What is a 'Compromised website'?

A comprimised website is (hacked) content placed on your site without your permission as a result of vulnerabilities in your site’s security. Malicious hackers are a devious bunch – always looking for new flaws, exploits and social engineering tricks that will allow them to compromise a website. With this in mind, it comes as no surprise Malicious hackers are a devious bunch – always looking for new flaws, exploits and social engineering tricks that will allow them to compromise a website. With this in mind, it comes as no surprise that most website owners simply don’t know how their sites were compromised.

Why would this be bad?

When your website is compromised, not only your website contains changes done by hackers but it also contains one or more security problems that allowed a hacker to gain access to your website in the first place. The compromised website provides a useful platform for a range of illicit activities. These activities include:

Recommended action

If your site has been hacked or infected with malware, you should act quickly to repair the damage. First take your entire website offline first. This is pretty impopulair, however if you consider the fact your might be leaking privacy information or infecting the systems of your visitors you want to act as quickly as possible.

After you closed your website you will need to clean up the changed area's of your website.

Tips how to resolve this matter

The safest way to clean the hacked website is to delete it entirely and then upload a known clean version of it.

In addition future risk of compromise can be reduced by following these basic tips:

Getting more information

Google's help for webmasters of hacked websites
stopbadware.org has great information, and their forums have a number of helpful and knowledgeable volunteers who may be able to help.
The site antiphishing.org has recommendations on dealing with hacked sites.