WordPress Customization & Security Presented By: Joe Casabona and Phil Erb Track: Technology Session Format: Co-Presentation Description: WordPress is one of the most popular blogging platforms used today and if you’re using it already, you already know its benefits – but let’s take things a step further. In this session, Joe and Phil will dive into how to customize your WordPress blog and theme so that it reflects your brand and serves up your content in the best ways possible, ways to make your WordPress blog more secure (and how to monitor it so that it stays that way!), and other techniques and technologies to make the most of this content management system.

1. Joe Casabona
• Web Developer. Writer. Nerd*.
– *Computer, Device, Star Wars
• Yankee Fan
• Responsive Design with WordPress
– Out Dec 2013
– www.rwdwp.com
– Discount Code for 35% off: RWDWP
site: Casabona.org | twitter: @jcasabona | email: joe@casabona.org
slides/resources: casabona.org/events/blogcon-13

2. Phil Erb
http://philerb.com
Twitter: @philerb
Systems Admin & Programmer
University of Scranton
Co-Founder & Director of Technology
Solve the Net
Lover of WordPress

3. WordPress Theme Customization

4. Themes: A Primer
• A WordPress Theme:
– Provides control over the look and presentation of
the material on your website.
• The Codex!
– Your best friend during development
– codex.wordpress.org

5. Important Files
Tip: Don’t Modify the Core!

6. style.css
• Includes Theme Definition
/*
Theme Name: Millennium Flights
Theme URI: http://www.milenniumflights.com
Description: A custom theme for Millennium Flights, Inc.
Version: 1.0
Author: Joe Casabona
Author URI: http://www.casabona.org
Tags: blue, white, two-column, flexible-width
*/
• Keep Common Classes in mine
(rwdwp.com/12)
• RWD Tip: Put all CSS in One File

7. functions.php
• Place misc PHP functions, code, and variables
• Considered a “plugin” file for your theme
• Remember “Separation of Concerns”
– Themes should only effect display, not content or
functionality
• Uses: Actions, Filters, side-wide functions
• RWD Tip: Use this file for server-side
detection

8. index.php
• The backbone of WordPress themes
• Everything that doesn’t have its own template
file will use index.php
• Used to display a list of posts or content.
• DO NOT remove The Loop from this page

9. header.php and footer.php
• Template Files to use throughout the theme
• get_header() and get_footer()
• wp_head() and wp_footer()

10. The WordPress Hierarchy

11. wphierarchy.com

12. Template Files
• Sophisticated Display Controls
• Only required files: style.css and index.php
• Custom templates down to the single post
level
• Example: Custom Post Type named“classes”
single-classes.php  single.php  index.php

13. Page Templates
• Naming Convention
– page-no-sidebar.php
<?php
/*
Template Name: No Sidebar
*/
?>

14. The Loop

15. Defined
• The Loop is used by WordPress to display each
of your posts. Using the Loop, WordPress
processes each of the posts to be displayed on
the current page and formats them according
to how they match specified criteria within the
Loop tags. Any HTML or PHP code placed in
the Loop will be repeated on each post

16. Essentially…
• The Loop has functions to:
– Make sure that you have posts to display
– Display those posts.
<?php if (have_posts()) : ?>
<?php while (have_posts()) : the_post(); ?>
//print post information using template tags
<?php endwhile; ?>
<?php else : ?>
print “No posts found.”;
<?php endif; ?>

17. Template Tags
• Functions in WordPress designed to print
information about the Current Post
• Some tags include:
– the_title(), the_time(), the_content(),
the_excerpt(), the_category(), the_tags(),
the_permalink()

18. If time permits…
Let’s Look at a Live Theme!

19. Securing Your WordPress Site

20. Source: Torque.io - WordPress Core is Secure –
Stop Telling People Otherwise

21. Yes … but …
The code may be secure, but there
are always things to improve

22. Backup ALL the Things
My hosting provider does that,
why should I?

23. How do I backup WordPress?
Services
– ValutPress
Plugins
– BackupBuddy
– BackWPUp
The good old fashioned way
mysqldump -udbuser mydb > db.sql
zip -r backup.zip /webfolder/ db.sql

24. Backup Best Practices
Create a backup schedule that makes sense for
your site.
Get an off-site copy
Test your backups

25. Secure the Server
To the extent that you can

26. Use strong passwords
FTP, SSH, and control panels will get
hackers access to your sites

27. Use SFTP instead of FTP,
if possible

28. Understand file permissions
“777” makes everything work …
for other people too.

29. Install an SSL certificate

30. Securing Core

31. Secure the login process
Wait, my password is sent over the
Internet in plain text???

32. Don’t use “admin”

33. Stronger Authentication
Use strong passwords
Force Strong Passwords
Limit the number of bad logins
Login Lockdown
Use multi-factor authentication
Google Authetnicator
Duo Two-Factor Authentication

34. Always use SSL encryption
for login forms and personal info

35. No SSL? Passwords are Plain Text!

36. Only give users the
access they need
This includes YOU
Don’t always run as admin

37. Don’t let your database
be predictable
Change the database table prefix

38. Plugins, Themes, and Updates

39. Only use trusted sources

40. DON’T Google “free WordPress themes”
Only one of these is trustworthy
Source: WPMU.org - Why You
Should Never Search For
Free WordPress Themes

41. Keep core, plugins, and
themes up to date

42. Security Services, Plugins & Tools

43. Security Tools
Sucuri
Site scanner, monitoring, and security plugin
Better WP Security
Wordfence

44. Updates and Management
ManageWP
InfiniteWP
WP Remote

45. Use a good hosting provider!

46. Keep Yourself Secure Too!

47. If your computer is hacked,
your site could be next!
Install OS and application updates
Run antivirus software
Use encrypted protocols (HTTPS, SFTP)
Use strong passwords for everything

48. Keep your ear to the
WordPress community
The products and the issues are ever evolving.

49. Where to get the news
WPSecure.net
Sucuri’s blog
WP Updates Notifier plugin
Check out more on the NEPAWP
Resources page

50. Questions? Comments?
Statements of Disgust?

51. References & Links
• VaultPress
http://vaultpress.com/
• BackupBuddy
http://ithemes.com/purchase/backupbuddy/
• BackWPUp
http://wordpress.org/plugins/backwpup/
• Codex: Administration over SSL
http://codex.wordpress.org/
Administration_Over_SSL

52. References & Links
• How to Change the WordPress Database
http://www.wpbeginner.com/wp-tutorials/how-to-changethe-wordpress-database-prefix-to-improve-security/
• Login Lockdown
http://wordpress.org/plugins/login-lockdown/
• Force Strong Passwords
http://wordpress.org/plugins/force-strong-passwords/
• Google Authetnicator
http://wordpress.org/plugins/google-authenticator/
• Duo Two-Factor Authentication
http://wordpress.org/plugins/duo-wordpress/

53. References & Links
• WPMU.org: Why You Should Never Search For Free WordPress
Themes
http://wpmu.org/why-you-should-never-search-for-freewordpress-themes-in-google-or-anywhere-else/
• Sucuri
http://www.sucuri.net/
http://wordpress.org/plugins/sucuri-scanner/
• Better WP Security
http://wordpress.org/plugins/better-wp-security/
• Wordfence
http://wordpress.org/plugins/wordfence/

54. References & Links
• WPSecure.net
http://wpsecure.net/
• WP Updates Notifier
http://wordpress.org/plugins/wp-updates-notifier/
• Sucuri blog
http://blog.sucuri.net/category/wordpress