Marc Armengou

Security Hardener applies WordPress security best practices based on the <a href="https://developer.wordpress.org/advanced-administration/security/hardening/" rel="nofollow ugc">WordPress Advanced Administration / Security / Hardening</a> documentation and widely accepted hardening measures. It uses WordPress core functions and follows best practices without modifying core files.
<h4>Key Features</h4>
File Security: 
* Disable file editor in WordPress admin 
* Optionally disable all file modifications
XML-RPC Protection: 
* Disable XML-RPC completely 
* Remove pingback methods when XML-RPC is enabled
Pingback Protection: 
* Disable self-pingbacks 
* Remove X-Pingback header 
* Block incoming pingbacks
User Enumeration Protection: 
* Block <code>/?author=N</code> queries (returns 404) 
* Secure REST API user endpoints (require authentication) 
* Remove users from XML sitemaps 
* Prevent canonical redirects that expose usernames 
* Optionally block author feed pages (<code>/author/username/feed/</code>) 
* Optionally anonymize the author name in oEmbed responses
Login Security: 
* Generic error messages (no username/password hints) 
* Login honeypot 
* Block unsafe usernames 
* Application Passwords disabled by default 
* IP-based rate limiting with configurable thresholds 
* Security event logging
Security Headers: 
* <code>X-Frame-Options: SAMEORIGIN</code> (clickjacking protection) 
* <code>X-Content-Type-Options: nosniff</code> (MIME sniffing protection) 
* <code>Referrer-Policy: strict-origin-when-cross-origin</code> 
* <code>Permissions-Policy</code> (restricts geolocation, microphone, camera) 
* Optional HSTS (HTTP Strict Transport Security) for HTTPS sites — max-age set to 1 year
Additional Hardening: 
* Hide WordPress version (meta generator tag and asset query strings) 
* Remove obsolete wp_head items (RSD, WLW manifest, shortlink, emoji scripts) 
* System Status — monitors file permissions, WP_DEBUG, user registration, PHP version, administrator accounts, and database version
<blockquote>
⚠️ Important: Always test security settings in a staging environment first. Some features may affect third-party integrations or plugins.
</blockquote>
Privacy: This plugin does not send data to external services and does not create custom database tables. It stores plugin settings and a security event log in the WordPress options table, and uses transients for temporary login attempt tracking. All data is preserved on uninstall by default and only deleted if the “Delete all data on uninstall” option is explicitly enabled.

Security Hardener

Basic hardening: secure headers, login honeypot, user enumeration blocking, generic login errors, rate limiting, and more.

Liveupx

Liveupx Security is a complete, 100% free WordPress security plugin that rivals paid solutions. No paywalls, ever.
<h4>Core Features</h4>
Login Security 
* Brute force protection with progressive lockouts (1st/2nd/3rd+ strikes escalate automatically) 
* Multi-provider CAPTCHA: Math, Google reCAPTCHA v3, hCaptcha, Cloudflare Turnstile 
* Honeypot bot detection (wp-login.php + WooCommerce) 
* Passwordless magic link login 
* Two-factor authentication: TOTP (Google Authenticator) + Email OTP 
* Trusted device (30-day bypass cookie) 
* Geolocation login alerts — notify when login comes from a new country 
* Subnet auto-blocking (repeated attacks from /24 range) 
* Custom login URL (hide wp-login.php)
Firewall / WAF 
* PHP-based Web Application Firewall running at priority 1 
* Remote WAF rule feed (auto-updated from liveupx.com) 
* Admin-defined custom firewall rules 
* Per-endpoint rate limiting (REST API, checkout, search, etc.) 
* REST API security controls (block guests, hide /users endpoint) 
* Country/geo blocking with API fallback chain 
* Bad bot blocking with verified bot allowlist (Google, Bing, etc.) 
* Referrer blocking with spam referrer presets 
* Bad query/XSS/SQL injection blocking 
* .htaccess security rules
Malware Scanner 
* Chunked AJAX scanner — scans plugins, themes, uploads, mu-plugins 
* 30+ malware patterns including backdoors, crypto miners, shell injections 
* Heuristic risk scoring (0–100) per suspicious file 
* Auto-quarantine critical findings during scan 
* Scan diff — shows new threats vs last scan 
* Database malware scanner (posts, options, comments, users) 
* File quarantine and permanent delete
Vulnerability Scanner 
* Powered by WPScan API (free tier) 
* Scans all active plugins and active theme for known CVEs 
* CVSS severity scoring (Critical/High/Medium/Low) 
* Dashboard widget showing unresolved critical/high count 
* Dedicated Vulnerabilities admin page
File Integrity 
* WordPress core file integrity check (vs WordPress.org checksums API) 
* Plugin & theme checksum verification (vs WordPress.org checksums) 
* wp-config.php and .htaccess tampering detection 
* Unknown PHP file detection in core directories
Core File Repair 
* Downloads clean copies from WordPress.org SVN 
* MD5 verification before writing 
* Single file or bulk repair
Security Headers 
* X-Frame-Options, X-Content-Type-Options, X-XSS-Protection 
* Referrer-Policy, Permissions-Policy (per-feature builder) 
* HSTS with preload support 
* Content-Security-Policy with visual builder 
* CSP violation reporting endpoint (REST API) 
* A–F letter grade for your header configuration
User Security 
* User enumeration protection (?author= + REST API) 
* Strong password enforcement 
* Block dangerous usernames (admin, root, etc.) 
* Inactive user auto-lock (configurable threshold) 
* Admin action audit trail 
* Active session manager (view & revoke) 
* GDPR IP anonymization
Post-Hack Recovery 
* Lock PHP execution in uploads and wp-includes 
* Log out all users instantly 
* Force password reset for all users 
* Reinstall free plugins from WordPress.org 
* Delete version-revealing files (readme.html, etc.) 
* Weekly security summary email report
Monitoring & Notifications 
* Activity log (filterable, paginated, CSV export, configurable retention) 
* HTML branded email alerts 
* Slack/webhook notifications (compatible with Make.com, Zapier, Discord) 
* Real-time dashboard stats (auto-refresh every 30s) 
* 7-day login attempt chart
Developer Tools 
* WP-CLI commands (wp xsec status|scan|block-ip|unblock-ip|2fa-reset|export-settings|import-settings) 
* Settings import/export (JSON) 
* Security score with category breakdown
Developed by <a href="https://liveupx.com" rel="nofollow ugc">Liveupx.com</a> 
Cloud hosting partner: <a href="https://xhost.live" rel="nofollow ugc">xHost</a> — by Liveupx.com 
<a href="https://justhunt.co/startups/x-security" rel="nofollow ugc">Featured on JustHunt.co</a>

Liveupx Security

Complete WordPress security — Firewall, 2FA, Malware Scanner, Vulnerability Scanner, Login Protection, Security Headers. 100% free.

Security Hardener vs Liveupx Security