When you’re shopping around for a Virtual Private Network (VPN) you’ll find yourself in a sea of promises like “military-grade encryption!” and “total anonymity!” You can’t scroll two inches without someone waving around these fancy terms.

But not all VPNs can be trusted. Some VPNs genuinely protect your privacy, and some only sound like they do.

With VPN usage rising around the world for streaming, travel, remote work, and basic digital safety, understanding what makes a VPN truly private matters more than ever.

After years of trying VPNs for myself, privacy-minded family members, and a few mission-critical projects, here’s what I wish everyone knew.

Why do you even need a VPN?

If you’re wondering whether a VPN is worth it, you’re not alone. As your privacy-conscious consumer advocate, let me break down three time-saving and cost-saving benefits of using a privacy-first VPN.

Keep your browsing private

Ever feel like someone’s always looking over your shoulder online? Without a VPN, your internet service provider, and sometimes websites or governments, can keep tabs on what you do. A VPN encrypts your traffic and swaps out your real IP address for one of its own, letting you browse, shop, and read without a digital paper trail following you around.

I’ve run into this myself while traveling. There were times when I needed a VPN just to access US or European web apps that were blocked in certain Asian countries. In other cases, I preferred to appear “based” in the US so that English-language apps would load naturally, instead of defaulting to the local language, currency, or content of the country I was visiting.

Watch what you want, but pay less

Some of your favorite shows and websites are locked away simply because of where you live. In many cases, subscription or pay-per-view prices are higher in more prosperous regions. With a VPN, you can connect to servers in other countries and unlock content that isn’t available at home.

For example, when All Elite Wrestling (AEW) announced its major 2022 pay-per-view featuring CM Punk vs. Jon Moxley, US fans paid $49.99 through Bleacher Report. Fans in the UK, meanwhile, watched the exact same event on FiteTV for $23 less, around half the price. Because platforms determine pricing based on your IP address, a VPN server in another region can show you the pricing available in that country. Savings like that can make a VPN pay for itself quickly.

Stay safe on coffee-shop Wi-Fi

Before you join a network named “Starbucks Guest WiFi,” remember that nothing stops a cybercriminal from broadcasting a hotspot with the same name. Public Wi-Fi is convenient, but it’s also one of the easiest places for someone to snoop on your traffic.

Connecting to your VPN immediately encrypts everything you send or receive. That means you can check email, pay bills, or browse privately without worrying about someone nearby intercepting your information. Getting compromised will cost far more in money, time, and stress than most privacy-first VPN subscriptions.

But what actually makes a VPN privacy-first?

For a VPN, “privacy-first” can’t be just a nice slogan. It’s a mindset that shapes every technical, business, and legal decision.

A privacy-first VPN:

• Collects as little data as possible — only the minimum needed to run the service.
• Enforces a real no-logs policy through design, not marketing.
• Builds privacy into everything, from software to server operations.
• Practices transparency, often through open-source components and independent audits.

If a VPN can’t explain how it handles these areas, that’s a red flag.

What is WireGuard and why is it such a big deal?

WireGuard isn’t a VPN service. It’s the protocol that powers many modern VPNs, including Malwarebytes Privacy VPN. It’s the engine that handles encryption and securely routes your traffic.

WireGuard is the superstar in the VPN world. Unlike clunkier, older protocols (like OpenVPN or IPSec) it’s deliberately lean and built for the modern internet. Its small codebase is easier to audit and leaves fewer places for bugs to hide. It’s fully open-source, so researchers can dig into exactly how it works.

Its cryptography is fast, efficient, and modern with strong encryption, solid key exchange, and lightweight hashing that reduces overhead. In practice, that means better privacy and better performance without a provider having to gather connection data just to keep speeds usable.

Of course, WireGuard is just the foundation. Each VPN implements it differently. The better ones add privacy-friendly tweaks like rotating IP addresses or avoiding static identifiers so that even they can’t link sessions back to individual users.

How to compare VPNs

With VPN usage rising, especially where new age-verification rules have sparked debate about whether VPNs might face future scrutiny, it’s more important than ever to choose providers with strong, transparent privacy practices.

When you boil it down, a handful of questions reveal almost everything about how a VPN treats your privacy:

• Who controls the infrastructure?
• Are the servers RAM-only?
• Which protocol is used, and how is it implemented?
• What laws apply to the company?
• Have experts audited the service?
• Do transparency reports or warrant canaries exist and stay updated?
• Can you sign up and pay without giving away your entire identity?

If a VPN provider gets evasive about any of this, or runs its service “for free” while collecting data to make the numbers work, that tells you almost everything you need to know.

Why infrastructure ownership matters

One of the most revealing questions you can ask is deceptively simple: Who actually owns the servers?

Most VPNs rent hardware from large data centers or cloud platforms. When they do, your traffic travels through machines managed not only by the VPN’s engineers, but also by whoever runs those facilities. That introduces an access question: Who else has their hands on the hardware?

When a VPN owns and operates its equipment, including racks and networking gear, it reduces the number of unknowns dramatically. The fewer third parties in the chain, the easier it is to stand behind privacy guarantees.

RAM-only (diskless) servers: the gold standard

RAM-only servers take this a step further. Because everything runs in memory, nothing is ever written to a hard drive. Pull the plug and the entire working state disappears instantly, like wiping a whiteboard clean. That means no logs sitting quietly on a disk, nothing for an intruder or authorities to seize, and nothing left behind if ownership, personnel, or legal circumstances change.

This setup also tends to go hand-in-hand with owning the hardware. Most public cloud environments simply don’t allow true diskless deployments with full control over the underlying machine.

Other privacy features to watch for

Even with strong infrastructure and protocols, the details still matter. A solid kill switch keeps your traffic from leaking if the connection drops. Private DNS prevents queries from being routed through third parties. Multi-hop routes make correlation attacks harder. And torrent users may want carefully implemented port forwarding that doesn’t introduce side channels.

These aren’t flashy features, but they show whether a provider has considered the full privacy landscape, not just the obvious parts.

Audits and transparency reports

A provider that truly stands behind its privacy claims will welcome outside inspection. Independent audits, published findings, and ongoing transparency reports help confirm whether logging is disabled in practice, not just in principle. Some companies also maintain warrant canaries (more on this below). None of these are perfect, but together they paint a clear picture of how seriously the VPN treats user trust.

A warrant canary in the VPN coalmine

Okay, so here’s something interesting: some companies use something called a “warrant canary” to quietly let us know if they’ve received a top-secret government request for data. Here’s the deal…it’s illegal for them to simply tell us, “Hey, the government’s snooping around.” So, instead, they publish a simple statement that says something like, “As of January 2026, we haven’t received any secret orders for your data.”

The clever part is that they update this statement on a regular basis. If it suddenly disappears or just stops getting updated, it could mean the company got hit with one of these hush-hush requests and legally can’t talk about it. It’s like the digital version of a warning signal. It is nothing flashy, but if you’re paying attention, you’ll spot when something changes.

It’s not a perfect system (and who knows what the courts will think of it in the future), but a warrant canary is one-way companies try to be on our side, finding ways to keep us in the loop even when they’re told to stay silent. So, give an extra ounce of trust to companies that publish these regularly.

Where privacy-first VPNs are heading

Expect to see continued evolution: new cryptography built for a post-quantum world, more transparency from providers, decentralized and community-run VPN options, and tighter integration with secure messaging, encrypted DNS, and whatever comes next.

It’s also worth keeping an eye on how governments respond to rising VPN use. In the UK, for example, new age-verification rules triggered a huge spike in VPN sign-ups and a public debate about whether VPN usage should be monitored more closely. There’s no proposal to restrict or ban VPNs, but the conversation is active.

If you care about your privacy online, don’t settle for slick marketing. Look for the real foundations like modern protocols, owned and well-managed infrastructure, RAM-only servers, regular audits, and a culture that treats transparency as a habit, not a stunt.

