Author: Editorial Staff

Posted on

The Right Way to Remove WordPress Version Number

Category Image 091

Do you want to remove the WordPress version number from your website?

Many believe that removing the WordPress version number from your website’s source code can prevent some common online attacks.

In this article, we’ll show you how to easily remove WordPress version number the right way.

Hiding WordPress version number from your website

Why Remove WordPress Version Number?

By default, WordPress leaves its footprints on your site for the sake of tracking. That is how we know that WordPress is the top website builder in the world.

WordPress version shown in source code by default

However, sometimes this footprint might be a security leak on your site if you are not running the most updated version of WordPress. It provides the hacker with useful information by telling them which version you are running.

We recommend using the latest version of WordPress on all your websites so you don’t have to worry about this. However, if for some reason you are running an older version of WordPress, then you should definitely follow this tutorial.

It is quite difficult to remove all traces of which WordPress version you are using on your website. A sophisticated attack may still be able to find that information.

However, it will prevent automatic scanners and other less sophisticated attempts from guessing your WordPress version.

That being said, let’s take a look at some ways to easily remove version number from your WordPress website.

Method 1. Remove WordPress Version Number using Sucuri

This method is easier and recommended for all users.

All top WordPress security plugins offer an option in the settings to hide your WordPress version number.

However, we recommend using Sucuri because it automatically hides WordPress version information and offers other more advanced security features.

Simply install and activate the Sucuri plugin. For more details, see our step by step guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

Upon activation, the plugin will automatically hide WordPress version information. You can verify it by visiting Sucuri Security » Settings and switching to the Hardening tab.

Sucuri WordPress version hardening

Method 2. Manually Remove WordPress Version Information

This method requires you to add code to your WordPress website. If you haven’t done this before, then see our guide on how to copy and paste code snippets in WordPress.

Now, many websites will recommend you to edit your theme’s header.php file and get rid of the following line of code: 

<meta name="generator" content="WordPress <?php bloginfo('version'); ?>" />

This method doesn’t work as a new theme update will automatically replace the old template with the new file.

Another commonly recommended, but inefficient method is to put this code in your theme’s functions.php or site-specific plugin: 

remove_action('wp_head', 'wp_generator');

This will only remove the information from the WordPress header. The version number will still be visible in your website’s RSS feeds.

The right way to remove WordPress version information is by disabling the function responsible for displaying it.

In order for you to completely remove your WordPress version number from both your head file and RSS feeds, you will need to add the following code to a site-specific plugin or code snippets plugin. 

function wpbeginner_remove_version() {
return '';
}
add_filter('the_generator', 'wpbeginner_remove_version');

By adding this code, you will remove the WordPress version number from WordPress RSS feeds and your website’s head section.

Can You Completely Hide WordPress Version?

WordPress may still add the version information in various other places throughout your website. For instance, it is included as the query string in source code for CSS and JS files.

WordPress version shown with CSS and JS files

Removing all instances of WordPress version information can be time-consuming, complicated, and may not always work.

From a security perspective, removing the obvious generator tags can protect you from some very common attacks.

However, if someone is determined to break into your website, then hiding your WordPress version number does little to stop this.

You need to implement a proper WordPress security setup in place to make your website more secure. This adds layers of security around your website making it harder to hack into.

We hope this article helped you learn how to easily hide WordPress version number from your website. You may also want to see our guide on how to get a free SSL certificate for your website, or our list of must-have WordPress plugins for small business.

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

The post The Right Way to Remove WordPress Version Number appeared first on WPBeginner.

Posted on

How to Verify Your WordPress Site on Pinterest (Step by Step)

Featured Imgs 29

Are you looking for a simple way to verify your WordPress site on Pinterest?

Verifying your website on Pinterest will unlock neat features like Pinterest analytics, ads program, stats for your photos, and more.

In this article, we will show you how to easily verify your WordPress site on Pinterest.

How to Verify Your WordPress Website on Pinterest

Why You Should Verify Your WordPress Site on Pinterest?

Pinterest is one of the most popular social media platforms to share your photos, videos, and other visual content. It allows you to create an account and manage your images like Instagram or Flickr.

It also allows other users to collect website links, and other visual content by creating boards.

If you are running a photography website or any other type of blog with images and videos, then Pinterest can be an important source of traffic.

Verifying your website on Pinterest will help you learn more about your visitors using Pinterest Analytics. You will also be able to participate in their ad program and plan a strategy to grow your Pinterest traffic.

