Business Topics

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13 WordPress Security Plugins To Detect Malicious Virus

Posted on by Julian Gooden
Wordfence security

1. Wordfence Security

wordfenceLogo
Wordfence Security is a free and opensource. The creators also offer a Premium API key that gives Premium Support, Country Blocking, Scheduled Scans, Password Auditing and check if website IP address is being used to Spamvertize.

Wordfence starts by checking if your site is already infected. It does a deep scan of your source code comparing it to the Official WordPress repository for core, themes and plugins. Wordfence also makes your website faster.

Active Installs: 1+ Million

Average Rating: 5.0 rating based on 2,527 ratings

Wordfence Security Features

  • Blocking Features
  • Login Security
  • Security Scanning
  • WordPress Firewall
  • Monitoring Features
  • Multi-Site Security
  • Caching Features
  • IPv6 Compatible
  • Major Theme and Plugins Supported

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2. Theme Authenticity Checker (TAC)

Active Installs: 100,000+

Average Rating: 5.0 rating based on 13 ratings

TAC Features

  • TAC searches the source files of every installed theme for signs of malicious code.
  • Displays the path to the theme file, the line number, and a small snippet of the suspect code
  • TAC also searches for and displays static links.
  • Determine where code cleanup is needed

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3. All In One WP Security & Firewall

Reduces security risk by checking for vulnerabilities, and implementing and enforcing the latest recommended WordPress security practices and techniques.

Active Installs: 300,000+

Average Rating: 5.0 rating based on 435 ratings

All In One WP Security & Firewall Features

  • User Accounts Security
  • User Login Security
  • User Registration Security
  • Database Security
  • File System Security
  • htaccess and wp-config.php File Backup and Restore
  • Blacklist Functionality
  • Firewall Functionality
  • Allows you to easily add a lot of firewall protection to your site via htaccess file.
  • Brute force login attack prevention
  • WhoIs Lookup
  • Security Scanner
  • Comment SPAM Security
  • Front-end Text Copy Protection
  • Regular updates and additions of new security features
  • Works with Most Popular WordPress Plugins

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4. Simple Security Firewall

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Active Installs: 30,000+

Average Rating: 5.0 rating based on 317 ratings

Simple Security Firewall Features

  • Blocks malicious URLs and requests to your site.
  • Blocks ALL automated spambot comments.
  • Hides your login page.
  • Prevents brute force attacks on your login and also any attempted automatic bot logins.
  • Plugin Admin Access Protection
  • Firewall Protection
  • Comment SPAM (Full replacement and upgrade from Akismet)
  • FABLE – Fully Automatic Black Listing Engine
  • WordPress Lock Down
  • Automatic Updates

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5. Exploit Scanner

This plugin searches the files and database of your website for signs of suspicious activity. It will not stop someone hacking into your site, but it may help you find any uploaded or compromised files left by the hacker.

Active Installs: 60,000+

Average Rating: 3.5 rating based on 22 ratings
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6. BulletProof Security

BulletProof-Security-Plugin
Available in free and pro versions.

Active Installs: 100,000+

Average Rating: 4.5 rating based on 231 ratings

BulletProof Security Feature Highlights

  • One-Click Setup Wizard
  • jQuery UI Dialog Form Uninstall Options: BPS Pro upgrade uninstallation or complete BPS plugin uninstallation
  • .htaccess Website Security Protection (Firewalls)
  • Login Security & Monitoring
  • Idle Session Logout (ISL)
  • Auth Cookie Expiration (ACE)
  • DB Backup: Full|Partial DB Backups | Manual|Scheduled DB Backups | Email Zip Backups | Cron Delete Old Backups
  • DB Backup Logging
  • DB Table Prefix Changer
  • Security Logging
  • HTTP Error Logging
  • FrontEnd / BackEnd Maintenance Mode
  • UI Theme Skin Changer (3 Theme Skins)

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7. Sucuri Security

The Sucuri Security WordPress Security plugin is free to all WordPress users. It is a security suite meant to complement your existing security. It offers its users four key security features, each designed to have a positive affect on your website security.

Active Installs: 200,000+

Average Rating: 4.5 rating based on 133 ratings

Sucuri Security Features

  • Security Activity Auditing
  • File Integrity Monitoring
  • Remote Malware Scanning
  • Blacklist Monitoring
  • Effective Security Hardening
  • Post-Hack Security Actions
  • Security Notifications
  • Website Firewall (add on)

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8. Stop Spammers Spam Prevention

In cases where spam is detected, users are offered a second chance to post their comments or login. Denied requests are presented with a captcha screen in order to prevent users from being blocked. The captcha can be configures as OpenCaptcha, Google reCaptcha, or SolveMedia Captcha. The Captcha will only appear when a user is denied access as a spammer.

