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Really Simple Security Pro — A Reviewer’s Field Notes & Engineer’s Hardening Runbook

Preface: What “protection” actually means on WordPress

Security isn’t a plugin you toggle; it’s a posture you maintain. Really Simple Security Pro supports that posture by turning a messy list of best practices into switchable, testable modules—ideal for site owners who want WordPress Protection without drowning in dev-ops minutiae. Think of it as a curated control panel: you decide the policy, the plugin enforces it, and you keep score with logs and reports. I first saw it adopted by teams who buy from gplpal and needed a dependable “day-one hardening” baseline they could hand to non-specialists.

What follows mixes a review lens (does it help the right user do the right thing?) with a technical runbook (exact steps, order of operations, and validation). If you’ve ever promised to “lock it down this week,” this is your map.

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TL;DR (for the impatient)

• Audience fit: Site owners and implementers who want one consolidation point for HTTPS headers, login controls, and platform hardening—with minimal theme/plugin collisions.

• Strengths: Opinionated defaults, fast wins (headers, editor off, XML-RPC policy), 2FA & login throttling, clear guidance.

• Caveats: Any security stack is only as good as its maintenance—you still need updates, backups, and monitoring discipline.

• Verdict: If you want predictable, low-drama defenses that won’t hijack your theme or tank Core Web Vitals, this is a pragmatic core layer.

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Threat model first: know what you’re defending against

Before toggling anything, articulate your threats. A simple model covers 90% of WordPress risks:

1. Credential attacks

   • Brute force and credential stuffing on /wp-login.php and /xmlrpc.php.

   • Session fixation and weak admin passwords.

2. Exposed admin surface

   • File editor abuse (Appearance > Theme File Editor).

   • Over-privileged roles or leaked users.

3. Transport & browser risks

   • Incomplete HTTPS; missing HSTS, X-Frame-Options, X-Content-Type-Options, or Referrer-Policy.

   • Lax Content-Security-Policy that allows injected scripts to run.

4. Discovery & enumeration

   • Author, plugin, and path enumeration—fuel for targeted exploits.

5. Change control & integrity

   • Unreviewed changes to core files, plugins, or critical options.

Your goal: reduce the attack surface, harden auth & transport, and add operational guardrails so mistakes don’t become incidents.

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0–60 minutes hardening with Really Simple Security Pro

Follow this order. Test after each step.

Minute 0–10: Baseline & backups

• Confirm server-level backups exist (daily + weekly).

• Update WordPress, theme, and plugins.

• Ensure PHP ≥ a currently supported version; disable unused PHP modules.

Minute 10–20: HTTPS & headers

In Really Simple Security Pro, enable:

• Force HTTPS and HSTS (start with max-age=3600 for one hour; expand to weeks once confident).

• X-Content-Type-Options: nosniff, X-Frame-Options: SAMEORIGIN, Referrer-Policy: strict-origin-when-cross-origin.

• Set a baseline Content-Security-Policy (CSP): begin in Report-Only with the allowed script/style origins you actually use. Promote to enforce after a week of clean reports.

Minute 20–35: Login & account controls

• Limit login attempts with exponential backoff.

• 2FA for all admins/editors (TOTP).

• Session controls: auto-logout after inactivity; notify on new device sign-in.

• CAPTCHA on login and, optionally, on registration.

• Rename or gate /wp-login.php if your workflow allows it (keep a rescue URL).

Minute 35–45: Platform hygiene

• Disable file editors in wp-admin.

• Set strict file permissions (644 files / 755 directories; no world-writable).

• Restrict XML-RPC (block or allow only Jetpack/needed methods).

• Hide or throttle author & directory enumeration.

• Turn on automatic minor updates; review majors manually.

Minute 45–60: Monitoring & proof

• Enable integrity checks on core files and critical directories.

• Turn on login & settings change logs; send email alerts for admin role changes, new plugins, and policy toggles.

• Export a settings snapshot for disaster recovery.

Result: a hardened baseline that covers the most exploited paths while staying compatible with sane hosting stacks.

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Why this plugin works well in real life (review perspective)

• Clarity over cleverness: Options are named how humans think (“Force HTTPS,” “Disable file editor,” “Limit login attempts”). You don’t need a CISSP to get value.

• Good defaults: The initial settings avoid theme breakage; you can tighten them gradually.

• Low friction: Adds protections without injecting heavy UI frameworks or massive front-end scripts.

• Compliance assist: Security headers, logs, and 2FA tick boxes for many org policies without custom work.

• Plays well with others: Doesn’t try to be a malware scanner, WAF, and CDN at once—so it rarely conflicts with your caching/CDN.

Tradeoffs: It won’t replace a network WAF, malware scanner, or a backup system. Treat it as the host-level policy layer; pair with upstream defenses (e.g., host WAF, Cloudflare security rules) and a proper backup/restore plan.

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Configuration deep dive (what to toggle and why)

A. TLS & headers (browser-side armor)

• HSTS: Pins HTTPS; stops protocol downgrade. Start small, then extend max-age.

• CSP: Your last line against injected scripts. Roll out in Report-Only; analyze violations; then enforce.

• X-Frame-Options: Prevents clickjacking. If you embed admin pages (rare), keep SAMEORIGIN.

• X-Content-Type-Options and X-XSS-Protection (when relevant): Cut MIME-type sniffing and legacy XSS filters.

• Referrer-Policy: Protect query secrets; strict-origin-when-cross-origin is a strong default.

Validation: Use browser devtools → Network → check response headers on front page and wp-admin. No mixed-content warnings.

B. Authentication & sessions

• 2FA (TOTP) for admins/editors; encourage authors, too.

• Login throttling: Backoff + temporary bans on repeated failure.

