Tis the season for malware
A few days ago I received a call from a client whose website we developed several years ago. We’ve not had any performance issues until now.
She was understandably very concerned as several customers notified her that the business website wasn’t coming up on searches using Google, Bing, etc. The information that did show up accurately was embedded in affiliate websites that my client subscribes to, such as Home Advisor.
The incorrect information that populated the searches included headline that read “this business is permanently closed” or the address presented was wrong. The problem seemed to be isolated to only their website.
We detected malware and corrected the situation. The website once again behaves beautifully, as it was intended to.
Make it a habit to observe how your business appears online, not just during the holidays, but all year long. Consider that each year cyber attacks increase 30% from the previous year, and 70% during November and December.
An ounce of prevention: BACK UP YOUR WEBSITE and store in a safe place. Cyber security experts recommend 2 backups: cloud and hard drive backups.
Be vigilant and reassured that there are solutions in the event your website is tampered with.