Build a support team

You'll need #

The ability to contact your hoster.

Tell your hoster that your site has been compromised #

Your hoster can make sure their other customers weren't affected, and they can potentially help recover your site. In StopBadware's 2012 survey, 60% of people who asked their hoster for help, received it.

Locate reputable online resources and helpful communities #

Your goal is to find out where to turn if you have problems with the recovery process. In addition to this series of articles and your hoster's help system, try searching and reading responses in discussion forums or even posting a question yourself.

These communities are good starting points:

• StopBadware.org offers articles and tools.
• Google Webmaster Central's discussion forum has a special subforum for Malware and hacked sites. Most responses come from highly engaged members and the community's Top Contributors.

Determine if this is something you can handle yourself #

Fixing the site yourself requires the ability to read and understand code, how to use command-line server tools, possibly how to change web server configurations for your site. If you feel ill-equipped to do this yourself, consider enlisting a qualified professional to help you.

Here are some tips for finding a qualified professional:

• Seek referrals from the standout members of reputable online communities.
• Transfer your site to new hoster who specializes in site recovery and can recover your site as part of the transfer.