Active Installs: 30,000+

Average Rating: 4.5 rating based on 136 ratings

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9. Anti-Malware Security and Brute-Force Firewall

Active Installs: 100,000+

Average Rating: 5.0 rating based on 272 ratings

Anti-Malware Security Features:

  • Run a Complete Scan to automatically remove known security threats and backdoor scripts.
  • Firewall block SoakSoak and other malware from exploiting Revolution Slider and other plugins from known vulnerabilites.
  • Upgrade vulnerable versions of timthumb scripts.
  • Download Definition Updates to protect against new threats.

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10. WP Antivirus Site Protection

WP Antivirus Site Protection is the security plugin to prevent/detect and remove malicious viruses and suspicious codes. It detects backdoors, rootkits, trojan horses, worms, fraudtools, adware, spyware, hidden links, redirection and etc.

Active Installs: 5,000+

Average Rating: 4.0 rating based on 30 ratings

WP Antivirus Main Features:

  • Deep scan of every file on your website.
  • Daily update of the virus database.
  • Heuristic Logic feature.
  • Quarantine & Malware removal feature
  • Alerts and Notifications in admin area and by email.
  • Daily cron feature.
  • Scanner can detect a wide list of malware types.
  • Whitelist solution after manual review.
  • Possibility to upload suspicious files to http://www.siteguarding.com server for review by experts.
  • View Security reports online

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11. AntiVirus for WordPress

Security plugin to protect your blog or website against exploits and spam injections.

Active Installs: 100,000+

Average Rating: 4.0 rating based on 19 ratings

AntiVirus Main Features

  • Virus alert in the admin bar
  • Cleaning up after plugin removal
  • Translations into many languages​​
  • Daily scan with email notifications
  • Database tables and theme templates checks
  • WordPress 3.x ready: both visually and technically
  • Whitelist solution: Mark suspected cases as “no virus”
  • Manual check of template files with alerts on suspected cases
  • Optional: Google Safe Browsing for malware and phishing monitoring.

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12. Quttera Web Malware Scanner

Active Installs: 5,000+

Average Rating: 4.0 rating based on 20 ratings

Quttera Main Features:

  • One Click Scan
  • Unknown Malware Detection
  • External Links Detection
  • Blacklist Status
  • No Signatures or Patterns Updates
  • Artificial Intelligence Scan Engine
  • Cloud Technology
  • Detail Investigation Report

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13. Centrora Security™

Centrora Security is an all in one security plugin. Firewall, malware scanner, backup and file permissions are all integrated into one solution. It is a WordPress Firewall Security to protect your WordPress Sites from attacks and hacking. The built-in Malware and Security Scanner helps you identify any security risks, malicious codes, spam, virus, SQL injection, and security vulnerabilities.

Active Installs: 3,000+

Average Rating: 4.5 rating based on 23 ratings

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Work At Home Accounting Jobs

Posted on by Julian Gooden

Book Minders – Book Minders hires freelance / home-based accountants with 4-year degrees and five or more years of accounting experience on a full-time or part-time basis.

Accounting Department – Accounting Department.com hires accountants, bookkeepers, administrative and sales to telecommute within the United States.

TAD Accounting – TAD Accounting hires accountants to work from home. Must have at least 2 years of accounting experience to be considered for a position with this company.

Bateman & Co. – Accounting firm hires work-at-home accountants on a permanent / part-time basis. Texas residents preferred.

Click Accounts Bookeeping Services – Business process outsourcing (BPO) service provider accepts resumes from accounting and bookkeeping professionals to work at home.

Bateman & Co., Inc., P. C. – Accounting firm hires work-at-home accountants on a permanent, part-time basis. Texas residents preferred.

ClickAccounts Bookkeeping Services – Business process outsourcing (BPO) service provider accepts resumes from accounting and bookkeeping professionals to work at home.

First Data – Transaction processing company hires management and sales professionals to work from home.

Balance Your Books – Accounting outsourcing firm hires CPAs, bookkeepers with experience providing A/P, A/R, payroll and general and sales people offering the opportunity to telecommute.

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Slice App Install

Posted on by Julian Gooden

slice_logo

Slice is your smart shopping assistant, with a brand new design that delivers new ways for you to save time and money!

It is an easy way for you to track your orders, analyze your spending and keep a record of all of your receipts in a single place. If you do heavy shopping online, it enables you to save time and possibly money by being organized and informed.

