If you run a WordPress site, especially if you’re part of a digital marketing agency or a small business owner, security is probably on your radar. WordPress is everywhere, powering a huge chunk of the internet, but that also makes it a favorite target for hackers. The thing is, many hosting security setups that seem solid at first glance aren’t catching all the sneaky WordPress-specific threats. Let’s break down what this means for you and your website. What Was Tested? ⚙️ A company named Patchstack put popular hosting defenses to the test. They set up “honeypot” WordPress sites, loaded with common vulnerabilities, and then ran real attacks to see which defenses worked and which didn’t. They tested five different hosting providers and some common firewall setups like Cloudflare. The Shocking Results 🚨 Here's the quick scoop: Most hosting providers and their security tools only caught about 12% of the WordPress-specific attacks. In other words, the vast majority of attacks got past them like they weren’t even there. - Two of the hosts didn’t block a single one of the 11 attack types. - The best host only blocked 4 out of 11. - Firewalls like ConfigServer failed all the tests. - Big names like Cloudflare blocked just a handful of attacks. - Some other tools supposedly made for patching vulnerabilities just didn’t cut it. Why Are These Defenses Missing the Mark? 🎯 Traditional defenses usually work well against common threats like SQL injections and cross-site scripting attacks. But WordPress has its quirks. Plugins and themes, which add all the cool extras to a site, can have their own unique weaknesses. These specific flaws aren’t recognized by general security tools, so they slip through the cracks. What Stood Out? ✨ Patchstack’s own tool was the clear winner. It blocks all the WordPress-specific attacks in real time by applying something called “virtual patches.” Think of virtual patches as quick fixes that protect your site immediately when new problems are found—long before the plugin creators get around to making updates.

The first release of this feature is going to single location, food and drink businesses throughout the US and UK... more business categories to follow! Google just dropped a new feature for Google Business Profiles called “What’s Happening”, and spoiler alert: it looks a lot like a social media feed. This section pulls in your posts (from GBP and other social media), offers, and events and puts them front and center so customers can see what’s new at your business. NOTE: GBP posts are not new, the aggregation of different posts and offers, etc., and the placement is new. Potential customers will easily be able to see that you have live music tonight and what today’s special is. In other words, Google is handing you free marketing real estate that will bring you more customers... but only if you use it. If your last post was from 2024, it’s officially time to dust things off. The feature is only currently available for restaurants, but we expect it to be rolled out for many other business types. How to Optimize Your GBP for “What’s Happening”: 1. Add Social Links: Google pays attention to your business's social media and uses it to learn about your business. Make sure you add your social links to your GBP, and Google will automatically show your recent posts. 2. Publish Events & Offers: Everybody publishes normal posts, but have you been posting offers and events on Google? These posts let users know if you have a promo going on or an upcoming event, which is exactly what Google wants to show in the “What’s Happening" section. (Our Paige AI Agent can tell you when your offers expire so you always have one running!) 3. Keep Your Posts Up to Date: Regularly publishing posts to your GBP and social media accounts is crucial. Google wants to see that you’re consistently updating your customers with the latest about your business. Google has clearly been putting an emphasis on making Google Business Profiles more helpful and engaging for its users, which makes it easier than ever for you to convert searchers into customers.

Erik here. Spent 25 years in the Army, retired last year. Started building my agency about 18 months ago. Focus on SEO and GBP optimization. Excited to be here and learn from everyone.

🎁 EXCLUSIVE RESOURCE ALERT! SEO Success Academy members, I'm thrilled to share something special with you today – my comprehensive Google Business Profile Audit & Optimization Checklist! LINK: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ayxFzYlj-zJCO3i6GFyoEZrWa6BvATNhmApJiG6WGGg/copy This is a powerful tool I've refined through years of helping our agency team in fulfillment while we help agencies and their clients dominate their local search rankings. These are the same steps we take to audit a GBP listing and also the same checklist we use in month 1 of a new campaign to optimize/level up the target GBP listing. You'll get my exact process for: - Uncovering hidden optimization opportunities - Fixing critical profile errors that hurt a GBP's visibility - Maximizing local search performance with an optimized GBP - Links to the tools/extensions I use for local/GBP audits and optimizations Ready to take your local SEO game to the next level? The checklist is now available in our community resources section! Drop a 🎯 below if you're excited to put this checklist to work for your agency or business!