Privacy is engineered, not simply promised. With the right VPN, you stay in control of your digital life instead of hoping someone else remembers to keep your secrets safe.

---

We don’t just report on privacy—we offer you the option to use it.

Privacy risks should never spread beyond a headline. Keep your online privacy yours by using Malwarebytes Privacy VPN.

Recruiters expect the odd exaggerated resume, but many companies, including us here at Malwarebytes, are now dealing with something far more serious: job applicants who aren’t real people at all.

From fabricated identities to AI-generated resumes and outsourced impostor interviews, hiring pipelines have become a new way for attackers to sneak into organizations.

Fake applicants aren’t just a minor HR inconvenience anymore but a genuine security risk. So, what’s the purpose behind it, and what should you look out for?

How these fake applicants operate

These applicants don’t just fire off a sketchy resume and hope for the best. Many use polished, coordinated tactics designed to slip through screening.

AI-generated resumes

AI-generated resumes are now one of the most common signs of a fake applicant. Language models can produce polished, keyword-heavy resumes in seconds, and scammers often generate dozens of variations to see which one gets past an Applicant Tracking System. In some cases, entire profiles are generated at the same time.

These resumes often look flawless on paper but fall apart when you ask about specific projects, timelines, or achievements. Hiring teams have reported waves of nearly identical resumes for unrelated positions, or applicants whose written materials are far more detailed than anything they can explain in conversation. Some have even received multiple resumes with the same formatting quirks, phrasing, or project descriptions.

Fake or borrowed identities

Impersonation is common. Scammers use AI-generated or stolen profile photos, fake addresses, and VoIP phone numbers to look legitimate. LinkedIn activity is usually sparse, or you’ll find several nearly identical profiles using the same name with slightly different skills.

At Malwarebytes, as in this Register article, we’ve noticed that the details applicants provide don’t always match what we see during the interview. In some cases, the same name and phone number have appeared across multiple applications, each supported by a freshly tailored resume. Further discrepancies occur in many instances where the applicant claims to be located in one country, but calls from another country entirely, usually in Asia.

Outsourced, scripted, and deepfake interviews

Fraudulent interviews tend to follow a familiar pattern. Introductions are short and vague, and answers arrive after long, noticeable pauses, as if the person is being coached off-screen. Many try to keep the camera off, or ask to complete tests offline instead of live.

In more advanced cases, you might see the telltale signs of real-time filters or deepfake tools, like mismatched lip-sync, unnatural blinking, or distorted edges. Most scammers still rely on simpler tricks like camera avoidance or off-screen coaching, but there have been reports of attackers using deepfake video or voice clones in interviews. It’s still rare, but it shows how quickly these tools are evolving.

Why they’re doing it

Scammers have a range of motives, from fraud to full system access.

Financial gain

For some groups, the goal is simple: money. They target remote, well-paid roles and then subcontract the work to cheaper labor behind the scenes. The fraudulent applicant keeps the salary while someone else quietly does the job at a fraction of the cost. It’s a volume game, and the more applications they get through, the more income they can generate.

Identity or documentation fraud

Others are trying to build a paper trail. A “successful hire” can provide employment verification, payroll history, and official contract letters. These documents can later support visa applications, bank loans, or other kinds of identity or financial fraud. In these cases, the scammer may never even intend to start work. They just need the paperwork that makes them look legitimate.

Algorithm testing and data harvesting

Some operations use job applications as a way to probe and learn. They send out thousands of resumes to test how screening software responds, to reverse-engineer what gets past filters, and to capture recruiter email patterns for future campaigns. By doing this at scale, they train automation that can mimic real applicants more convincingly over time.

System access for cybercrime

This is where the stakes get higher. Landing a remote role can give scammers access to internal systems, company data, and intellectual property—anything the job legitimately touches.

Even when the scammer isn’t hired, simply entering your hiring pipeline exposes internal details: how your team communicates, who makes what decisions, which roles have which tools. That information can be enough to craft a convincing impersonation later. At that point, the hiring process becomes an unguarded door into the organization.

The wider risk (not just to recruiters)

Recruiters aren’t the only ones affected. Everyday people on LinkedIn or job sites can get caught in the fallout too.

Fake applicant networks rely on scraping public profiles to build believable identities. LinkedIn added anti-bot checks in 2023, but fake profiles still get through, which means your name, photo, or job history could be copied and reused without your knowledge.

They also send out fake connection requests that lead to phishing messages, malicious job offers, or attempts to collect personal information. Recent research from the University of Portsmouth found that fake social media profiles are more common than many people realise:

80% of respondents said they’d encountered suspicious accounts, and 77% had received link requests from strangers.

It’s a reminder that anyone on LinkedIn can be targeted, not just recruiters, and that these profiles often work by building trust first and slipping in malicious links or requests later.

How recruiters can protect themselves

You can tighten screening without discriminating or adding friction by following these steps:

Verify identity earlier

Start with a camera-on video call whenever you can. Look for the subtle giveaways of filters or deepfakes: unnatural blinking, lip-sync that’s slightly off, or edges of the face that seem to warp or lag. If something feels odd, a simple request like “Please adjust your glasses” or “touch your cheek for a moment” can quickly show whether you’re speaking to a real person.

Cross-check details

Make sure the basics line up. The applicant’s face should match their documents, and their time zone should match where they say they live. Work history should hold up when you check references. A quick search can reveal duplicate resumes, recycled profiles, or LinkedIn accounts with only a few months of activity.

Watch for classic red flags

Most fake applicants slip when the questions get personal or specific. A resume that’s polished but hollow, a communication style that changes between messages, or hesitation when discussing timelines or past roles can all signal coaching. Long pauses before answers often hint that someone off-screen may be feeding responses.

Secure onboarding

If someone does pass the process, treat early access carefully. Limit what new hires can reach, require multi-factor authentication from day one, and make sure their device has been checked before it touches your network. Bringing in your security team early helps ensure that recruitment fraud doesn’t become an accidental entry point.

---

Final thoughts

Recruiting used to be about finding the best talent. Today, it often includes identity verification and security awareness.

As remote work becomes the norm, scammers are getting smarter. Fake applicants might show up as a nuisance, but the risks range from compliance issues to data loss—or even full-scale breaches.

Spotting the signs early, and building stronger screening processes, protects not just your hiring pipeline, but your organization as a whole.

---

We don’t just report on threats—we help safeguard your entire digital identity

Cybersecurity risks should never spread beyond a headline. Protect your, and your family’s, personal information by using identity protection.

Most antivirus software for personal users scans your computer for malware hiding in files. This is, after all, how most malware is traditionally spread. But what about attacks that never create files? Fileless malware is a fast-growing threat that evades traditional antivirus software, because simply, it’s looking for files that don’t exist.

Here’s how Malwarebytes goes beyond signature scans and file analysis to catch those fileless threats hiding on your family’s computers. 

What are fileless attacks? 

Most malware leaves a trail. It drops files on your hard drive so it can survive when you restart your computer. Those files are what traditional antivirus software hunts for.

Fileless attacks play by different rules, living only in your computer’s active memory. This means they vanish when you reboot, but they do their damage before that happens. 

Fileless attacks don’t bring in their own files at all. Instead, they hijack legitimate Windows tools that your computer already trusts. PowerShell, for example, is a built-in program that helps Windows run everyday tasks. Fileless malware slips into memory, runs harmful commands through tools like PowerShell, and blends in with normal system activity.

Because Windows sees these tools as safe, it doesn’t throw up red flags. And because there are no malicious files saved to the disk, traditional antivirus has nothing to scan or quarantine, missing them completely.

Fileless attacks are becoming more common because they work. Cybercriminals use them to steal your passwords, freeze your files for ransom, or turn your computer into a cryptocurrency-mining machine without you knowing.