Get Splice App

 

 

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Companies That Offer Work From Home Opportunity

Posted on by Julian Gooden
work from home

Many people are seeking more flexible work options online or to work for companies that allow some amount of commute. This can be a great option, especially because it provides an opportunity to spend more time at home with the family while still being able to earn. Of course it also offers a lot of flexibility in that you can work at your best hours instead of the more rigid 9 to 5 structure. The number of companies offering work at home opportunities continues to increase. Below is a list of 100 companies that offer work from home opportunity; you can explore to see what opportunities are there to work with some of these companies.

  1. About.com
  2. ACI Group
  3. Adobe Systems
  4. ADP
  5. Aetna
  6. AIG
  7. Alere
  8. American Express
  9. American Heart Association
  10. American Public University System – APUS
  11. American Support
  12. AmerisourceBergen Corporation
  13. Aon
  14. Appen ButlerHill
  15. Apple
  16. Asurion
  17. Autodesk
  18. Bausch & Lomb
  19. BCD Travel
  20. BroadSpire
  21. CACI International
  22. Canonical
  23. CareFusion
  24. Cargill
  25. Clarity Consultants
  26. Computer Sciences Corporation – CSC
  27. Connections Academy
  28. Coventry Health Care
  29. CVS Caremark
  30. CyberCoders
  31. Dell
  32. Dignity Health
  33. Ecolab
  34. Enterprise Contact Center
  35. Express Scripts
  36. First Data
  37. Fiserv
  38. FlexProfessionals
  39. Forest Laboratories
  40. General Electric – GE
  41. Grand Canyon University
  42. Hartford Financial Services Group
  43. HD Supply
  44. Health Net
  45. Healthfirst
  46. Humana
  47. IBM
  48. ICF International Inc.
  49. ICON
  50. Infor
  51. K12
  52. Kaplan
  53. Kelly Services
  54. Kenexa
  55. Kronos Incorporated
  56. Language Line Solutions
  57. Lockheed Martin
  58. McKesson Corporation
  59. Microsoft
  60. Mom Corps
  61. Mozilla
  62. Nielsen
  63. Novartis
  64. Nuance
  65. Optum
  66. Overland Solutions Inc.
  67. Pacific Interpreters
  68. Parallon
  69. PAREXEL
  70. Patch
  71. PayJunction
  72. Pearson Education
  73. Pharmaceutical Product Development Inc.
  74. Pitney Bowes
  75. Precyse Solutions
  76. PricewaterhouseCoopers
  77. Quintiles
  78. Red Hat
  79. Salesforce.com
  80. SAP
  81. Sodexo
  82. SumTotal Systems
  83. SunAmerica Financial Group
  84. Symantec
  85. TEKsystems
  86. Teradata Corporation
  87. Thomson Reuters
  88. U.S. Department of Transportation
  89. Unisys
  90. UnitedHealth Group
  91. University of Maryland University College
  92. Variable Annuity Life Insurance Company – VALIC
  93. VMware
  94. Walden University
  95. Welcome Wagon
  96. WellPoint
  97. Westat
  98. Western Governors University
  99. Zimmer
  100. Xerox

List: http://www.flexjobs.com/blog/post/100-top-companies-for-remote-jobs/#sthash.tJ3TY8Dk.dpbs

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Creating An Image For Your Business

Posted on by Julian Gooden
Create a business image

Do you want to create an image for your business that will readily distinguish you from your competitors? It will of course take time but it can be done, many businesses have and are doing so. The following provide some ideas on getting it done:

  • Design a logo and create letterheads. You can do these yourself using any word process or publisher software. If you’re not that creative, hire someone to do it for you using O’Desk, Freelancer or similar service.
  • Have a business philosophy or mission statement and clearly display this in your business. It should reflect the business’ values/motto.
  • Create social media accounts such Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google +, Pinterest, Stumbleupon and others. Use these accounts to improve your online presence and spread the word about product or service.
  • Join groups, forums and make guest blogs or commentaries on other websites/blogs.
  • Know your customers and their needs and try to fulfil them. Get customer feedback whenever possible and use the information received to help you make positive changes where necessary.
  • Value your customers – without them you have no business. Keep them abreast of changes, offer great prices, stay in contact, be complementary and say ‘thank you’.
  • Make your employees feel satisfied; develop and maintain a good relationship with them.
  • Don’t try to do everything, seek the advice of competent individuals who can make up for what you lack. Delegate and outsource when necessary.
  • Know what is happening with your product, the market you are in and what is happening with your competitors. This means keeping abreast of industry changes.
  • Always look out for new opportunities; seize them when they come. Use tools such as the SWOT (Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threat) Analysis to help you analyse your position.

