Security Headers
by Joseph Mendez · Security
Also makes 1 other plugin · 800+ installs across the portfolio →
Security headers are directives used by web applications to configure browser-side security defenses.
Try it live opens a temporary test site in your browser, which can take about 20 seconds to load. Plugins that rely on outside services or a full server may not work completely there.
Health
B 82/100
Few reviews
Active installs
800+
≈810 estimated
Momentum
+28%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Add “hsts”, “hacked” and “headers” to your wp.org tags. You rank #12, #16 and #16 for them without listing them, close enough for a declared tag to move you up. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so with 2 listed these are the slots worth spending.
82 health vs 66 average across 1,775 Security plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →11%
of downloads still active
At least 800 of 7.6K lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Security plugin keeps 1.4%, across 1,059 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Security plugins, not across the directory. wp.org reports active installs as the bottom of a band, so the real rate is this or higher.
This plugin shipped 4 releases in the last 12 months, and every existing install that updated counted as another download. wp.org publishes no split between first installs and updates, so we show the raw rate rather than guess at one.
Details
Directory ranking optimization
How it's scored →How well this listing is tuned to rank in WordPress.org search, on the factors an owner controls. Not popularity, optimization.
Well optimized
Most to gain: Rating quality
Updated 1 day ago
Tested up to WordPress 6.9.11, the current branch or newer
3.0★ over 2 reviews, smoothed to 4.06★ and held back under 25 reviews
2 of 5 tags set · short description in place
To rank higher: Too few reviews to rank on quality — nudge happy users to leave one.
Get the full rank-higher report →Search visibility
How it's tracked →Directory searches this plugin turns up in, and which way each one is moving. WordPress.org publishes no history of search positions, so this starts the day we first tracked a keyword and never backfills.
38
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.5
Velocity
places per keyword, 26d
20%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 26d
-0.1
Acceleration
recent half vs earlier
wp.org is where the directory puts the plugin for that search. On merit is where it would sit if results were ranked on rating, support and updates, without the install boost. The last column is how far the wp.org position moved, from our first reading in the last 90 days to the latest.
| Keyword | wp.org | On merit | wp.org move, 90 days |
|---|---|---|---|
| seo security headers your tag | #8 | #23 | 0 |
| headers | #16 | #24 | up 4 |
| security headers your tag | #16 | #24 | up 1 |
| csp | #10 | #20 | down 2 |
| hsts | #12 | #21 | down 1 |
| hacked | #16 | #23 | down 1 |
| http headers | #24 | #24 | 0 |
| headers security | #22 | #24 | up 1 |
22 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 8 listed. 14 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words).
What to do about it
- Add “hsts”, “hacked” and “headers” to your wp.org tags. You rank #12, #16 and #16 for them without listing them, close enough for a declared tag to move you up. WordPress.org counts only your first five tags, so with 2 listed these are the slots worth spending.
- One page off on “security headers”. #16 puts you just past the first ten results, where almost all the clicks stop. The gap to close is small.
Daily downloads
Since 6 Oct 2022 · 1,487 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 1.2K · peaks are release surges
Directory rank vs rivals
wp.org popularity rank over time · higher is better · when a rival's line climbs above yours, they've overtaken you
Rating trend
Star average over time · dips mark rough releases
Health trend
Composite health score, snapshotted daily
Update activity
How busy the existing users are, measured as downloads in the last 30 days for every 1,000 active sites. A spike means a new release everyone's pulling; a long, slow decline means an aging user base that updates less.
Release cadence
Actively maintainedHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
4
releases in the last 12 months
yesterday
latest release · v1.6.2 · 30 Oct 2026
5
tagged releases on record
Recent releases
What its installed base runs
via wordpress.orgShare of active installs on each version of this plugin. Green is the current release; a big slice on older versions is a user base that has stopped updating.
Estimated active installs
The public count shows “800+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 37 days ago and the previous band took 13 months to cross, so the real count is still just over 800.
At the current install trend, crossing 900+ in roughly 182 days.
Install history since 5 Oct 2022
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ nofarrell3.4y ago
No warning, no instruction of what to do if you site goes down, no configuration options, deleting the plugin directory does not resort your website. From my experience, unless you have hours with nothing better to do except rebuild your WordPress website, installing advise not to install this plugin
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ vevsglobal4.1y ago
I installed the plugin. great work!!!!!! from F score to A+ score. Thank you for creating this plugin, t was really hard to do it on a htaccess file and server configuration stuff not familiar… and with this plugin i dont need to touch teh htaccess file, it works.
Read on wp.org ↗
Behavioral tests
via WP HiveAutomated install-time checks, tested on PHP 8.1.12 · WP 7.0.1
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 2 languages, 0 at 90% or more
AI assistants
How it's measured →Whether ChatGPT and Claude name this plugin when asked the category question, and whether the readme gives them something to quote.
Not measured yet for this plugin’s topics. Its tracked searches are not among the measured topics. See the topics measured so far.
Readme readiness
4 of 8 pass · checked 28 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ! Says what it does Short description names no action; say what the plugin does for the site.
- ✓ Has a FAQ 8 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 8 of 8 read like questions a user would type.
- ! Names who it is for Never says who the plugin is for or what they use it for.
- ! Names what it works with Names no plugin, service or platform it works with.
- ! Headings and lists 1 heading and 1 list; assistants quote headed sections and bullet lists, not paragraphs.
- ✓ Enough to quote 1,298 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text 1 of 2 tags appear in the text; "seo security headers" does not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-09-24 700+ → 800+ up after 383 days in tier
- 2025-09-06 800+ → 700+ down after 90 days in tier
- 2025-06-08 900+ → 800+ down after 115 days in tier
- 2025-02-13 800+ → 900+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2025-02-12 900+ → 800+ down after 24 days in tier
- 2025-01-19 800+ → 900+ up after 4 days in tier
- 2025-01-15 900+ → 800+ down after 9 days in tier
- 2025-01-06 800+ → 900+ up after 1 days in tier
Competes with
The plugins that solve the same job, ranked by shared tags then reach, closest match first. The letter on the right is each plugin's health grade (A best, F worst).
-
HTTP Headers 40K+ installs · 4.3★ · 1 shared tag B - C Content Security Policy Manager 2K+ installs · 4.0★ · 1 shared tag D
-
HTTP Security Header 1K+ installs · 4.1★ · 1 shared tag B -
Security Header Generator 400+ installs · 4.3★ · 1 shared tag A -
CSP Friendly Security 200+ installs · 3.8★ · 1 shared tag B -
Zen Site Security 70+ installs · 4.0★ · 1 shared tag B
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for Security Headers into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/firstpage-sg-security-headers" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="Security Headers — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> Security Headers: 800+ active installs, 3.0★ (2 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-10-31. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/firstpage-sg-security-headers
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