WP fail2ban – Advanced Security
by invisnet · Login & Users
Also makes 9 other plugins · 64.5K+ installs across the portfolio →
WP fail2ban uses fail2ban to protect your WordPress site.
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
A 86/100
no flags
Active installs
60K+
≈66K estimated
Momentum
+455%
downloads vs prior 30d
Biggest opportunity: Swap “brute force”, “login” and “security” for “user enumeration”, “wordpress mu” and “xml rpc”. “brute force” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “user enumeration” sits at #12 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “login” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “wordpress mu” sits at #22 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “security” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “xml rpc” sits at #22 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
86 health vs 61 average across 2,204 Login & Users plugins
Install conversion
How it's measured →2.9%
of downloads still active
At least 60K of 2.1M lifetime downloads are still running, above its category: the median Login & Users plugin keeps 0.7%, across 1,477 plugins.
Downloads count every update, not just first installs, so older and more frequently released plugins read lower. Compare against other Login & Users 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 2 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: Support resolution
Updated 12 days ago
Tested up to WordPress 7.1.4, the current branch or newer
4.2★ over 71 reviews, smoothed to 4.16★
5 of 5 tags set · short description in place
0 of 1 support threads resolved in the last 2 months
To rank higher: Mark more forum threads resolved — the resolved ratio feeds the ranking.
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.
42
Momentum
Losing ground
-0.1
Velocity
places per keyword, 28d
27%
Breadth
of keywords climbing, 28d
+0.0
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| fail2ban your tag | #1 | #1 | 0 |
| syslog your tag | #3 | #3 | up 3 |
| user enumeration | #12 | #12 | up 2 |
| xml rpc | #22 | #17 | up 1 |
| wordpress mu | #22 | #16 | up 1 |
| username | #23 | #22 | 0 |
| attack | #24 | #23 | down 1 |
| brute force attacks | #24 | #22 | — |
| brute force your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| login your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
| security your tag | Not in the top 24 | ||
89 searches this plugin appeared in over the last 90 days, 8 listed. 81 left out as unrelated or noise (years, numbers, stray words). 3 of its tags aren't in the top 24 for their own search.
What to do about it
- Swap “brute force”, “login” and “security” for “user enumeration”, “wordpress mu” and “xml rpc”. “brute force” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “user enumeration” sits at #12 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “login” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “wordpress mu” sits at #22 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. “security” isn't earning its slot: you're not in the first 24 results for its own search. “xml rpc” sits at #22 untagged, close enough for a declared tag to move it up. All five slots are taken, so one has to go.
Daily downloads
Since 5 Oct 2022 · 1,489 days · wp.org + Plugin Pulse archive
30-day downloads
Rolling 30-day volume · peak 80.3K · 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
Occasionally updatedHow often this plugin actually ships. A steady rhythm is the maintenance signal a single "last updated" date can't show.
2
releases in the last 12 months
12d ago
latest release · v5.5.0 · 20 Oct 2026
49
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 “60K+”. Our estimate pins where the real number sits.
Crossed into this band 5 months ago; a band this size takes about a year or more to cross, which places it about 59% of the way through.
Install history since 2 May 2021
Recent reviews
All reviews on wp.org ↗- ★★★★★ Above All Media1.2y ago
The plugin spams dashboard with the banner that cannot be dismissed and keeps reappearing.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ aiwetir1.5y ago
They never refunded me after my cancellation request, they charged me another month. They don’t respond to my support emails. The free plugin works so poorly, you may as well just learn to install Fail2ban from other online tutorials and you’ll have much better success anyways
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Gennady Kurushin2.2y ago
The plugin spams dashboard with the banner that cannot be dismissed and keeps reappearing.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ brt2.3y ago
if you manage to set it up correctly, it does what you expect, but … creates an annoying warning in site-health if the blocklist addon is not installed, which is not free, and it hides the fact that it is not free, until you have subscribed to freemius, in my opinion this is really bad. the contained site-health-script checks for /usr/bin/systemctl which is by default not within allowed paths for PHP on systems using open_basedir restrictions, so it creates PHP warnings everytime the script is accessed. the code looks quite bloated for such simple functionality. the plugin needs to be configured by adding constants to your wp-config.php file, normal GUI-configuration deactivated until you go premium. This topic was modified 1 year, 11 months ago by brt.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Mac Boris Perc2.4y ago
Prevention is better than cure.
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ stixtsr3.2y ago
seamless integration with gridpane. all you have to do is enable and read the gridpane docs. thanks !
