Hosting multiple sites has become easy in the age of cloud computing. Cloud hosting saves precious hardware and maintenance resources. When it comes to software, open source CMS like WordPress have made it hassle-free to maintain a website. Harnessing the power of both WordPress and Cloud hosting can benefit the users in the longer run. The businesses can run entire operations just from a single desktop. However, as an end user, nothing is more frustrating than getting the WordPress account suspended.
WordPress users may feel devastated. The hosting providers may give multiple reasons for WordPress account suspended. Although in reality, it is often something that triggered the automatic systems. These systems then respond via account suspensions and system generated mail. The end users may feel cheated upon the suspension of their service. This article outlines the causes of a WordPress site suspended and the ways to avoid or fix them.
What does a WordPress Site Suspension Look Like?
The WordPress site suspended messages vary from one hosting service to another. However, a few messages of some common hosting services are given below:
- GoDaddy: This Account has been suspended.
- Site Ground: Hosting account & website suspended for malware.
- Bluehost: Your web hosting account for yourdomain.com has been deactivated as of date. (reason: terms of service violation – malware/virus).
- HostGator: Your example.com HostGator account suspended because of malware.
- Dreamhost: Account shows ‘Suspended’ or ‘Disabled’ in the panel. Or at times an image like this:
- InMotion Hosting: ‘User not found‘.
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What leads to a WordPress Site getting Suspended?
WordPress Account Suspended Due to Lack of Payment
The billing cycle varies from host to host. Some prefer annual billings while some may like weekly or monthly. Skipping payments can compel your hosts to take punitive actions. However, at times, payments may be delayed for unforeseen reasons. For example:
- The host may send billing notification through emails but you are unable to receive emails.
- It could be a fault with the SMTP server or you may have changed the email addresses.
- Sometimes, the emails may be ending up in the spam folder.
- The credit card may have been expired.
- Or in some cases, the credit card may have been blocked by the bank for some issues.
Therefore all these reasons are unforeseen. However, they are serious enough to make the WordPress account suspended.
WordPress Account Suspended for Affecting Server Performance
While using a shared hosting service, the resources are limited for each account. However, due to certain reasons, your installation may be utilizing more resources than allocated to it. This downgrades the server performance. When the server maintenance team notices this, it immediately makes the WordPress site suspended. As a result messages like “This WordPress account has been suspended” may be displayed. Also, emails regarding the same are dispatched to the user. The account may be using extra resources due to the following reasons:
- Implementation of a new application on the platform which may be resource consuming.
- Adding a new WordPress plugin may have increased the load on the server.
- Outdated versions of PHP may get bulky and resource heavy.
- In some scenarios, it could be a crypto mining malware or bots directly hitting the server.
Emails like this image may be sent by the respective hosting companies when server performance is affected.
Need professional help to restore suspended WordPress account?. Drop us a message. on the chat widget. and we’d be happy to help you. Unsuspend my WordPress website now.
WordPress Account Suspended Due to Policy Violations
The terms of service of hosting providers vary to a great extent. While some have strict copyright terms, others may be lenient. Therefore not complying with the host’s policy can result in a WordPress account getting suspended. Apart from copyright, it could be due to spam affecting the host’s reputation. So some key reasons leading to policy violations could be as follows:
Spam
Spamming the email server can have some pretty serious consequences. Spam content can slow down the mail server of the hosting service. Also, spam emails used to boost fake comments are under the strict purview of the hosts. Moreover, spam is detected easily. Spam content can also damage the reputation of the host server and can at times result in getting blacklisted by search engines. Therefore, hosting providers take adequate steps resulting in the WordPress site getting suspended. Although there is also a high possibility that the site is infected with malware and therefore sending large amounts of spam.
Plagiarism
Hosting providers have different TOS when it comes to plagiarised content. While some are more stringent as plagiarised content adds to negative SEO, others have a lenient policy. Plagiarised content can also affect the rankings of the site while it is essentially stealing of intellectual content. Therefore hosting providers consider it bad and can lead to WordPress account getting suspended.
Phishing
Sometimes attackers rent web spaces to conduct an attack from multiple domains. In that scenario, fake web pages resembling original ones are set up. These web pages are designed to steal sensitive credentials of users like emails, credit card info etc. Most of the web hosting companies have their detection mechanism to detect such fake pages. The account which was used for phishing is automatically blocked. However, sometimes, you may be a victim of cyber attacks. In that scenario, the attackers would have created such pages to steal sensitive data. This would have raised alarms regarding phishing activities, eventually leading to the suspension of the WordPress account.