How Malwarebytes stops these invisible attacks 

Malwarebytes takes a different approach. Instead of just scanning files on your hard drive, we watch what programs are actually doing in your computer’s memory. We developed comprehensive protection creating a defense system that works in two powerful ways: 

Defense Layer 1: Script Monitoring  

Script Monitoring catches dangerous code before it runs. Whether it’s PowerShell, VBScript, JavaScript, or other scripts, we inspect them the moment they try to execute. Malicious? Blocked instantly. Safe? Runs normally. 

Attackers scramble their malicious code so it looks like gibberish. Imagine a secret message where every letter is shifted three places in the alphabet. Our technology automatically decodes these scrambled commands, revealing what they’re really up to.  

Defense Layer 2: Command-Line Protection  

Command-Line Protection tracks what programs are trying to do when they run commands on your system.   

When programs like PowerShell, Windows Script Host, or other command tools run, we examine what they’re trying to do. Are they downloading files from suspicious websites? Trying to modify system files? Attempting to turn off security software? We catch these patterns even if attackers try to bypass the first layer of defense. 

What might a fileless attack look like? 

Let’s look at specific attack scenarios and how Malwarebytes protects you: 

Attack scenario 1: The disguised email attachment 

You receive what looks like a legitimate invoice or document via email. When you open the Excel or Word attachment, it contains a macro (a small script that automates tasks). The macro looks harmless at first glance, but it’s actually scrambled to hide malicious commands.  

What happens next: The macro silently launches PowerShell in the background and tries to download ransomware. Your traditional antivirus sits idle because it’s waiting to see a file – but the file hasn’t been created yet. 

How Malwarebytes stops it: Our Script Monitoring unscrambles the macro, sees it trying to download ransomware, and blocks the PowerShell command immediately. The ransomware never reaches your computer. You see a notification that Malwarebytes blocked a threat, and your files stay safe. 

Attack scenario 2: The silent cryptocurrency miner 

You visit a normal-looking website or click on an ad. Hidden JavaScript code starts running immediately, hijacking your computer’s processor to mine cryptocurrency. You notice your laptop fan spinning louder, the computer running hotter, but you don’t connect the dots. Meanwhile, your electricity bill creeps up month after a month. 

What happens next: The script tries to load mining software directly into your computer’s memory using PowerShell or similar tools. It runs continuously in the background, stealing your computing power. 

How Malwarebytes stops it: Our Command-Line Scanner recognizes the mining script’s pattern and blocks it before it can start using your processor. Your computer maintains normal performance, and criminals can’t abuse your resources. 

Attack scenario 3: The persistent backdoor 

A sophisticated attacker wants long-term access to your computer. They use Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI), a legitimate Windows tool, to create a persistent backdoor. This backdoor lets them access your computer whenever they want, all without installing any traditional malware files. 

What happens next: Using WMI, they set up scheduled tasks that run invisible scripts in the background. These scripts give them a permanent remote access pass to your computer. Restart doesn’t help. The backdoor survives because it’s woven into Windows itself, disguised as a normal system task. 

How Malwarebytes stops it: Our protection monitors WMI activity for suspicious patterns. When we detect WMI being used to create unauthorized backdoors or scheduled tasks, we block the commands and alert you. The backdoor never gets established. 

About Fileless Protection in Malwarebyes

When choosing security software, ask: Can it protect against attacks that never write files? Can it catch memory-based threats? With Malwarebytes, the answer is yes. 

Runs automatically

You don’t need to set anything up. Fileless Protection runs quietly in the background from the moment you install it. You won’t notice it until it blocks an attack and keeps your files safe.

Works with your everyday tools

Your legitimate programs and scripts work normally. You can run PowerShell, use your business software, and browse the web without interruption. We only step in when there’s a real threat.

Part of a bigger defence

Fileless Protection is one layer in Malwarebytes’ broader security stack, working alongside machine-learning detection, web protection, and exploit protection. Each layer supports the others, so if one misses something, another catches it.

Stops attacks that never write files

Fileless attacks hide in memory, but they’re not unstoppable. Fileless Protection watches what programs do in memory, analyzes suspicious commands, and blocks attacks before they can steal data or damage your files.

Included with Malwarebytes Premium

Fileless Protection is included in Malwarebytes Premium. Whether you’re protecting your home devices or your small business systems, Malwarebytes works automatically, stays out of your way, and catches threats that traditional antivirus often misses.

---

We don’t just report on threats—we remove them

Cybersecurity risks should never spread beyond a headline. Keep threats off your devices by downloading Malwarebytes today.

Let’s be real: the online world is a huge part of our kids’ lives these days. From the time they’re tiny, we share photos, moments, and milestones online—proud parent stuff! Schools, friends, and family all get involved too. Before we know it, our kids have a whole digital history they didn’t even know they were building. Unlike footprints at the beach, this trail never washes away. 

That habit even has a name now: sharenting. It’s when parents share details of their child’s life online, often without realizing how public or permanent those posts can become. 

What exactly is a digital footprint? 

Think of your child’s digital footprint as the trail they (and you) leave across the internet. It includes every photo, post, comment, and account, plus all the data quietly collected behind the scenes. 

There are two sides to it: 

• Active footprints: what you or your child share directly, such as photos, TikTok videos, usernames, or status updates. Even “private” posts can be screenshot or reshared. 
• Passive footprints: what gets collected automatically. Cookies, location data, and app activity quietly build profiles of who your child is and what they do. 

Both add up to a digital version of your child that can stick around for years. 

Why guard your child’s digital footprint like gold? 

For kids and teens, their online presence shapes how the world sees them—friends, teachers, even future employers. But it also creates risks: 

• Cyberbullying: once something’s online, it can be copied or mocked. 
• Future opportunities: colleges and jobs may see old posts that no longer reflect who they are. 
• Safety concerns: oversharing locations or routines can make it easier for strangers to find or trick them. 
• Identity theft: birthdates, school names, and addresses can help criminals create fake identities. 

Practicing good digital hygiene keeps those risks small. 

Kids leave hidden trails too 

Kids don’t need social media accounts to leave data behind. Gaming platforms, smartwatches, school apps, and even voice assistants collect fragments of personal information. 

That innocent photo from a class project might live in a public gallery. A leaderboard can display a real name or score history. Even nicknames or in-game chat can expose more than intended. 

Help your kids check what’s visible publicly and what isn’t. 

How sharenting can make it worse 

Don’t worry, I’ve done some of these too! We love to share and celebrate our kids, but sometimes we give away more than we mean to: 

• Posting full names, birthdays, and locations on open social media. 
• Sharing photos with school logos, house numbers, or nearby landmarks visible. 
• Leaving geotagging or location data on by accident (it’s scary how precise this can be). 
• Talking about routines, worries, or personal struggles in public forums. 
• Forgetting to clean up old posts as our kids get bigger. 

And it’s easy to forget about all those apps we sign up to “just to try it”. They might be collecting info in the background, too. 

Two real-life sharenting stories 

Karen loves her son, Max. She posts his awards, soccer games, and milestones online, sometimes tagging the school or leaving her phone’s location on. 

It’s innocent… until someone strings the details together. A fake gamer profile messages Max: “Hey, don’t you go to Graham Elementary? I saw your soccer pics!” Suddenly, a friendly chat feels personal and real. 

Karen meant well, but her posts created a map for someone else to follow. 

Then there’s the story we covered of a mother in Florida who picked up the phone to hear her daughter sobbing. She’d been in a car accident, hit a pregnant woman, and needed bail money right away. The voice sounded exactly like her child. Terrified, she followed the caller’s instructions and handed over $15,000. Only later did she learn her daughter had been safe at work the whole time. Scammers had used AI to clone her voice from a short online video. It’s a chilling reminder that even something as ordinary as a video or social post can become fuel for manipulation. 