Brand Marketing[amazon template=banner easy]

These are just some of the things you can do to create a positive image and improve your online presence.

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Where to Get Content For Your Website

Posted on by Julian Gooden

High quality content is crucial in order to retain visitors and have a high ranking on search engines. People often find you through the content you have on your website/blog. You want to provide answers to questions people are asking, ‘How Tos’, ‘Know Hows’ and articles that stimulate conversations. Finding the time to write your own content on a regular basis however might not be possible due to your schedule and a number of other factors. Now you’re probably wondering where to get content for your website. The good news is, there are free and low cost options available, to aid you in making regular posts.

1. Find A Writer

There are many writers offering their services on sites such as Freelancer, O’Desk and Elance. You can often get content written cheaply – as little as $1 per 500 words. The lower you pay however, the lower the quality of the writing you might receive. Prepare to pay a bit more than $1 and you are likely to find writers to provide quality content for you.

2. Invite Contributors

There are writers out there who are willing to write for free to build their reputation, resume, or to improve skills. Invite contributions from these writers and interns. If you can afford to, pay even a small stipend for the contributions made or if possible, give other rewards.
Web content that people want to read

3. Free content websites

Many websites offer free articles for your blog or website. Here are a few:

Articles Base – A free articles directory to choose articles and content from for websites or newsletters.
Article Cube – An articles directory that offers free content for websites, blogs and newsletters.
Article Dashboard – Source of free content for reading, website, newsletters and ezines.
Articles Factory – Free articles on a wide range of subjects.
Amazines – Source of free content for publishers and webmasters offering free submission.
Ezine Articles – Articles for authors, publishers and everyone.
MyBlogGuest – Source of free articles and traffic.
Saching.com – Offers content for publishers.
Sooper Articles – A free articles directory for website owners and bloggers.

When you use free content websites, often it’s the case that you are not able to edit or adjust the article in any way, but rather to use it as written by the author. Sometimes you might not agree with some of the points made. Try and avoid this by choosing articles that closely represents the view you want to project. There are usually several options to choose from.

In addition, you are publishing material that is not original. You should note that when duplicate content is present online, site owners may suffer ranking and traffic losses as a result. There are two totally different points of view in reference to this, which can be explored in a different article. However, as we speak, there are many people for whom this is the preferred option.

Explore what’s available, and choose the one that would work better for you or even a combination of all three.

 

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Writing A Business Plan

Posted on by Julian Gooden

Writing a business plan is a sure way of increasing your chances of obtaining a loan. Before you begin writing your business plan, consider the following questions:

  • What service or product does the business provide and what need does it fill?
  • Who are the potential customers for your goods or service and why will they purchase from you?
  • How will you reach your potential customers?
  • Where will you get the financial resources to start your business?

Answering these questions will be the basis for writing your business plan. A good plan should have the following sections:

  • Overview
  • Business Description
  • Management
  • Marketing
  • Finance
  • Critical Risk

Companies that will be manufacturing goods would need a manufacturing section.

Overview

– A summary of what is in your plan
– Purpose of the loan – clearly explain what you require the loan for
– Amount needed – how much do you need to achieve your goals? Do not use estimates, choose an exact figure based on the projections of your income accounts statements

Business Description

– Supply the business name, business address, investors names and the insurance number of each investor
– Business background or history
– What product will you be offering the market
– The nature of the business

Motivational Business Quote

Management Profile

– Profile of management, especially key personnel, their experience, background and skills; tell what they bring to the business
– Board of directors and other important personnel such as consultants (if any)
– Legal structure of the business – e.g., sole trader or limited liability company

Marketing

– Identify your target market
– Identify your competition and say how you will compete
– What can you offer your customers that will make you unique or shine above the competition
– The size of the market
– Market trends
– Promotional plan
– Pricing information
Market research information you have gathered from your potential market should aid you with most of this.

Finance

– A projected financial statement – this will include your income statement and balance sheet
– The financial statements of all the investors, including yourself
– Collateral – What assets are you willing to put up in order to get the loan

Critical Risk

– Potential obstacles or problems
– Estimated cost of risk
– Alternatives to dealing with potential competitor retaliation

Pointers

  • You should show that the business can at least meet its everyday expenses or current liabilities
  • You should show that your team has the necessary experience, qualification and training to make the business successful
  • You and other principals should be credit worthy
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Demand

Posted on by Julian Gooden
Demand

The demand for your goods and services is the amount the customers are willing and able to buy at any given time.

