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WP Cerber
WordPress security plugin focused on brute-force prevention and anti-spam — free core, $9/mo Pro for malware scanning.
Free tier: free plugin with anti-spam + login limit
What it does well
- The free version provides robust brute-force login protection and an effective anti-spam engine.
- Allows hiding the wp-admin and wp-login.php pages with a custom URL.
- Maintains a centralized dashboard for managing security across multiple sites (paid feature).
- Logs user and malicious activity, providing a clear audit trail for security events.
Where it falls short
- Malware scanning and file integrity checks are only available in the paid Pro version.
- As a plugin, it only runs after WordPress loads, offering less protection than a server-level WAF.
- The user interface can be complex for beginners due to its many configuration options.
- It is a self-hosted plugin only, with no managed or cloud-based service option.
Alternatives to WP Cerber
Wordfence
freemiumMost popular WordPress security plugin — free firewall, $119/yr for real-time threat updates.
Patchstack
freemiumVulnerability database + virtual patches for WordPress plugins — free scanning, $5/mo Pro for auto-patching.
Solid Security (iThemes)
freemiumWordPress security suite from StellarWP — free version covers basics, Pro $99/yr adds 2FA, scans, login monitoring.
ManageWP
freemiumGoDaddy-owned WordPress management dashboard — free for unlimited sites, $1-2/mo per site for premium add-ons.