While many people seem to think that every aspect of security will be run by their hosting company, this is not always the case. True, the host will protect you from the more traditional hackers who will “try and break in through the front door”, you still need to keep a close eye on security yourself.

Among the factors which can assist you in increasing the security of your site(s) is :-

· Change your user name and password on regular basis - we all know we should do this, but how many of us actually do?
· Always upload and add new software updates to your existing packages, where applicable. Programs such as VB Bulletin offer regular security fixes, which block unauthorised entry via your forum code, which can ultimately give someone access to your hosting account.
· Always use different user names and passwords for each of your websites - this is one of the more common errors which people make, using the same information throughout all of their websites.
· If an email looks suspicious do not open it - if it is that important, they will email you again. Be very wary of random emails which can often include spyware and other dangerous programs

While these are some of the very simple ways in which you can make life that much harder for anyone looking to gain unauthorised access to your websites / hosting, they can be very effective. Do not take any chances with your security!