Simple steps parents can take 

• Be a model: before you post, ask, “Would I be OK with a stranger seeing this?” 
• Start young: teach privacy basics early and update as they grow. 
• Lock it down: review privacy settings together on both your accounts. 
• Use pseudonyms: encourage nicknames for games or public forums. 
• Agree as a family: set boundaries for what’s OK to share. 
• Turn off geotags: remove automatic location data from photos. 

Know what to do if something goes wrong 

Everyone messes up online sometimes. It happens to the best of us. We’ve all shared something we wish we hadn’t. The goal isn’t to scare our kids (or ourselves) away from the internet, but to help them feel confident, safe, and smart about it all. 

If your child ever feels uncomfortable or gets into a sticky situation online: 

• Stay calm and let them know you are safe to talk to. 
• Keep record of any sketchy messages or harassment. 
• Use blocking, reporting, and privacy tools. 
• Loop in school counselors or other trusted adults if you need backup. 
• If there’s a real threat or criminal activity, contact the proper authorities. 

You’ve got this! 

The online world is always changing, and honestly, we’re all learning as we go. But by staying curious, keeping the lines open, and setting a good example yourself, you’ll help your kids build a digital life they can be proud of. 

Let’s look out for each other. If you’ve got thoughts or tips about sharenting and online safety, do share them with me. You can message me on Linkedin at https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattburgess/. We’re all in this together. 

---

We don’t just report on data privacy—we help you remove your personal information

Cybersecurity risks should never spread beyond a headline. With Malwarebytes Personal Data Remover, you can scan to find out which sites are exposing your personal information, and then delete that sensitive data from the internet.

Imagine this scenario: Your protection software is running perfectly. Systems are protected, definitions are up to date, behavioral analysis is active. Then, suddenly, files across your network start getting encrypted. Backups are being deleted. Ransom notes appear across your machines. Your security software shows nothing. No alerts, no detections, no blocked processes. How is this possible? 

This isn’t a hypothetical situation. It’s a real attack technique that ransomware operators are actively using to bypass even sophisticated protection systems. The attack exploits a fundamental assumption in how security software operates: that the malicious process and the files being attacked are on the same machine. When that assumption breaks down, traditional defenses fail. 

Malwarebytes ransomware protection works through multiple defensive layers. These include AI-based analysis, machine learning models, signature detection, runtime sandboxing, exploit mitigation, and web protection. Each layer stops threats at different stages. The Anti-Ransomware behavioral layer monitors actual file encryption behavior in real time. Malwarebytes continuously enhances all layers of its defense.  

This article discusses a recent innovation in our Anti-Ransomware behavioral monitoring technology. The result is a comprehensive enhancement incorporating innovations in file monitoring, network session tracking, behavioral analysis, and real-time threat correlation. 

Why traditional protection fails 

To understand why a ransomware attack over a network is so effective, we need to understand how this technology typically works. The Anti-Ransomware component sits between applications and the file system, allowing it to see every file operation before it completes. 

When a process tries to open, read, or write a file, specialized callbacks are triggered. Think of these as security checkpoints where the security driver can inspect what’s happening and decide whether to allow the operation. The software looks at patterns: Is this process rapidly encrypting many files? Is it adding suspicious extensions? Is it attempting to delete backup Copies? These behavioral indicators, when combined, signal ransomware. 

This architecture works brilliantly when the ransomware process and the files being encrypted are on the same machine. The driver sees the process, tracks its behavior over time, builds a threat profile, and can block it before significant damage occurs. 

But what happens when ransomware runs on one device and attacks files on another? For example, an attacker compromises an unprotected device, a legacy device without current protection or an unmanaged guest device, and uses it to encrypt files on protected systems through network shares. Your machine doesn’t see any suspicious programs running. It just looks like someone is accessing files over the network, which happens all the time. 

This creates a perfect hiding spot for ransomware. On the attacking device, there might be no security software installed. On your main PC where files are being encrypted, the security software sees files changing but can’t tell which program is causing it. The connection between the malicious program and your files is hidden. 

Multiple ransomware variants have adopted this technique. They use specific commands to target network folders and shared drives. These aren’t random attacks. They’re carefully designed to bypass security software through remote encryption 

These aren’t opportunistic attacks. They’re carefully engineered for bypassing traditional anti-ransomware protection through remote encryption. 

Two-part protection architecture 

Solving this problem required addressing two distinct attack vectors. Part 1 involves a local process attacking remote files, while Part 2 involves a remote process attacking local files. Each required different technical approaches. 

Part 1: Detecting local to remote attacks 

When a program tries to access files on your network or shared folders, Malwarebytes checks if it’s behaving suspiciously. If the program is rapidly changing many files and creating ransom notes, the system builds a threat score in real time. 

The key innovation is that Malwarebytes tracks local and network activity separately. A program might be safely working with files on your computer while attacking files on another device through the network. By monitoring both, we can catch ransomware without false alarms. When Malwarebytes detects ransomware behavior, it blocks the malicious program immediately, stopping the attack before your files are encrypted. 

Part 2: Detecting remote to local attacks 

The second challenge is harder: what if the ransomware is running on another device and attacking your files remotely? There’s no malicious program on your computer to block. 

Our solution tracks network connections. When files are accessed from another device on your network, Windows keeps information about which device is connecting. Malwarebytes captures this information and watches for suspicious behavior, like rapidly changing many files, adding suspicious file extensions, or creating ransom notes. When we detect an attack coming from another device, we block that specific connection from accessing your files. 

Innovation in ransomware protection 

Our implementation operates through our specialized components. This architecture is essential for both performance and security. Every file operation goes through our filter, so we need to process decisions in microseconds to avoid impacting system responsiveness. 

We implemented multiple optimization layers. First, we filter out file operations that categorically cannot be ransomware related. Opening a file for read only access is not a threat, so we skip detailed analysis. Operations that only query metadata happen constantly in Windows and can be safely ignored for ransomware detection purposes. 

For operations that require analysis, we implemented a sophisticated indicator time-to-live (TTL) system. Behavioral indicators decay over time. This prevents false positives from legitimate activities like file synchronization tools or backup software. 

The network session tracking component required deep integration with Windows networking. We extract session information by accessing internal structures that Windows uses for network file serving. Our exclusion system supports IPv4, IPv6, hostnames, and CIDR notation for network ranges. 

What makes this protection different 

Several factors distinguish the Malwarebytes approach from other solutions.

The first is comprehensiveness. Many security vendors address this partially. Remote processes attacking local files or where local processes attack remote files. An attacker who compromises a single endpoint can still encrypt the shared resources. Malwarebytes protects against both vectors. 

Second is precision. Many solutions block entire network connections or lock accounts when they detect threats. Malwarebytes is more precise. We block only the specific malicious connection. Other activities from the same device continue working normally. Only the ransomware’s access is stopped. 

Third is performance. Malwarebytes runs efficiently without slowing down your computer. 

Fourth is proven protection. This technology has been tested and deployed across many different business and home networks. It is proven to work in real world situations. 

The broader implications 

This protection does more than just stop one type of ransomware attack. It represents a new way of thinking about network-aware security. The old approach treated each device separately, but that doesn’t work when attackers use network connections to spread threats. Security solutions need to understand that attacks can come from any device on the network and target any accessible files. 

The technology we’ve built can do more than stop ransomware. The same system that tracks network connections and monitors suspicious behavior can help detect other threats, like someone trying to steal your data or access files they shouldn’t have permission to view. 

Attackers will keep evolving their methods. The attacks we’re seeing now will become more sophisticated. They might try to disguise themselves as normal computer maintenance or file management. Our protection is designed to adapt. Because it watches for suspicious patterns of behavior rather than looking for specific known attacks, it can detect new variations without needing constant updates. 

