How to Secure Your Hosting from Directory Indexing and Browsing

Salam and hello all. Have you ever checked your hosting directory can be browse or not? Don’t get what I mean? Ok, since most blog using Wordpress as the platform, here is an example on how to check either your hosting directory can be browse or not. Try type in this URL on your browser, http://yourdomain.com/wp-content/plugins/. What can you see? If the result gives you a 404 error, it means that your hosting directory browsing and indexing is turned on. If not, it means you still not enabled it. Hence, in this entry I’ll show you how to enable this setting on your hosting. To do this you should have administrator privilege for your hosting. Ok, here are the simple steps on how to do this.

• First thing first, login into your cpanel account.
• In your cpanel account locate this icon named Index Manager. Usually it located at the bottom of your Cpanel in Advanced section. Ok, click Index Manager.

• This pop-up will come out after you click the Index Manager icon. Select Web Root for directory selection. Then, click Go.

• Next, you’ll see this screenshot. Click on public_html that located at the top of the directory list.

• Then, you’ll see this setting. Ok, here is the final step, select No Indexing. And lastly, click Save.

So now you’re done already. Test it out to make sure it works. Enter the same URL as mentioned before and see what the result you’ll get. If your Wordpress theme have custom 404 error page, you’ll see this page otherwise your hosting 404 error page. Ok that’s it.

Why you need to turn off your directory browsing and indexing? One thing is to protect your blog and hosting from outsider who wants to steal files on your hosting. Other thing is to prevent other people to know what plugins you currently used on your blog, what files already uploaded to your upload folder and etc. I see there are many blogs out there still allowed this directory browsing but if you really want others to know about what you hosted on your hosting, then you don’t have to worry much. Ok, hope this simple entry will help you and if got any questions, drop your words below.

p/s:Sorry for lack of update recently, I’m currently working on my new Bahasa Melayu blog. I’ll tell about it later.

Probably related posts:

1. How To Secure Your Webhosting Bandwidth
2. Blog Contest : Why I Hate KongsiBlog.com
3. DDOS Attack on My Hosting
4. Say hello to izzatruslan.com!
5. How to Auto-Publish Your Wordpress Posts