• Session management: Limit concurrent sessions; show device list; revoke with one click.

• Password hygiene: Enforce minimum length and breach checks (if available); block commonly used passwords.

Validation: Attempt a string of bad logins; confirm lockout behavior and alerting.

C. Surface reduction

• Disable file editor: Prevents direct edits to theme/plugin files through wp-admin.

• XML-RPC policy: Block entirely unless you need specific methods; then allowlist.

• Hide or limit author archives: Reduce user enumeration vectors.

• Directory indexes off: No browsing of /wp-content/uploads/ listings.

D. Integrity & change control

• Core file comparison against known good hashes; alert on drift.

• Log important events: new plugins, plugin/theme updates, role changes, policy toggles.

• Export/import settings: Treat your security config like code; version the export.

E. Compatibility notes

• Test contact forms, payment flows, and third-party embeds after enabling CSP and stricter headers.

• If you run a page builder with inline scripts/styles, whitelist carefully in CSP to avoid breakage.

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Performance: security without speed tax

Security modules often sabotage Core Web Vitals. This stack avoids that if you:

• Keep front-end injections minimal (no heavy JS).

• Serve static assets via HTTP/2+CDN; don’t disable cache because of admin considerations—segment caching rules.

• Use lazy CSP rollout (Report-Only first) to identify the exact allowlist, so you don’t blanket-permit unsafe-inline.

• Log smartly: write to efficient storage; rotate logs; don’t log noisy events on every page hit.

Expect zero material LCP/CLS/INP regression from the plugin alone; headers are free wins.

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A11y & UX: secure without punishing real users

• 2FA UX: Offer backup codes and clear “lost device” instructions.

• Lockout messages: Explain timers and next steps; don’t reveal whether the username exists.

• Captcha balance: Enable where it blocks bots most (login/registration), not on every form.

• Admin alerts: Human-readable emails with the who/what/when and a “view in dashboard” link.

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Operational runbooks (print these)

Runbook 1 — Brute force wave

Signal: Spikes in failed logins; many IPs; lockouts rising.
Actions:

1. Confirm lockouts are working; increase backoff window.

2. If using Cloudflare/host WAF, add a temporary rate limit on /wp-login.php and /xmlrpc.php.

3. Force 2FA enrollment for all privileged users; expire all sessions.

4. Review logs for successful logins during the wave (possible credential stuff).

Exit: Failed logins normalize for 48 hours; no anomalous successful logins.

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Runbook 2 — Suspicious admin change

Signal: Email: “Admin role changed” or “New admin created.”
Actions:

1. Verify who did it and from which IP. If unknown → immediately demote the account and reset passwords.

2. Rotate salts in wp-config.php; force logouts.

3. Audit plugins added/updated in the same window.

4. Check integrity of core files; re-install core if drifted.

Exit: Root cause found (legit or compromised); all sessions rotated; integrity clean.

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Runbook 3 — Mixed content / header breakage

Signal: Browser shows insecure content or CSP violations.
Actions:

1. Inspect Network tab; note violating URLs and directives.

2. If CSP blocks critical scripts, temporarily relax to Report-Only; add specific allowlist entries (no wildcard sprawl).

3. Fix hardcoded http:// assets in theme/templates.

Exit: No mixed content; CSP back to enforce; minimal allowlist.

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Governance & documentation

• Security owner: one person responsible for the policy; backups have named deputies.

• Quarterly review: check headers, 2FA coverage, role creep, stale admin accounts.

• Joiners/Leavers: on/off-boarding checklists with role updates and access revocation.

• Disaster card: where settings export lives; how to restore if locked out.

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FAQ (the pragmatic kind)

Q: Is this a firewall or malware scanner?
A: It’s primarily a policy & hardening layer. Pair it with host or CDN WAF and a reputable scanner if you need those roles.

Q: Will CSP break my page builder?
A: Only if you enforce without measuring first. Start Report-Only, collect reports, and allowlist precisely.

Q: Can I hide /wp-login.php?
A: Yes, but keep a rescue URL and document it for your team. It’s security-by-friction, not your only defense.

Q: Does this fix an already hacked site?
A: No plugin alone can. Clean, re-key, patch, and then harden to prevent recurrence.

Q: What about performance?
A: Properly configured, headers add protection with no front-end weight; caching/CDN keep pages fast.

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Capability map (what the modules help you achieve)

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Compatibility testing matrix (copy & adapt)

Test after enabling each module:

• WP Core: login/logout, password reset, profile update.

• E-commerce: add-to-cart, checkout, payment gateway callback.

• Page builder: edit page, save, preview, dynamic assets load.

• Forms: submit, AJAX, file uploads.

• Media: upload, resize, WebP conversion.

• Embeds: maps, videos, analytics; confirm CSP allowlist.

• CDN/Cache: purge, cache hit/miss; admin bypass works.

Record failures and the directive/module responsible; don’t globally relax policies.

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Future-proofing (so you aren’t surprised later)

• Deprecations: Monitor release notes; retire legacy settings when core provides native equivalents.

• PHP & WP majors: test on staging first; export/import security settings after upgrades.

• Cloud assist: If you adopt Cloudflare or a host WAF later, keep this plugin—defense in depth beats a single chokepoint.

• User growth: As teams grow, require 2FA for more roles and shorten session lifetimes.

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Final verdict

Really Simple Security Pro nails the boring but essential parts of WordPress Protection: headers, login controls, surface reduction, and integrity guardrails. It’s not a silver bullet, and it doesn’t try to be. For most sites, pairing it with routine updates, a CDN/WAF, and solid backups yields a resilient baseline that survives real-world traffic and team churn.

If you want a one-hour hardening pass that actually sticks—and a dashboard you won’t dread opening—this is the kind of plugin you standardize on.

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