Ransomware keeps evolving, and attackers constantly find new ways to bypass security. Malwarebytes is committed to staying ahead with real innovation. This enhancement closes a critical gap that many security programs don’t address until it’s too late. 

If you’re choosing security software or reviewing your current protection, ask yourself: Does it protect against ransomware that spreads through network shares? This is becoming increasingly important as more ransomware attacks use this technique. 

---

We don’t just report on threats—we remove them

Cybersecurity risks should never spread beyond a headline. Keep threats off your devices by downloading Malwarebytes today.

The AV-Comparatives Stalkerware Test 2025 delivers a sobering look at the evolving threat posed by stalkerware on mobile devices. Despite measures from both the tech industry and platform providers, stalkerware-type apps, which are apps that can be installed covertly to spy on a victim’s private life, remain a critical concern.

This comprehensive assessment, developed in collaboration with Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), evaluated 13 leading Android security solutions against 17 diverse stalkerware-type apps. Key findings show that stalkerware persists even as providers and coalitions crack down: it’s sideloaded from developer websites, designed to evade detection, and frequently stores sensitive victim data on insecure servers, often exposing it to wider risks like public data leaks.

For this test, each security app was assessed for its ability to clearly detect and report stalkerware, not just using generic labels, but with explicit warnings tailored to support possible victims.

AV-Comparatives is an independent organization offering systematic testing that checks whether security software, such as PC/Mac-based antivirus products and mobile security solutions, lives up to its promises.

Of the 13 security products tested in September 2025, only a few stood out for detection accuracy, clarity, and responsible alerting, with Malwarebytes the only one to score a 100% detection rate.

From the report:

The results show clear differences in performance between mobile security products. Malwarebytes stood out by detecting all stalkerware testcases, achieving a 100% detection rate. 

It went on to say:

Bitdefender, ESET, Kaspersky, and McAfee followed closely with 94% each, showing consistently high effectiveness. Avast, Avira, and F-Secure also performed well, identifying 88% of the test set, while Norton and Sophos achieved moderate coverage, detecting around 82%. At the lower end, G Data (65%), Google (53%), and Trend Micro (59%) missed a substantial portion of the stalkerware.

Why it matters to Malwarebytes

As one of the founding members of the Coalition Against Stalkerware, Malwarebytes sees this result as much more than a technical win. For us, the mission goes beyond simply blocking malicious software. Stalkerware-type apps are often used by abusers to systematically invade privacy and exert control. Their impact is highly personal, making reliable detection and safe reporting imperative.

Our participation in the coalition reflects a commitment to industry best practices: preventing stalkerware-type apps from being quietly installed, giving users detailed and honest threat information, and ensuring that every detection alert is crafted with survivor safety in mind. Scoring 100% in this test validates years of advocacy and development focused on the real-world needs of victims and their supporters, which goes beyond focusing on theoretical malware samples.

Ultimately, consistent leadership in stalkerware detection means standing alongside partners and survivor organizations to raise public awareness, drive safer technology, and provide every user with a clear path to reclaim their privacy. For Malwarebytes, achieving a perfect score isn’t just a mark of product quality; it’s proof of our commitment to your privacy and security.

---

We don’t just report on phone security—we provide it

Cybersecurity risks should never spread beyond a headline. Keep threats off your mobile devices by downloading Malwarebytes for iOS, and Malwarebytes for Android today.

Think of your digital footprint as your online shadow—the trail you leave behind whenever you browse, post, shop, or even appear in someone’s contact list. It’s your likes, reviews, comments, and all the little traces you didn’t mean to share. Together, they paint a picture of you—one that friends, employers, and yes, scammers can see.

The Two Steps of Your Digital Footprints

Your active footprint

Your active footprint is everything you choose to share online. Every photo, product review, or status update you post adds another brushstroke to your online portrait. Over time, those choices form a public story about who you are—your interests, values, and connections. That story shapes how people, employers, and even algorithms see you.

Your passive footprint

Your passive footprint is the quieter one—the data you leave behind without meaning to. Every website you visit, every cookie that tracks your clicks, every photo that quietly tags its GPS location adds to it. These fragments often work in the background, invisible but persistent, quietly mapping your habits, preferences, and even your movements.

You step in more stuff than you think

Your personal data is scattered in more places than you’d expect. Social networks like Facebook, LinkedIn, and TikTok hold snapshots of your life and relationships. Government databases, company websites, and news mentions might hold your name or location. Forums, review sites, and shopping accounts keep their own records. And data brokers collect and sell huge bundles of personal details, sometimes packaging them into lists anyone can buy. Even if you’ve never shared something directly, chances are it’s already out there.

Alone, small details don’t seem like much—a nickname here, a photo there—but stitched together they can reveal a lot. Your job title, home city, favorite restaurant, even your pet’s name (a popular security question!) can help someone impersonate or target you. Combine that with info leaked in data breaches, and attackers can build an eerily complete version of you—ready-made for scams or identity theft.

How scammers collect your data

To stay safe, it helps to see the world the way a scammer does: your online details are puzzle pieces, and they’re putting the picture together.

Scraping

Attackers use automated tools to pull information from public pages across the internet. That can include your bio, job history, or photos from social media, or your name and email address from company websites and online forums. All technically “public,” but when combined, they create a full dossier of your online life.

Breaches

When companies get hacked or fail to secure their databases, your data can spill into the open. Big names like Equifax, LinkedIn, and Yahoo have all been hit. Leaks like these often contain names, addresses, phone numbers, and passwords—and once data hits the dark web, it can circulate for years. That’s why old breaches can still come back to haunt you.

Brokers

Data brokers legally collect information from public records and commercial sources, then sell detailed profiles for advertising and risk scoring. On the dark web, things get murkier: stolen logins, payment info, and even full identity kits (“fullz”) are traded by criminals. You’ll never meet these markets—but your data might end up there anyway.

Social engineering

Social engineering is where information meets manipulation. Attackers blend the details they find—your social posts, work info, or breached credentials—to make scams feel real. They might impersonate your boss, your bank, or even you. These scams work because they sound familiar, borrowing the tone and timing of real interactions.

Real scams that use the victim’s digital footprint

Here are just a few examples of how personal content shared online—even casually or lovingly—can be reused in ways you’d never imagine.

AI voice scams that sound heartbreakingly real

When a mother in the US received a call from her daughter saying she’d been in a car accident and needed bail money, she didn’t hesitate to help. The voice on the other end sounded exactly like her, but it wasn’t. It was an AI-generated clone.

Scammers don’t need much to pull this off—just a few seconds of clear speech. That could come from a TikTok clip, a podcast snippet, a YouTube video, or even a Facebook post where your child’s voice can be heard in the background. Once they have that audio, AI tools can replicate tone, emotion, and phrasing so accurately that even family members struggle to tell the difference.

The Facebook photo that gives away your location

You don’t need to tag your location for someone to find you. A recent Malwarebytes investigation showed how AI can now identify where a photo was taken just from the background—down to the street, storefront, or skyline. That means every sunny brunch pic or family snapshot on Facebook could quietly reveal where you live, work, or spend time.

Attackers can use this information to craft more convincing local scams—pretending to be from nearby businesses, schools, or community groups to earn your trust. It’s a sharp reminder that even innocent photos can expose more than you intend.

When scammers know just enough to sound official

Earlier this year, Californians were hit with a wave of fake tax refund texts and emails. The messages looked convincing—complete with government logos, correct refund amounts, and links to realistic-looking sites. But the senders weren’t tax officials. They were scammers who had pieced together public and leaked data to make their messages sound real.

That data can come from anywhere—a tagged post that shows you live in California, a LinkedIn page that lists your workplace, or a data broker that sells demographic info. When combined, these fragments let criminals target specific regions or groups, making their scams feel personal and timely.