Copyright Material
Posting content which is owned by someone else should generally be avoided unless there is permission from the owner. Moreover, the pirated content can also affect the security of the server. As most of the pirated software is laden with malware. This malware would install backdoors in the server thus leading to a ban of your account. If not the malware, then there are high chances of a DMCA copyright notice. This issue is a serious one and can lead to a ban on the server by the ISPs . In such scenarios, the server managers find it wise to block the pirated site. As once the ban is in effect, the entire traffic of the server is dropped by the ISPs, irrespective of the various sites it comes from.
WordPress Account Suspended Because of Malware (wp-vcd and other) & Virus
Attackers are constantly at play trying to infect WordPress sites. They are often targeted with attacks such as the Japanese SEO hack or Pharma scam. These attacks can have a long-lasting impact on the reputation and SEO rankings of the site. Apart from sending spam and SEO poisoning, backdoors are fairly common. Backdoors are installed in the WordPress sites after they are compromised using known vulnerabilities. These backdoors then pave ways for further attacks on the site. When the security systems of the host notice bad traffic from your site, it labels the WordPress account suspended because of malware & virus. The way this compromised account can harm the server is:
- Mining cryptocurrency using the processing power of the server.
- Sending spam using the compromised account to many users. This can also get the server blacklisted.
- Destroying the key files and database of the WordPress site.
- Conducting phishing attacks using the compromised WordPress account.
- Infecting other sites sharing the same web space.
- Install ransomware on the server.
- Use the server to conduct DDOS attacks.
- And much more!
These attacks are pretty harmful and have the capability of causing great loss to the company. Therefore, for the safety of other users sharing the web space, the WordPress account gets suspended because of malware & virus!
WordPress Account Suspended: Fixes
Managing Payments
The primary step after WordPress account suspended due to lack of payment would be to pay the dues. Check your payments options for validity. Repay the dues at earliest possible. After the bills are paid, get in touch with the hosting provider to restore the WordPress account. Apart from doing damage control, there are certain suggestions which could avoid this hassle,
- Set a payment reminder for your account.
- Set up other quick reminders like phone calls from the hosting company apart from emails.
- Check the spam folder. If the emails from hosting provider end up in the trash, take steps to remove them and add the email to your trusted contacts.
- Make payments automatic. There are plenty of financial platforms that provide these services get in touch with one.
Fixing Server Resources
Check emails for the suspension notification. These emails usually contain detailed steps to fix the issue. Follow them carefully and you are good to go. If the site revenue is affected, go for higher plans. The hosting provider often offers flexible hosting plans when the site needs more resources. This can keep away the “WordPress site is suspended” messages in the future!
Complying with the TOS
- Before signing up for the WordPress site hosting service, read the terms and conditions carefully. Note some key points like the copyright policy and the abuse policy of the company.
- Read the email carefully regarding which term got the account suspended. If it is a DMCA notice, remove the copyrighted content immediately and contact the hosting company.
- There are multiple solutions available to copyrighted materials. Try to use content which is freeware or open licensed.
- If the hosting provider detects plagiarism try using online tools for plagiarism before uploading the content. Hire capable professionals for content writing. Ensure the content is relevant and unique.
- In case the site has been suspended for phishing, go for a complete security audit and pentesting. Hire the right professionals and get the job gone!
Securing the Account
Cleaning up the suspended WordPress account because of malware & virus can be lengthy. The first step would be detection. Later on removal and finally securing against future attacks. The following key points would help in the removal of malware and viruses:
- Log in to the server via SSH and run the following command
find /path-of-www -type f -printf '%TY-%Tm-%Td %TT %pn' | sort -r. This would list all the files modified as per the date. Detect and remove the infected files. - Make sure the credentials are secure. Enable two-factor authentication if the service provider supports.
- Moreover, tools like PhpMyAdmin can come handly while cleaning. Follow the steps to use it for cleaning the account suspended because of malware & virus.
- If the infection doesn’t seem to be removed, restore from the backup. Simply remove all the files from CPanel. Thereafter upload the ones from backup and you are good to go. If there is no backup available then fresh installation may be used as a last resort.
- Finally, once the malware is removed get in touch with the hosting provider. Ask them to review and restore your account.
Firewall
The best way to stop malware and viruses is to block them. This can be done with a firewall solution. Like normal web users, one may find it difficult to compare products in the market and then later install them. However, Astra offers a plug n play firewall solution. The installation process is pretty basic. Once firewall is functional, say goodbye to WordPress account suspended messages. Astra firewall monitors all the incoming traffic and removes the bad traffic in real time.
Moreover, it would notify you via email regarding any login attempts or file changes. Not only WordPress account ban, but users running other CMSes like Joomla, Opencart, Prestashop, Magento etc can benefits immensely from the Astra firewall. Prestashop and Opencart users can make transactions on the site fear free after it gets the validation seal of Astra. Astra is designed to work seamlessly with Joomla, Magento, and many more popular CMSes.
Astra provides a comprehensive security audit for your WordPress website with 80+ active tests, a right mix of automated & manual testing.