LearningViaVideo
Forum Replies Created
-
Seems like having one or more WordPress websites without a security plugin is as smart as being online without antivirus software. Also seems like iThemes didn’t help it’s public image with its acquisition of WP Better Security.
“OK.. deleting this shitty plugin. Whoever reads this thread – BE WARNED!!!!! it is bugged as hell.”
“I am simply disappointed that they launched such a shitty product without, apparently any testing.. “
“So, everything is worse than before and I’m not sure how that happened.”
“Since I don’t trust this plugin anymore,….”
Others disagree….
“I’ve read several comments about dropping iThemes security plugin due to related problems. iThemes has a great product free of charge and works exceptionally well IMO. It’s worth taking a moment and troubleshooting the basics like what I’ve outlined and moving onto the more advanced stuff mentioned here as well.”
This forum topic has run into 3 pages already. Obviously, Viktor has been very helpful, but what’s next? Beyond iThemes Security, what other security plugin are worth considering? Any feedback on this?
Are the site owners or managers poorly affected by the switch to iThemes only a tiny fraction of all WP Better Security users? Or were there thousands affected? Probably hard to know.
Are many now seeking alternatives – who prefer not to use iThemes Security? There’s over 2,200 security plugins for WordPress, but the star ratings for the vast majority are based on very few votes, in some cases zero votes???
Is it fair to say iThemes Security should or should not be trusted or used? How risky is using iThemes Security? Is comparing any of the top rated WP security plugins like comparing apples and oranges?
Any feedback how to get sites back with security plugins considered as reliable as WP Better Security?
Hey Victor,
Good to see people getting their sites back. Others like me, who prefer not to risk making mistakes, are still stuck with lack of access.
I’ve shared this “How to RESET iThemes Security plugin to fix issues” WP Forum post with several WP tech pros, but they’re reluctant to help saying there’s too many potential problems to attempt assistance.
Are you aware of anyone available for hire to coach or otherwise assist less tech savvy people like me through your step-by-step instructions? If so, are you aware what fees they are charging? Thanks, LVV
From your step by step instructions here:
http://ww.wp.xz.cn/support/topic/how-to-reset-ithemes-security-plugin-to-fix-issues?replies=34“3. Plugin is disabled and your admin is back working.
4. Now, the reset. You need to access your database, ideally through phpMyAdmin interface in your control panel (cPanel).”“Since your tech guys know more about hosting, they shouldn’t have any issues with step 4 – 13 using phpmyadmin interface. “
Feedback from tech people is how do they perform step 4 if the admin is not back working?
Good to see some people are getting their websites back. Following this discussion, however, producing tons of anxiety. Seems the risk of making mistakes very high.
If your advice is “you have the wrong tech people” – since they’re web tech people, not WordPress tech people, then do I need to start paying unknown fees to get this fixed?
If that’s true, seems it might just be better – and quicker – to just rebuild from scratch. I can imagine all the qualified people who can help with this have all already been hired and are as busy as can be.
For me, at this point, this website is totally lost.
I’ve already invested thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours. It was at the very last testing stages before being published. This couldn’t have happened at a worse time.
Reminds me of Wall Street where everyone gets screwed but the fat cats. Another shining example of how the latest technology improves our lives, right?
Victor, is it safe to assume you’re not on staff with iThemes? If so, to your knowledge, is anyone at iThemes helping as much as you are? And if not, why not? Thanks again. LVV
Hey Victor,
Good to see you’re helping so many people with your fix. Also good to see there’s someone who knows how to fix things available to help. There’s too few folks like you…
“I just renamed the better security folder in wp-contents to something else.”
“I am changing the name of the plugin using my FTP then I am able to log in to the admin panel and play with the plugin. “
I’ve seen the steps above recommended several times – renaming the better security folder via FTP.
I followed that advice 3 days ago, but my WP admin login page does not return as it seems to for others. I can’t access the WP dashboard to deactivate or uninstall anything.
In my case, I clicked on the “update” button for iThemes Security. I waited for about 20 minutes for the upgrade to finish, but all I saw was the tab saying “connecting”. Eventually, I got a message saying the process was disconnected, although the wired online connection was not disconnected.
So I decided the update wasn’t working. I then went to the plugins listing and hit “deactivate” for the iThemes Security. There was no warning to not deactivate.
Once again, the tab title said “connecting” for about 10 full minutes, but it never indicated deactivation was complete. In the midst of these circumstances, everything vanished and I could no longer access the login screen. That’s how it remains.
I asked my technical resource people to implement your step by step instructions. They’re not that familiar with WordPress, more with hosting. They said they can’t follow your instructions since the admin is not back working as mentioned in step 3. They are clueless how to solve this and suggested I ask about it.
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Through FTP or cPanel file manager, go to /wp-content/plugins/
2. Rename “better-wp-security” folder to something else like “better-wp-security2”
3. Plugin is disabled and your admin is back working.>>>>> your admin is back working. <<< This result is not happening.
Thanks again, LVV
rename WP Security plugin folder via FTP.
this ll solve ur problem.Didn’t work. Any other suggestions? Thanks. GW
logged into Filezilla.
found this folder named “better-wp-security”
here:/learningviavideo.com/wp-content/plugins
Renamed “better-wp-security” to “better-wp-security-x”
Tried to login to site here: http://learningviavideo.com/wp-login.php?
All I see is blank page with “Connecting” listed in the Tab title.
After a minute like this, turned into “The connection was reset”
Wired connection was not disconnected or changed.“rename WP Security plugin folder via FTP”
Thanks for your assistance. Maybe you could help me a little bit further. I’d really appreciate it.
Rename it to what? Thanks!!!
I had the Better WP Security plugin installed on my site – http://www.learningviavideo.com
The usual WP message to update plugins appeared in my Dashboard. One update was for the Better WP Security plugin. When I updated it, there were numerous warnings that my theme didn’t have certain requirements for the iThemes Security to work properly, so I decided to deactivate it, to uninstall it and use a different security plugin.
A “deactivate” button was available and there was no warning against deactivating. Now it can’t access the backend of the website at all. The web pages show up, but not the WordPress Dashboard. How do I get back access to the back end?
Never mind. I removed the plug in for the sidebars and that removed them. Thanks anyhow.
> When there aren’t any pages using a custom sidebar, it will no longer show on the Widgets admin screen.
I’m just starting the site. I had put custom side bars in but now want them out. When I access Appearance / Widgets, there’s a list of custom sidebars. The top side bar is called “Main Sidebar”. When I access a page to edit it, there’s “Sidebar”, then “current sidebar”, then “Default sidebar”. Are “Main Sidebar” and “Default Sidebar” the same?
All remaining pages show only “Default Sidebar” listed, not any of the other customer sidebars. So it appears there aren’t any pages using the custom sidebars, yet the customer sidebars remain listed in the edit page view. ????
> Did you include a link to your site, so that others can see the problem?
The problem is not viewable from the site, only from the dashboard.