SAFES: Make small digital footprints

S – Share less, on your terms

Tighten privacy settings on your social accounts so only people you trust can see your posts. Avoid oversharing—travel plans, birthdays, and addresses are gold for scammers. And skip those “fun” quizzes and surveys; they’re often data collection traps in disguise.

A – Arm your logins

Use a password manager to create strong, unique passwords for every account. Turn on multi-factor authentication (MFA) wherever possible. Avoid using personal details—pets, schools, hobbies—in passwords or security questions.

F – Find your exposure

Set up Google Alerts for your name and nicknames to see when new information about you pops up. Run a free scan with Malwarebytes Digital Footprint Portal to find out if your email appears in data breaches, and change affected passwords fast. Many banks and credit cards also offer free identity monitoring—use it.

E – Evaluate trust

Treat surprise messages and calls with healthy skepticism, especially if they sound urgent. Verify requests by going directly to official websites or contact numbers. And talk to family about scams—kids and seniors are often the most common targets.

S – Stay updated

Keep your software, devices, and apps current. Security updates close the loopholes that criminals love to exploit. Use an up-to-date real-time anti-malware solution with a web protection component—and follow us to stay alert to new scams and major data leaks.

Your digital footprint tells a story, but you don’t need to vanish from the internet, just manage what you leave behind. A few small, consistent habits can keep your online shadow short, sharp, and safely under your control.

---

We don’t just report on scams—we help detect them

Cybersecurity risks should never spread beyond a headline. If something looks dodgy to you, check if it’s a scam using Malwarebytes Scam Guard, a feature of our mobile protection products. Submit a screenshot, paste suspicious content, or share a text or phone number, and we’ll tell you if it’s a scam or legit. Download Malwarebytes Mobile Security for iOS or Android and try it today!

It might surprise some that a security company would choose WordPress as the backbone of its digital content operations. After all, WordPress is often associated with open-source plugins, community themes, and a wide range of deployment practices—some stronger than others. But that perception overlooks what modern WordPress can deliver when it’s architected, operated, and governed with discipline. In our Digital Experience Platform (DXP) at Malwarebytes, WordPress serves as the content layer—an editorial hub that feeds multiple customer experiences.

The reason is pragmatic and security-forward. WordPress offers transparency (open code and ecosystem), control (self-hosted in our environment, with strict governance), and maturity (a seasoned core with an established security model). Combined with a decoupled architecture, strong identity and access controls, rigorous supply chain management, and a hardened infrastructure, WordPress becomes an ideal content engine for an enterprise-grade, security-first DXP within an enterprise-grade MarTech stack.

DXP vision and the role of WordPress

When we say DXP, we mean the orchestration layer that brings together content, personalization, analytics, experimentation, commerce, support experiences, and more. It’s not a single product; it’s the way we coordinate systems to deliver cohesive customer journeys across web, mobile, and product surfaces.

In that model, WordPress is our content authoring hub. Editors draft, review, and publish content once; APIs then power multiple front-ends—websites built with Next.js/React, mobile applications, and support portals. This headless pattern decouples the authoring experience from delivery.

Why decouple?

By delivering both static and server-side rendered (SSR) pages directly from the edge, we meet aggressive latency goals and excel in Core Web Vitals scores on a global scale. This approach ensures content is as close as possible to end users, providing consistently fast load times regardless of location. Our architecture isolates site performance from backend processes, meaning bursts of traffic or complex deployments don’t degrade the visitor experience.

Security isolation is equally foundational to our platform design. The public-facing runtime never exposes the WordPress admin interface or control endpoints—instead, these administrative components reside securely behind private networking, protected by robust access controls and authentication. This segmentation shields both business-critical operations and sensitive data, lowering the attack surface and reducing risk without impeding editors or developers.

This architecture also boosts development velocity. Front-end engineers can iterate rapidly, independently releasing new features or improvements without being bottlenecked by backend deployments. At the same time, content editors retain full publishing agility via the headless CMS, able to launch and update site content at will. This parallel, decoupled workflow ensures that technical and editorial teams each operate at their highest efficiency, supporting an environment of continuous innovation and timely content delivery.

How speed helps security

Rapid and reliable deployments are a cornerstone of our security posture, empowering us to respond quickly to new threats and vulnerabilities. By streamlining and automating our release processes, we can efficiently ship patches and mitigations as soon as issues arise, minimizing the window of exposure. Equally important, our deployment pipelines are built to support safe rollbacks, allowing us to confidently revert any changes that introduce instability or unexpected behavior—maintaining operational continuity no matter how urgent the circumstances.

Shortening our development and deployment cycle is not just about speed—it’s one of the most effective security controls we employ. Frequent, predictable deploys mean our systems are always running the latest protections and bug fixes, dramatically reducing the risks associated with outdated code or configurations. This agility ensures we stay ahead of evolving threats, support innovation without sacrificing safety, and adapt to changing requirements with minimal disruption, making security a continuous, integrated aspect of our delivery workflow.

Why WordPress aligns with security-first

Open-source transparency matters. With WordPress, we can inspect every line of core and plugin code, run our own audits, and make informed decisions about the attack surface. The community’s response to security issues adds resilience through coordinated disclosures, rapid patches, and widely disseminated advisories.

The core platform is mature and stable. The WordPress security team has established processes for responsible disclosure and a consistent patch cadence. Operating close to core (and avoiding heavy core modifications) enables us to adopt updates quickly.

Finally, talent availability accelerates secure outcomes. A large pool of WordPress developers and security practitioners means faster remediation, effective code reviews, and a healthy ecosystem of best practices and tooling.

Architecture that reduces risks

Headless/decoupled architecture

Our public website leverages the powerful combination of a Content Delivery Network (CDN) and a Web Application Firewall (WAF) to deliver a seamless and secure user experience. By distributing static content across global edge locations, the CDN ensures lightning-fast load times while also enabling server-side rendering at the edge for dynamic content. This hybrid approach allows us to serve both static and server-rendered pages efficiently, providing relevant content with minimal latency. Positioned behind the CDN, the WAF offers an added layer of security by blocking malicious traffic and safeguarding our site from threats, ensuring that both performance and protection are at the forefront of our web infrastructure.

To further enhance security and streamline workflows, we utilize single sign-on (SSO) with multi-factor authentication (MFA) for accessing all administrative interfaces and developer endpoints. The WordPress admin area, GraphQL and REST APIs, as well as build hooks, are only accessible through this robust SSO with MFA, ensuring that only authorized team members can reach sensitive controls and data. Access is strictly segmented, treating the admin plane as an internal-only application and fully separating it from the public-facing site. This architecture minimizes risk, protects critical infrastructure, and supports efficient, secure collaboration among our administrative and development teams.

Network and edge security

Our Web Application Firewall (WAF) works in tandem with advanced bot management to protect our site from a wide range of online threats. The WAF actively filters malicious payloads and prevents exploitation attempts, while the bot management system blocks known bad actors and suspicious automated traffic. Together, they help enforce rate limits—ensuring fair usage and preventing abuse that could impact site performance or security. This layered approach allows us to maintain a reliable, secure environment for all our users while shielding our resources from sophisticated cyber threats.

To further secure our infrastructure, we have robust DDoS mitigation controls in place, designed to identify and absorb large-scale volumetric attacks before they reach our application. Coupled with customizable geo-blocking and ASN (Autonomous System Number) policies, we can restrict or filter access from high-risk regions and networks known for hostile activity. This proactive combination not only helps protect against both widespread and targeted attacks, but also ensures the continued availability and performance of our services for legitimate users around the globe.

We enforce modern transport security standards across our entire platform by mandating TLS 1.3 for all connections. This ensures data transmitted between users and our site is encrypted using the latest, most secure protocol available. In addition, HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS) is enabled, compelling browsers to interact with our site only via secure HTTPS connections. Together, TLS 1.3 and HSTS provide strong guarantees of data integrity, confidentiality, and protection against common interception or downgrade attacks, giving our users peace of mind with every interaction.

