Usman Hayat 
Have you experienced the cookie stealing issue on your WordPress website? Cookie stealing is a cyberattack that involves stealing cookies from users’ devices. Hackers and cyber thieves use this attack to access users’ login details or personal information.
WordPress site owners must understand the risks and consequences of cookie stealing to protect their sites and users.
This blog post will discuss how site owners can take preventive measures to bypass cookie stealing in WordPress.
What Do You Mean by Cookie Stealing?
Cookie stealing is an approach that helps attackers access a user’s account on a specific site. As you know, cookies are primarily text files saved on a user’s device when they browse a site. Moreover, cookies comprise data such as the user’s session and preferences. As a result, sites remember them and provide customized experiences.
How Do Attackers Steal Cookies?
Attackers, hackers, and cyber terrorists utilize multiple ways to steal cookies from users, including phishing attacks, XSS (cross-site scripting) attacks, MITM (man-in-the-middle) attacks, malware, and misusing vulnerabilities.
Phishing Attacks
Hackers develop fake sites that impersonate the original ones and encourage users to visit them and enter their login details. They can likely utilize such information to steal cookies from the users’ browsers.
Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) Attacks
In these attacks, hackers insert harmful code into sites. These sites are then executed in users’ browsers, stealing their cookies. Website developers and owners should know how XSS (cross-site scripting) attacks work in WordPress specifically. This way, they can protect their sites against such attacks.
Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) Attacks
Attackers capture and manipulate communication between the website and the user’s browser, enabling them to steal cookies and other crucial information.
Malware
A malware allows hackers to access users’ devices and steal cookies and sensitive information.
Misusing Vulnerabilities
Attackers can misuse vulnerabilities found in WordPress themes and plugins, enabling them to inject malware. This will help them steal the cookies of users who browse the website.
That said, hackers have unlimited cookie theft methods at their disposal. Thus, you must understand the risks and consequences of cookie stealing attacks. They can hamper your WordPress website and its users quite severely.
Cookie Stealing in WordPress – Risks and Consequences
Cookie stealing has serious consequences that WordPress site owners and developers should not ignore. If you are a site owner or a developer, you can assume such consequences as identity theft, financial loss, and illegitimate access to accounts. Unfortunately, spammers can exploit stolen cookies and perform illegal activities, such as violating privacy, harming reputations, and engaging in unlawful transactions.
It is difficult to recover from the repercussions of cookie stealing attacks, as you can face legal issues, productivity loss, and the exploitation of sensitive data.
Identity Theft
This security issue arises when hackers use stolen cookies to acquire personal data such as names, addresses, financial information, etc. They can perform activities like opening credit accounts, engaging in deceitful tasks, and more.
Various consequences of identity theft include financial loss, lost reputation, and the time and effort needed to recover the identity.
Financial Loss
Spammers and cyber thieves can misuse stolen cookies to access users’ financial accounts, transfer funds, and make fraudulent transactions. As a result, users can experience different issues like sudden financial losses, maxed-out credit cards, and depleted bank accounts.
The funds recovery process is cumbersome and time-consuming. Therefore, users need to be aware of its repercussions.
Unauthorized Access
Once hackers steal users’ cookies, they can illegally access their accounts. Consequently, they can misuse personal and professional accounts, exploit financial accounts, violate privacy, and control users’ accounts. This may result in huge data loss.
Illegal Transactions
Spammers benefit from stolen cookies as they help them conduct multiple illegal tasks, like changing account information, transferring money, buying products, and more. These activities can negatively affect the users’ peace of mind and financial freedom.
It can also trigger issues, such as disputes with financial institutions, which can negatively impact their credit scores.
Privacy Loss
Hackers who access users’ cookies can reveal their personal information, such as login data, browsing history, and messages. The worst thing about this issue is that users can become targets of cyberattacks in the future, causing emotional and personal pain.
Damage to Your Reputation
Cookie stealing attacks can hamper users’ reputations. If attackers gain access to a user’s identity online by exploiting their stolen cookies, they can perform mischievous tasks on their behalf. This may harm the user’s personal or professional reputation, resulting in serious consequences, such as loss of trust, social boycott, etc.
Legal Consequences
Small or large businesses can face legal consequences if they fail to save user cookies. Hackers can steal them, and users may face hassles like data breaches in the future. Users can face legal consequences like lawsuits, fines, and compliance.
Productivity Loss
Sometimes, dealing with the aftereffects of cookie stealing or theft becomes difficult. For instance, regaining access to lost accounts takes a lot of time and effort. The same goes for security breaches, as users may lose energy and focus when tackling such issues. It can hinder their routine activities, causing frustration and missing opportunities.
Vulnerability of Sensitive Data
Cookies primarily store crucial information, such as personal information and login details. If hackers or spammers steal such data, they can likely misuse it. Hence, users may face serious repercussions, such as security breaches, illegal access to other accounts, etc.
Difficulty in Detection
Cookie stealing or theft is challenging since attackers don’t give any clues or evidence. This helps them continue misusing users’ data or accounts, resulting in huge damages before users realize the breach or mishap.
What Should We Do to Prevent Cookie Stealing in WordPress?
You can apply various security measures, like deploying a firewall, using secure cookie flags, applying SSL/TLS for encrypted sessions, etc. In addition, you can implement security measures such as two-factor authentication (2FA), updating software, and imposing robust password restrictions to safeguard against cookie stealing in WordPress.
Use Secure Cookie Flags
Using secure cookie flags can help considerably minimize the risk of cookie theft. Therefore, website owners and developers must use security options such as HTTPOnly and Secure when configuring cookies. The HTTPOnly flag does not allow client-side scripts to access cookies. Moreover, the Secure option assures that cookies are transferred through HTTPS.
Use a Firewall
Using a firewall helps enhance a website’s security. When you install a firewall, you can avoid malicious communications and protect your site from exploitation. A firewall monitors incoming traffic and helps implement robust security measures to safeguard against unwanted access and session hijacking attempts. Ultimately, it helps secure the website from possible cookie stealing threats, enhancing overall security.
Fortunately, you have various options when using a firewall, such as:
- Sucuri
- Wordfence
- JetPack
- MalCare
Employ SSL/TLS
You must use SSL/TLS certificates to secure your site via HTTPS because these certificates encrypt data sent between servers and users. Encryption is handy for making it impossible for hackers to steal and misuse session cookies. This will enable you to keep sensitive information private when sending data between servers and users. Furthermore, it allows you to enhance overall data security.
Implement 2FA or MFA
Website owners and developers must apply 2FA (two-factor authentication) or MFA (multi-factor authentication) to enhance account security. There is a strong likelihood that cookie stealing may evade MFA. However, this additional security step can further strengthen account security.
The additional authentication step prevents hackers and cybercriminals from accessing accounts even if they successfully obtain session cookies.
Apply Robust Password Policies
Strong yet uncommon passwords have become the need of the hour. Hence, website owners should change passwords regularly to enhance their sites’ security.
Update Website Software
You must keep your site’s themes, plugins, and other software up to date. This way, you can smartly and proactively fix security vulnerabilities that can help hackers steal cookies. Installing security updates and fixes prevents spammers and cyber goons from hampering your WordPress site.
Wrapping Up
We expect you to appreciate our blog post describing the consequences of cookie stealing in WordPress. Therefore, to safeguard your WordPress websites, you must understand the risks and repercussions of cookie stealing attacks. The above solutions allow you to protect your site from the negative impacts of cookie hijacking in the right direction.
