A Guide to Magento Security Patches

Confused about how to keep your site secure? Take a read of this, to learn the ins and outs of Magento Security Patches.

This month at BED we’ve been carrying out Magento Security Patches for many of our clients. We get asked lots of questions about these patches by our clients, and we completely understand their concerns. So, we thought we’d put together a little piece which addresses some of the questions we’re asked, aiming to give you an explanation of what these tests are and why they’re so important for your Magento site.

What are Magento Patches?

Each patch test aims to repair security issues that have been discovered in Magento. The most up-to-date version of Magento includes all of the necessary security fixes that are available during its time of release. So, if your website currently runs with the latest version of Magento, it is likely you won’t have to install any patches (for now). However, if you use a less up-to-date version of, these patches must be carried out, as not doing these will lead to your site becoming vulnerable. Take a look  here for the most up-to-date patches your site should/needs to have.

Why are Magento Patch tests so important?

The primary reason is security. In 2019, 83.1% of reported Magento hacks were on outdated versions of Magento Commerce and Magento Open-source sites. Therefore, if your store doesn’t have the latest patch installed, this allows potential threats to access your store’s information.

Can I install these patches myself?

Although you could install these patches yourself, we don’t recommend doing this (unless you are a Magento Developer). Applying patches consists of creating a backup; installing a patch to the development; environment; testing the development environment; releasing these changes to the live environment and testing again.

What else can I do to ensure my Magento Site is Secure?

We recommend making a security audit, preferably each quarter to ensure the store code is secure, especially if you frequently install extensions or make changes to your website. Another way of keeping your site secure is by using Two-Factor Authentication. Magento 2 offers a Two-Factor Authentication (2FA), whereby it only allows trusted devices to access Magento 2 backend by using four different types of authenticators. Additionally resetting your admin, SSH or other passwords quarterly is a great habit to get into for the safety of your store.

Looking for help with your current site? Please, get in touch. We’d be more than happy to help!