websites under attack. SiteLock911 is a $199 one time payment that is the ultimate clean up for malicious malware attacking your site.

It works by downloading all your website files, scanning them, and removing any malicious code it finds. Once it’s worked its magic, it restores all of your clean files to your server.

It’s a pretty great all in one solution for a reasonable price.

Has HostPapa Had Any Data Breaches?

At the time of writing, there isn’t much evidence to say that HostPapa has had any data breaches in the past.

They were at risk of hacking due to a plugin bug on WordPress websites, as reported by Fergal Gallagher from Tech Times in May 2015.

HostPapa, among others, was mentioned as a notable web hosting service that implemented a security fix as soon as the issue was raised.

So HostPapa clearly takes security extremely seriously.

They take privacy seriously too! As a Canadian company, they must abide by the PIPEDA laws – the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act.

Is HostPapa A Secure Host Solution?

Overall, HostPapa has multiple protections against hacking and malicious attacks. If you are doubting if web hosting is for you, security is a huge reason why it’s worth it. It’s so valuable having that extra layer of security and support should anything happen to your website.

The advanced security features and speed of their customer service team are just some of the reasons why HostPapa is one of the best web hosting services out there. If you want to learn more, here’s our full review on HostPapa!