Service isolation and least privilege

Our security framework is built on the principle of least-privilege access, ensuring that databases, object storage, and service accounts are tightly controlled. Each system and user is granted only the permissions essential for their specific role—nothing more. This minimizes the potential impact of accidental or malicious activity, as access is segmented and strictly limited across all layers of our architecture. By aligning permissions closely with functional requirements, we significantly reduce the risk of data exposure or unauthorized operations, reinforcing the integrity and confidentiality of our platform.

Hardening at the application layer

Secure configuration

In our production WordPress environment, we implement a series of stringent measures to protect both the core application and user data. File editing through the wp-admin interface is completely disabled, eliminating a common attack vector and reducing the risk of unauthorized code changes. We enforce the use of strong, unique salts and keys, enhancing the integrity and security of authentication cookies and stored data. Additionally, the core filesystem is kept strictly read-only in production, preventing alterations to critical files and ensuring that even in the event of a compromise, attackers cannot modify system-level code or inject persistent threats.

To further reduce the platform’s attack surface, we restrict XML-RPC functionality—often abused for brute-force attacks—and limit exposed REST API endpoints strictly to those required by our headless WordPress clients. User enumeration patterns, which attackers may exploit to gather account names, are actively blocked, thereby safeguarding user identities. On the front end, we enforce robust security headers, including a finely scoped Content Security Policy (CSP) to mitigate XSS threats, strict X-Frame-Options and Frame-Ancestors to prevent clickjacking, X-Content-Type-Options to block MIME-type attacks, and a privacy-friendly Referrer-Policy to minimize information leakage. Together, these layered controls ensure our site remains resilient against a broad spectrum of web threats.

Auth and session security

We integrate Single Sign-On (SSO) through industry-standard protocols such as SAML and OIDC, streamlining secure access for our teams while reducing the risks associated with password proliferation. Automated user provisioning and deprovisioning are managed via SCIM, ensuring that access is immediately granted to new team members and promptly revoked when it’s no longer needed. MFA is mandatory for all privileged users, significantly strengthening the security of critical accounts and administrative functions, and defending against credential-based attacks.

Access within our environment is granted based on granular, role- and capability-based policies. Custom roles are carefully tailored so that editors, contributors, and admins receive only the permissions essential to their responsibilities, minimizing exposure and preventing privilege creep. We further secure administrative access by enforcing short-lived sessions, reducing the window of opportunity for session hijacking or misuse. This approach ensures that even if an administrative session is compromised, the potential for abuse is tightly constrained, keeping our site and its data safe.

Data handling

Security is at the forefront of our development practices, with a strong emphasis on protecting both our site and its users from application-level threats. We enforce the use of prepared statements for all database queries to defend against SQL injection, mandate thorough output escaping to prevent cross-site scripting (XSS), and ensure rigorous input sanitization in every layer of custom code and approved plugins. For protection against cross-site request forgery (CSRF), we implement nonces, providing an additional safeguard to validate user actions and prevent unauthorized commands. This multifaceted approach applies to every custom solution and trusted extension, reinforcing the reliability and trustworthiness of our platform.

Data privacy and compliance round out our security strategy. We are committed to minimizing the storage of personally identifiable information (PII), classifying data sensitivity, and applying data retention policies that align with both regulatory requirements and customer expectations. Consent management is thoughtfully integrated into both our publishing workflow and the front-end user experience, so we can uphold privacy standards without sacrificing usability. This ensures users remain informed and in control of their data—supporting compliance with privacy laws and building trust through transparency and respect for user choices.

Plugin and supply chain governance

Controlled ecosystem

Our approach to plugin management is deliberately conservative, maintaining a strict allowlist to ensure only vetted and essential plugins are present within our environment. We prioritize the use of “must-use” (mu-) plugins for enforcing global policies and delivering critical functionality, as these plugins are always active and centrally managed. This strategy prevents unauthorized or unnecessary code from entering our system, supports consistency across environments, and enables us to embed security controls directly into our platform’s foundational layers.

Before any plugin or theme is deployed to production, it undergoes a comprehensive code review process to assess security, performance, and compatibility. We are proactive in curbing plugin sprawl, regularly auditing our stack and removing redundant or unsupported components to minimize complexity and reduce our attack surface. By keeping our codebase lean and disciplined, we not only defend against potential vulnerabilities found in third-party additions but also streamline maintenance and updates, ensuring the long-term stability and security of our production environment.

Dependency management

We take a comprehensive approach to dependency management and software supply chain integrity by generating Software Bill of Materials (SBOMs) for both PHP and JavaScript codebases. SBOMs allow us to track all direct and transitive dependencies, as well as their associated licenses, ensuring greater visibility and control over the components that make up our application. Dependencies are always pinned and locked to specific, approved versions, reducing the risk of introducing vulnerabilities through unintentional upgrades or changes. Automated tools like Dependabot continuously monitor for updates and propose them, but nothing reaches production unless it successfully passes through our continuous integration (CI) security gates.

Our CI/CD pipeline is fortified with robust security controls at every stage. Every update, whether a dependency or code change, triggers automated Static Application Security Testing (SAST) and Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) to identify potential vulnerabilities both before and during runtime. We employ secret scanning to prevent accidental exposure of credentials and keys, and every build is evaluated for license compliance and regulatory conformance. This layered approach ensures that our development processes are secure by default, continually verifying software quality, integrity, and compliance before anything is deployed to production.

Vulnerability intelligence and patching

We actively monitor CVE feeds and WordPress-focused security advisories, such as WPScan, to stay ahead of emerging vulnerabilities and threats. By keeping a close eye on both general and platform-specific intelligence sources, we’re able to rapidly identify potential risks relevant to our infrastructure. Upon detection, vulnerabilities are triaged and addressed according to well-defined Service Level Agreements (SLAs) based on severity—ensuring that critical issues receive immediate attention and routine patches are managed efficiently. This structured, proactive posture helps us mitigate risk and maintain the ongoing security and stability of our environment.

In the rare event that a critical vulnerability threatens operational security or integrity, we are prepared with fast rollback plans that allow us to swiftly revert to a secure state. These procedures are designed to be executed with minimal disruption, ensuring urgent patches can be applied without causing extended downtime for users or administrators. By integrating rapid response capabilities into our workflows, we’re able to act decisively and minimize exposure, all while maintaining service availability and reliability at the highest standard.

Infrastructure security operations

Secrets and data

We enforce strict secret management practices by using a centralized vault or cloud-native secret store to handle all sensitive credentials, API keys, and configuration secrets. No secrets are ever embedded in source code or stored within deployment images, reducing the risk of accidental exposure. Secret rotation is scheduled regularly as part of our operational cadence, ensuring that credentials remain fresh and limiting the window of opportunity for misuse even if a secret were somehow compromised.

All data is secured with encryption both at rest and in transit, leveraging strong cryptographic controls across storage and networking layers. Where supported, our databases rely on IAM-based authentication instead of static credentials, further minimizing the risk associated with traditional username-password pairs. This approach not only enhances security but also streamlines access control and auditability, underpinning our commitment to robust, modern data protection practices throughout the stack.

Backups and disaster recovery

Our disaster recovery strategy rests on maintaining versioned, immutable backups that cannot be altered or deleted, providing a reliable safeguard against data loss, corruption, or ransomware attacks. These backups are created on a regular schedule and include not only application data, but also content, media assets, and configuration files. We conduct periodic restore drills to validate that our backups are effective and to ensure our team is prepared to execute recovery procedures smoothly. Explicit Recovery Time Objectives (RTOs) and Recovery Point Objectives (RPOs) are defined, routinely tested, and adjusted as needed to meet the demands of our operations and regulatory obligations.

