Frequently Asked Questions

Stop it harming visitors with a maintenance page, take a full copy of the files and database, change your email and hosting passwords from a clean device, and write down what you have seen. Avoid deleting files or restoring old backups until you know when the break-in began. Our first steps guide covers this in order.

Common signs are a Google warning or a Search Console security message, visitors being redirected, unknown admin accounts, spam pages in search results, unexplained file changes and host notices. Many infections hide from logged-in owners, so check from a phone in a private window, arriving through a Google search.

Yes. The work is done remotely, so it does not matter where the business or the host is located. Our guides focus on Australian rules.

No. We focus on WordPress only, including WooCommerce shops and common page builders, because we would rather know one platform well than several platforms partly.

You create a temporary WordPress administrator account and a hosting or SFTP login for us, and share them by phone or a password manager link. Never email passwords or put them in a contact form. Remove the accounts when the job is done.

We can fix every issue Google lists and send a correct review request. Google makes the decision. Its guidance says malware reviews take a few days, spam reviews can take up to several weeks, and warnings are removed within 72 hours once a site is found clean.

Often only briefly. Where possible we work on a copy and apply the clean result at the end. If the site is harming visitors, we recommend a maintenance page during the cleanup.

No, and you should be wary of anyone who says they can. We remove what is there, close the gaps we find and harden the site so a repeat is less likely and easier to spot.

It depends on the extent of the damage, so we start with a fixed-fee assessment and then give a written fixed quote. Our cost guide collects published Australian price ranges if you want to compare.

The incident may also be a data breach. Organisations covered by the Privacy Act must assess a suspected eligible breach within 30 days and notify if required. We record the facts that assessment needs, but the decision is yours, ideally with legal advice.

Not by default. Response times, and the hours they apply to, are written into each quote or maintenance plan. For urgent advice at any hour about a cyber incident, the Australian Cyber Security Hotline is 1300 CYBER1 (1300 292 371).

You do not have to have one with us, but someone should be applying updates, keeping off-site backups and watching for changes. Without that, the conditions that let the first attack happen tend to return.

You do. Backup storage, hosting, domain and licences should all be in your business's name, with us given access. That keeps you in control if you ever change provider.

No. WordPress is a trademark of the WordPress Foundation. We are an independent service and are not affiliated with or endorsed by the WordPress Foundation.