Tired of brute force attacks on your website? Confused to select the best tool? The comparison will sweep away all your worries. Read on. 

The security of our WordPress sites is not something to take lightly. Many extension authors now have solutions that integrate without worrying with the different WordPress configurations. Even if WordPress works to secure its environment on a regular basis, other factors are taken into account. Themes and plugins like SecuPress and WordFence are and will always be gateways for hackers and spammers of all kinds.

Protecting your customers’ data for e-commerce sites is also a guarantee that you must offer to your customers. The brand image of your site can quickly be degraded if nothing is done, so it is urgent not to wait, better safe than sorry.

 

Which to choose between SecuPress and WordFence?

Here is a comparison between two protagonists: SecuPress, created just a year ago by Julio Potier, “The” WordPress security specialist in France and WordFence created 5 years ago by Mark Maunder.

Of course, from the standpoint of seniority, WordFence has the highest number of downloads in its free version. But with equivalent functionality for the free version, what about the functionality of the paid versions of these plugins?

The protection and tools offered by the SecuPress and WordFence are relatively similar, the main differences between SecuPress and WordFence are of a technical nature, the settings of the options and the simplicity of setting up the protection.

 

1. SecuPress

In their paid version, SecuPress and WordFence offer methods of intrusion detection and protect your installation in a fairly equivalent way, but where SecuPress stands out, it is about the ergonomics of the interface and the simplification of the configuration. SecuPress Pro adds 37 options to the 33 available in the free version.

SecuPress Pro makes it possible to dispense with several third-party extensions, so by using the SecuPress pro version, you lighten your WordPress configuration by activating only the desired functionalities. This saves you the risk of incompatibility between the different extensions and the security constraints related to SecuPress.

secupress vs wordfence

 

SecuPress Pro allows you to benefit from increased protection, here are some additional features that SecuPress offers compared to its competitor

  • Move the authentication page to the admin (login form) to another address, which saves you the attacks BRUTE FORCE.
  • Protect the security keys (salt key), which are in the wp-config.php file.
  • Backup of the database and files, useful because many hosts offer it as an optional fee or free as WPServeur.
  • Change the prefix of the tables in the database, so as not to leave the prefix “wp_”.
  • Block visits of malicious robots.
  • Plan security tasks.
  • Export safety reports to PDF.
  • Use SecuPress Pro as a white label.
  • To use Easy Digital Download without worry, SecuPress Pro does not cause conflict with EDD.

The advantages of SecuPress

  • A clear and intuitive step-by-step interface.
  • A fast set-up, even for beginners, thanks to the integrated scanner.
  • A native French translation.
  • Simple and quick explanations on each available option.
  • The choice of offers and the possibility of changing offer at any time.
  • No need to install the free version and the pro at the same time (since version 1.3).
  • It is a French product with a support in French, fast and quality (and English of course).
  • Possibility to modify or add a site using the pro version in a few clicks.
  • The alert module sends emails (every 15 minutes, configurable) in case of critical external action.
  • On SecuPress, the options available for modules are presented clearly.

secupress vs wordfence

 

2. WordFence

WordFence, with its many options, covers a wide range of features divided into 10 parts. They allow you to configure and monitor the security of your WordPress while adapting the protection to your environment.

The Firewall available with WordFence Premium is enabled by default, the filtering rules are fully configurable as required. The protection is pro-active and guarantees a monitoring taking into account all the threats in progress. In-use rules can be enabled or disabled easily.

Many e-mail alerts are configurable.

Real-time traffic monitoring (humans and robots) is impressive but relatively resource intensive.

The process of uninstalling the plugin, if it is executed incorrectly, will cause errors and even a blank page. Fortunately, WordFence provides a free extension: WordFence Assistant. This extension also makes it possible to:

  • Disable the firewall if the extension is inactive.
  • Delete all WordFence entries in the database.
  • Purge live traffic entries into the database.
  • Delete the blocked users.

Bonus on WordFence

  • Audit on the complexity of existing user passwords.
  • Checks if the site generates spam.
  • Dual authentication from the mobile phone.
  • The “pro-active” Firewall protection that detects targeted attacks regardless of the IP or method. WordFence is not only based on a list of malicious IP but analyzes the traffic and will block any new IP if the access method is deemed abnormal.
  • Monitoring and monitoring of real-time traffic.
  • Scan image folder.
  • Numerous and useful blocking options by IP, IP range, user-agent, hostname or referrer.
  • The possibility of short-circuiting settings for users, IP, and geolocation.
  • New flaws detected by WordFence users are automatically added to the real-time detection list (compared to 10 days later in the free version).
  • DNS monitoring, the extension notifies you in the event of a change.

secupress vs wordfence

secupress vs wordfence

Comparison of Available Subscriptions

WordFence’s pricing offers to allow you to choose the number of sites to protect and discounts are offered for subscription over several years. The base rate for a site and for one year is $ 99 ($ 83.84). Discounts apply on this rate depending on the number of sites and the duration of the subscription.