There is an inverse relationship between demand and price, which is expressed in the ‘law of demand’. This basically states that the demand for a good or service will increase if price falls and decrease if price rises.

What are the factors that might affect the demand for your product?

The price of the commodity – if prices are high, then less people would be willing to buy and even if they are willing may not be able to afford the product. Unless of course your product is targeted to an exclusive few whose purchasing power is strong.

The price of other commodities – especially if you target budget purchasers you should take this into consideration. If there are similar products on the market that are cheaper, customers will quite likely choose those.

Brand loyalty – some customers are loyal to certain brands and will buy no other; in most instances it is very difficult to persuade them to change.

Income – customers purchasing power will determine what they buy; you cannot price your products out of the reach of your target market.

Number of buyers – the number of persons or businesses that can, and do buy your products.

Tradition and beliefs – some customers buy based on religious and family traditions; hence you would never sell pork to a Jehovah’s Witness since religion dictates that they do not consume it.

Taste – taste differ per individuals and customers often buy what they like.

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Sales Forecasting

Posted on by Julian Gooden
Sales Forecasting

Sales forecasting involves determining the sales a business is expected to make in a given period. This could be the first three or six months or even a year. Forecasting can help you determine or identify cash flow problems. You will definitely need a sales forecast if you want to acquire a bank loan for business capital because you will have to provide business a proposal or plan, which should include a sales figure in your Projected Income Statement. Even if you will not seek a loan it can help you manage your expenses and monitor your sales growth.

Sources of assistance for sales forecasting:

  • Competitors
  • Neighbouring businesses
  • Trade associations
  • Trade directories
  • Trade publications
  • Trade suppliers

There are several factors that could affect a sales forecast. We will look at these as they relate to new and existing businesses:

New businesses

For the new business there is no previous information to assist in the decision-making process. Therefore, based on the analysis from your market research, you will have to determine how many customers would buy your product and how much sales you would get in a specific period.

It is said that 20% of your customers accounts for 80% of your sales. Therefore you need to define your primary market (the businesses or individuals who are most likely to buy your product). A primary market could be:

  • middle income females, between the age 25-60 yrs, who have 1-3 children and own a home
  • Small business owners with projected sales of $100,000 annually

You also need to look at your location, are your customers near? Can they get to you quite easily, would they have to travel far? Would they get what you sell at an earlier stop?

Get household income statistics and structure from libraries and government publications. Get other household or customer information from trade publications, newspapers and periodicals.

You could use similar businesses as a guide. Estimate how many customers they get on a daily, weekly and monthly basis using their customer volume to help you determine your sales figure. You should make sure that it is a business that offers similar products to yours.

Once you are able to determine monthly sales, then annual sales is a small calculation away.

Forecasting business sales

Existing businesses

For an existing business, last years sales would be a starting point, of course taking into account what the sales trend has been over a period, you then should be able to make a reasonable sales estimate.

Make assumptions about the market, taking into account things that could positively or negatively impact sales. Will your market grow or decline and by how much? Quantify it, thus you should estimate whether you will sell 5,000 more units or you will sell 6,000 less units or you could use percentage – will it fall or rise by say 6%?

Take into consideration the expected pros or cons. Are there new taxes on the horizon? Will this mean you will have to increase prices or maybe salaries have increased? Will you have to advertise more?

What about the product itself, has there been steady growth? Has sales been on the decline? Are you introducing a new product that has great potential and so is estimated to boost sales?

Calculation: If your sales tend to be stable:
Last year sales + projected changes in inflation = projected sales

If projected inflation is 5% and you normally sell an average of $60,000 annual:
60,000*0.05 = 3,000 :. Total inflation
60,000 +(- 3,000 )= $57,000 – This would be your annual projected sales figure.
If there are other changes that you have estimated will affect sales positively or negatively beside inflation, calculate as follow:

Last year sales + projected inflation + other change(s) = projected sales

Pitfalls
Sometimes sales plans are guided by unrealistic assumptions. In this area, as with any other, you must not be overly optimistic – exercise prudence. Be time specific for real measure. Have a monthly and an annual projection; you can use your monthly projection as a guide for assessment. Consult with and get the opinions of others. If you have others working with you it has to be a team effort, especially if you are not the person in charge of sales.

Test:
At each period, advisably at the end of every month, you should check your sales projection against actual sales. Forecast will never be 100% accurate so there should be allowance for some margin of error.

Did you rise above or fall below projection? Deviations of over 10% should indicate the need for another, more detailed analysis.