Data recovery playbooks are meticulously maintained and encompass every critical aspect of our environment, from core content and media to infrastructure-as-code templates that can quickly and predictably rebuild our systems. These playbooks provide step-by-step guidance for recovering data and restoring services, whether in response to accidental deletion, hardware failure, or a targeted attack. By rigorously documenting and testing these processes, we ensure a high degree of resilience and confidence in our ability to restore normal operations with minimal disruption, safeguarding both our assets and the experience of our users.

Observability and response

We maintain a comprehensive observability stack with centralized, structured logging that aggregates data from all key layers—Nginx, PHP-FPM, WordPress, and supporting services. This logging is enriched with real-time metrics and distributed traces, giving us end-to-end visibility into application performance and user activity across our digital experience platform (DXP). All logs are funneled into a Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) system, which acts as the nerve center for detecting and investigating potential threats. Hosts and containers are further protected by Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) solutions, providing continuous monitoring and the ability to quickly isolate and remediate suspicious behavior.

To enhance detection and incident response, we employ automated anomaly detection and maintain detailed runbooks, dramatically reducing our mean time to detect (MTTD) and mean time to respond (MTTR) to issues. Our security posture is continually tested and validated through regular penetration tests and an active bug bounty program that focus on the entire surface of our DXP, not just on isolated components. This holistic approach ensures we proactively identify vulnerabilities, address weaknesses before they can be exploited, and ultimately maintain a resilient, trustworthy platform for our users and customers.

Certifications Obtained

When it comes to building or selecting hosting for your organization’s sensitive data and mission-critical applications, certifications matter—a lot. Obtaining FedRAMP Moderate certified ensures compliance with rigorous federal security standards, making it a necessity for government-related workloads and a great standard for any organization to abide. Similarly, a SOC 2 Type 1 certification demonstrates that a hosting provider has established robust systems and controls to protect data and ensure privacy, fostering client trust and accountability.

GovRAMP Moderate is critical for U.S. government contractors working with state and local government workloads, ensuring additional layers of compliance and security. If your data processing touches on European clients or users, GDPR and the Data Privacy Framework offer reassurance that personal data is handled and processed lawfully, transparently, and securely. Equally important is the Microsoft SSPA, a must-have for vendors providing services to Microsoft or handling its data. Lastly, WCAG 2.0 AA compliance ensures that your hosted applications and websites are accessible to users and employees with disabilities, strengthening your commitment to inclusivity and expanding your reach. By prioritizing these certifications, organizations not only safeguard compliance and security, but also demonstrate a dedication to transparency, privacy, and accessibility in today’s digital landscape.

Editorial workflow governance

Workflow controls

Every administrative and content-related event is thoroughly audit-logged, capturing a detailed trail of actions for review and oversight. These logs are fully exportable, supporting compliance with regulatory requirements and internal governance policies. By maintaining comprehensive and accessible audit records, we provide the transparency necessary to facilitate investigations, enforce accountability, and demonstrate adherence to best practices and legal obligations—ensuring peace of mind for our organization and stakeholders alike.

Secure content operations

We prioritize security awareness by providing editors with ongoing training on critical topics, such as phishing recognition, safe link practices, and our governance policies for embedded scripts and third-party widgets. This continual education helps staff identify and avoid social engineering attacks, understand the risks associated with external content, and adhere to protocols that maintain the integrity and security of our web platform. By empowering editors with the knowledge to make secure decisions, we reduce the likelihood of errors that could compromise the site or expose sensitive information.

To further protect user interactions, especially on forms, we deploy layered anti-spam defenses, implement bot challenges like CAPTCHAs, and set server-side rate limits to prevent abuse. All form inputs are validated on the server, ensuring robust protection even if client-side checks are bypassed or disabled. This disciplined approach to input handling and abuse prevention ensures our forms remain a secure channel for legitimate user engagement while blocking malicious actors and automated attacks.

Reliable and secure performance

Caching strategy

Our performance strategy centers on comprehensive caching and efficient data handling to deliver a fast, reliable experience for both users and administrators. Edge and page-level caching shield our origin servers by intercepting and serving frequent requests directly at the edge, dramatically reducing the number of dynamic requests that reach the core infrastructure. Object caching solutions like Redis, coupled with thoughtfully optimized queries, keep the admin interface responsive and ensure APIs remain quick even under load. We routinely profile database queries and set strict performance budgets for the slowest paths, preventing regressions that could degrade performance or escalate into broader availability issues. This layered approach ensures our platform stays speedy, stable, and scalable as demands grow.

Build pipeline

Every code change in our workflow is subjected to automated testing, with comprehensive suites that verify functionality, performance, and security. Security gates are tightly integrated into the CI/CD pipeline, ensuring that no changes are merged if any issues or vulnerabilities are detected. Our deployment processes are fully automated and repeatable, significantly reducing the potential for human error and guaranteeing that releases are consistent, predictable, and recoverable.

By managing our infrastructure as code, we further ensure that all environments—from development to production—are consistent, auditable, and easily reproducible. This approach not only accelerates the provisioning of resources and the rollout of updates, but also strengthens compliance and traceability, providing a solid foundation for scalability, reliability, and continuous improvement.

UX and SEO

We finely tune our security headers and Content Security Policies (CSPs) to deliver robust protection without disrupting the user experience, ensuring that all site functionality remains seamless and accessible. Our commitment to performance extends to advanced image optimization, responsive asset delivery, and strict adherence to accessibility standards, enabling our content to load quickly and be usable by everyone. By consistently delivering fast, accessible pages, we not only enhance user engagement but also enable rapid, safe deployment cycles—minimizing potential attack windows through swift rollouts and efficient rollbacks, and maintaining both security and usability at the core of our platform.

Alternatives considered

Proprietary Digital Experience Platforms (DXPs) present a compelling all-in-one suite of features that can streamline operations for many organizations. However, their advantages often come with trade-offs: these platforms tend to be resource intensive, both in terms of infrastructure and licensing fees, and may lack the granular transparency required for deep security audits or targeted customizations. The inherent complexity and tightly-coupled nature of these solutions can slow the pace of change—making it challenging to adapt or patch emergent threats rapidly, which is itself a significant security and business risk in dynamic environments.

Headless-only SaaS CMSes, on the other hand, are designed for flexibility and API excellence, offering developers modern tooling and a frictionless integration experience. Despite these strengths, organizations may encounter challenges such as vendor lock-in, which can limit strategic choices and agility over time. Control over patching and updates is usually in the hands of the SaaS provider, potentially creating gaps between issue discovery and remediation. Further, these platforms may present hurdles in regions with strict data residency or compliance requirements, making them less suitable for regulated industries or global enterprises with nuanced jurisdictional needs.

Systems like Drupal or fully-custom CMS architectures can undoubtably satisfy enterprise requirements for scale, extensibility, and security. However, in our evaluation, team expertise, the maturity and momentum of the adjacent tooling ecosystem, and a clear view of total cost of ownership all ultimately favored the adoption of WordPress. WordPress’s balance of flexibility, a wealth of existing integrations, well-understood operational paradigms, and strong community support enables us to deliver on our goals efficiently while ensuring we maintain the adaptability, security, and cost-effectiveness our organization requires.

WordPress provides the best mix of transparency, control, ecosystem breadth, and speed—when paired with our security architecture and operating model.

Lessons learned and best practices

• Start headless and isolate the admin plane from day one.
• Enforce SSO and MFA, least privilege roles, and formal change approval.
• Treat plugins as third-party code: audit, monitor, and patch under SLAs.
• Invest in observability and rehearse incident response regularly.
• Keep WordPress core close to vanilla; extend through vetted plugins and mu-plugins, not core forks.

Security is not a property of a tool; it’s the outcome of architecture, governance, and culture. With a decoupled design, rigorous controls, and a disciplined operational posture, WordPress is a strong foundation for the content layer of an enterprise DXP—combining the openness and speed teams want with the security and control the business requires of its MarTech stack.