For SecuPress the offer is simpler. Several pricing is available and allows to protect at least cost his or her WordPress. Whatever is the offer chosen, SecuPress Pro is cheaper than WordFence. With the new rates, the “unlimited package” is available only for an account upgrade. With this new pricing, you can subscribe to a subscription that actually meets your needs.

secupress vs wordfence

The Big Differences Between SecuPress and WordFence

SecuPress and WordFence do not necessarily have the same approach. SecuPress is more designed to correct WordPress problems and allows administrators of any level to protect their site in just a few clicks, where WordFence with variety and protection adjustment options gives you the means to protect yourself and refine to precisely target safety as per your needs.

WordFence allows source verification and scanning of all directories and is an asset. It is useless to lock your car if you leave the window open!

WordFence is more complex to configure and use for novices. The many possibilities grouped in the tabs have many checkboxes. The result is not necessarily visible immediately. The technical terms used and the manipulations and choice of the appropriate values will discourage beginners and non-savers. The cumbersome installation, modification, and addition of files, database tables (only one table for SecuPress versus 24 for WordFence), will hardly appeal to those who like to easily master and export their WordPress locally.

The many possibilities grouped in the tabs have many checkboxes. The result is not necessarily visible immediately. The technical terms used and the manipulations and choice of the appropriate values will discourage beginners and non-savers. The cumbersome installation, modification, and addition of files, database tables (only one table for SecuPress versus 24 for WordFence), will hardly appeal to those who like to easily master and export their WordPress locally.

For WordFence, some options may appear unnecessary (or only used occasionally). Sending email when logging into an administrator or a non-administrator is more like access control than protection from malicious intrusion. The possibility of doing a WHOIS lookup on a suspicious IP from the administration. WordFence uses data from all of its users for real-time protection.

For SecuPress, it is a pity that the double authentication method for a connection without a password is available only by e-mail. With SecuPress you have the possibility to choose a time slot to lock the site (administration side), it is amazing that this functionality, unnecessary and binding for some sites, falls into the note. The evaluation of the scanner goes from “Bad” to “Good”, if you do not want to follow the recommendations, the appreciation will remain on “Bad”, there is no possibility to improve its note without adjusting the modules.

Local backups that use the disk space of the hosting and become unusable in case of a problem on the server, the manual download of the backup will allow you to keep an archive to be replaced in case of a glitch. Adding a backup option to Dropbox is announced on the module page, which should be followed.

In case of concern, the form to join the support is available directly from the Services modules, no need to go to SecuPress site to create a support ticket.

SecuPress is based on WPScan Vulnerability Database for scanning themes and extensions and alerts you by e-mail, scanning for files can cause false positives. However, files that are considered “wholesome” can be added to a whitelist. The WordPress Core files are compared directly with those of the official WordPress SVN (with their MD5 hashes).

 

In conclusion

The powerful protection that WordFence offers in premium version can quickly drown novice users who do not want to waste time to secure their site, but this protection with the firewall is more efficient and you can adjust the level of protection at your convenience, according to your needs. If your hosting is of quality, some of the options become useless, while other hosts make its use complicated if not impossible.

SecuPress is cheaper and offers very good protection without slowing down your site. The interface and configuration process is much more intuitive on SecuPress. As soon as you get started, the site is scanned and a note is given to you to follow the tips to improve your security rating by making the suggested corrections. For English-speaking users who refuse English, it is also the only one in French.

The game of options and possibilities is won by WordFence while that of simplicity is won by SecuPress for which I have a preference because it is less resource intensive, much easier to use and less time-consuming. SecuPress pricing policy is also an asset, regardless of the size of your site, protection at the best rate is possible for half the price displayed by WordFence.

Building a secured website is surely a daunting task since hackers are everywhere. But, you can prevent intrusions by having your website built on either a managed platform or using a WordPress website Builder, TemplateToaster. This website builder tool designs websites as per WordPress standards that are inherently secure and compatible with all major CMS. Check our Free WordPress themes.

 

Source Article: Comparatif SecuPress Pro Vs WordFence Premium – Lequel choisir ?