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ narratorben3.9y ago
Great plugin, works well and far faster than PHP based blocking solutions. many thanks
Read on wp.org ↗ - ★★★★★ Boris4.0y ago
iptables+Maltrail+Fail2Ban+AbuseIP/DB+BinaryDefence/DB+kaspersky+Bitdefender https://piramide.zapto.org/iplist-pcsnet.txthttps://piramide.zapto.org/iplist.txthttps://perc.ddns.net/iplist.txthttps://perc.ddns.net/iplist-pcsnet.txthttps://perc.ddns.net/ip.txthttps://perc.ddns.net/cms.txt WE SAY HERE: PREVENIRE E MEGLIO CHE CURRARE, PREVENTION IS BETTER THAN CURE! This topic was modified 2 years, 1 month ago by Boris.
Read on wp.org ↗
Latest updates
via wp.org changelogRecent releases and news for this plugin
- — Version 5.4.1 Fix compatibility for WordPress 6.8. Fix incorrect dependency requiring PHP>=8.1. [Premium only] Add license for Packagist. 5.4.1
- — Version 5.4.0 Add support for Composer. [Canonical only] Add support for AspirePress Update. [Canonical only] Add support for GitHub Updater. [Canonical only] Improve i18n. Fix harmless warning in Site Health filters check (h/t Rodolp 5.4.0
- — Version 5.3.4 Improve Site Health filter messages (h/t @yardstudio). Update Freemius library. 5.3.4
- — Version 5.3.3 Fix activation bug when $wp_scripts is uninitialised. [Premium only] Fix world map dashboard widget. [Premium only] Update Freemius library. 5.3.3
- — Version 5.3.2 Drop Site Health checks for free add‑ons. 5.3.2
- — Version 5.3.1 Fix regression in plugin message registration. 5.3.1
Security history
via Wordfence IntelligenceAll 3 disclosed vulnerabilities are patched in the current version (5.5.0). Sites still on an older version should update.
- Patched Medium · 6.1 Freemius <= 2.10.1 - Reflected DOM-Based Cross-Site Scripting via url Parameter ↗2026-04-30 CVE-2024-13362 Improper Neutralization of Input During Web Page Generation Affects <= 5.3.4 Patched in 5.4.0
- 2019-02-25 Missing Authorization Affects < 4.0.5 Patched in 4.0.5
Vulnerability records provided by Wordfence Intelligence. Copyright 2012-2026 Defiant Inc. License and terms.
CVE records: Copyright 1999-2026 The MITRE Corporation. CVE terms of use.
Languages
via translate.wordpress.orgTranslated into 9 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
8 of 8 pass · checked 25 Oct 2026Can an assistant quote this readme? Eight deterministic checks over the wp.org listing, no model involved.
- ✓ Says what it does "WP fail2ban uses fail2ban to protect your WordPress site."
- ✓ Has a FAQ 10 questions in the FAQ.
- ✓ FAQ asks real questions 10 of 10 read like questions a user would type.
- ✓ Names who it is for Names its audience or use cases ("use it", "if you have").
- ✓ Names what it works with Mentions Jetpack, Cloudflare.
- ✓ Headings and lists 4 headings and 2 lists.
- ✓ Enough to quote 3,903 characters of description.
- ✓ Tags match the text 3 of 5 tags appear in the text; "Brute Force", "syslog" do not.
Growth timeline
Install-tier crossings we have observed, and how long each tier took to outgrow
- 2026-06-06 70K+ → 60K+ down after 5 days in tier
- 2026-06-01 60K+ → 70K+ up after 1 days in tier
- 2026-05-31 70K+ → 60K+ down after 1 days in tier
- 2026-05-30 60K+ → 70K+ up after 3 days in tier
- 2026-05-27 70K+ → 60K+ down after 94 days in tier
- 2026-02-22 60K+ → 70K+ up after 24 days in tier
- 2026-01-29 70K+ → 60K+ down after 4 days in tier
- 2026-01-25 60K+ → 70K+ up after 30 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).
-
WP Fail2Ban Redux 7K+ installs · 4.5★ · 4 shared tags C -
Hide My WP Ghost – Security & Firewall 100K+ installs · 4.5★ · 3 shared tags A -
XO Security 30K+ installs · 4.4★ · 3 shared tags A -
IP Geo Block 7K+ installs · 4.1★ · 3 shared tags D - P Protection Against DDoS 3K+ installs · 4.2★ · 3 shared tags D
-
Limit Login Attempts Security – Login Security, 2FA, Firewall, Brute Force Prevention 1M+ installs · 4.8★ · 2 shared tags A
Embed this report card
Drop a live Pulse card for WP fail2ban – Advanced Security into a readme, a review or a deck. It updates itself.
<iframe src="https://plugins.wpmayor.com/embed/wp-fail2ban" width="480" height="300" style="border:0" loading="lazy" title="WP fail2ban – Advanced Security — Plugin Pulse"></iframe> WP fail2ban – Advanced Security: 60K+ active installs, 4.2★ (71 reviews). Plugin Pulse (WP Mayor), as of 2026-11-01. https://plugins.wpmayor.com/plugin/wp-fail2ban
Spotted a number that looks wrong? Report a data issue and we'll check it against the source.