That being said, let’s take a look at how to easily verify your WordPress blog on Pinterest.

How to Verify Your WordPress Site on Pinterest

Before we start, you’ll need to upgrade your Pinterest profile to a business account. This will allow you to use all their Pro tools like analytics, ads program, and more. The Pinterest business account is free and easy to set up.

Ready, let’s get started.

Step 1. Upgrade Your Pinterest Account to Business

First, you need to log into your Pinterest account and click on the down arrow at the top right corner of your screen. Next, click on the ‘Unlock business tools’ option.

Click the Unlock business tools option

On the next screen, you will see a list of features the business account will offer. To use these features, click the ‘Switch to business’ button.

Select the Switch to business button

After that, enter your business account details like a profile name, website URL, country, and language. Once you have entered all these details, click the ‘Next’ button.

Build your profile

Pinterest will now ask you to describe your business. You can select an industry from the drop-down menu and pick 3 goals from the given options. After that, click the ‘Next’ button.

Describe your business

Now select an option to get customized recommendations and click the ‘Next’ button.

Get customized recommendations

On the next screen, you can select an option if you are interested in advertising on Pinterest and then click the ‘Next’ button. For the sake of this tutorial, we selected the ‘No, I am not planning to advertise’ option.

Planning to run Pinterest ads

Next, Pinterest will show you different options to get started with your business account. You can click the ‘cross’ icon in the top right corner to skip this part.

Where would you like to start

Step 2. Claim Your Website on Pinterest

The next step is to claim your website on Pinterest.

To do that, you can click on the ‘Claim domain’ button from your Pinterest Business hub page, and it will directly take you to the claim settings page.

Claim domain in Pinterest

Another way to claim your website is by clicking on the down arrow in the top right corner and selecting the ‘Settings’ option. Then head over to the ‘Claim’ section in the left menu.

To get the credit for your content on Pinterest, click the ‘Claim’ button for Websites.

Click websites claim

Once you click the button, a popup window will appear with three options to claim your WordPress website.

Choose how you want to claim

We are choosing the ‘Add HTML tag’ option because it is the easiest.

However, if you prefer, you can choose the other option where you download the HTML file and upload it to your website’s root directory using an FTP client or your WordPress hosting file manager.

Alternatively, you can also add a verification record to your domain settings using your domain registrar.

Step 3. Add HTML Tag to Your WordPress Website

There are multiple ways to add an HTML tag to your website’s header, but we will only cover the two easiest methods.

First, you can use the All in One SEO (AIOSEO) WordPress plugin and enter the HTML tag to your website. For more details, follow our guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

AIOSEO is the best SEO plugin for WordPress and makes it very easy to optimize your site for search engines without hiring an expert.

While we recommend the Pro version, you can also use the free version of AIOSEO to add Pinterest verification.

To add the HTML tag, go to All in One SEO » General Settings and then click the ‘Webmaster Tools’ tab from the top menu.

After that, click the ‘Pinterest Site Verification’ block.

AIOSEO Webmaster Tools

Now enter the HTML tag you copied in the previous step in the Pinterest Site Verification field and click the ‘Save Changes’ button.

Enter Pinterest Verification Code

Aside from using AIOSEO, another way of adding the HMTL tag is by installing and activating Insert Headers and Footers plugin.

Upon activation, you need to visit Settings » Insert Headers and Footers page in your WordPress admin area. In the Scrips in Header section, you need to paste the HTML tag and click on the Save button.

Insert HTML tag in header script section

Once the HTML tag is added in your website’s header section, you need to go back to the Pinterest screen and click on the Continue button in the popup.

It will now ask you to enter the URL of your website and then click the ‘Verify’ button.

Verify your site in Pinterest

Once you do that, you will see a message saying ‘Verification in progress.’ Normally, the process takes 24 hours, and you get an email about your website’s verification.

Verification in progress

That is it, you have now successfully verified your WordPress website on Pinterest.

Tip: If Pinterest fails to verify after you’ve added the verification code, then it means you need to clear your WordPress cache.

We hope this article helped you learn how to verify your WordPress site on Pinterest. You may also want to see our expert pick of the must-have WordPress plugins for your website, and our comparison of the best business phone services for small business.

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.

The post How to Verify Your WordPress Site on Pinterest (Step by Step) appeared first on WPBeginner.