How to Migrate from Wordfence to Shield Security
Switching from Wordfence to Shield Security is straightforward and ensures your site remains protected.
This guide will walk you through a smooth migration from your existing Wordfence setup to ShieldPRO, highlighting the matching features and steps to ensure Shield is configured the same way, with links to helpdesk articles for easy implementation.
Wordfence Feature: Firewall
- Wordfence
Advanced Firewall Options > Allowlisted IP addresses that bypass all rules
- ShieldPRO
Bots & IP Rules > use the Create New IP Rule form to add IP(s) to the bypass list
- Wordfence
Advanced Firewall Options > Allowlisted services (manual setting)
- ShieldPRO
Shield automatically whitelists services like Sucuri, Facebook, ManageWP, etc.
If you need to whitelist a specific service, you can always reach out to us directly here.
- Wordfence
Advanced Firewall Options > Firewall Rules
- ShieldPRO
Firewall Zone > enable Request Firewall Options
- Wordfence
Firewall Options > Real-Time IP Blocklist
- ShieldPRO
Security Zones > configure Bots & IPs Zone options
Also use Bots & IP Rules tool to review blocked IPs in the real-time.
- Wordfence
Brute Force Protection > Enable brute force protection
- ShieldPRO
Security Zones > configure Bots & IPs Zone options
- Wordfence
Brute Force Protection > all Password protection options
- ShieldPRO
Users Zone > configure Password Policies options
- Wordfence
Additional Options > Prevent discovery of usernames through '/?author=N' scans, the oEmbed API, the WordPress REST API, and WordPress XML Sitemaps
- ShieldPRO
Firewall Zone > configure WordPress Obscurity & API & XML-RPC options
- Wordfence
Additional Options > Participate in the Real-Time Wordfence Security Network (manual setting)
- ShieldPRO
Shield automatically gathers and shares data through its ShieldNET: WordPress Network Threat Intelligence.
- Wordfence
Rate Limiting > Rate Limiting options
- ShieldPRO
Firewall Zone > configure Rate Limiting options
- Wordfence
Rate Limiting > Allowlisted 404 URLs
- ShieldPRO
Bots & IPs > Auto Blocking Rules > add URL(s) to the Request Path Whitelist field
- Wordfence
Allowlisted URLs > Add Allowlisted URL/Param
- ShieldPRO
Firewall Zone > add parameter(s) to the Whitelist Parameters field
Wordfence Feature: Scan
- Wordfence
All Scans options & Results table
Wordfence Section: Tools
- Wordfence
Tools > Live Traffic options & Table
- ShieldPRO
Activity Logs > configure Request Logging options
Also use Live HTTP Log Viewer to view your site live traffic logs.
- Wordfence
Audit Log > Audit Log options & Logs Table
- ShieldPRO
Configure WP Activity Log options
Also use WP Activity Log Viewer to view your site activity logs.
- Wordfence
Whois Lookup (manual tool)
- ShieldPRO
Use manual IP Info / Bot Or Not tool
This is also automatically integrated into IP Analysis dialog > ShieldNET IP Reputation Score.
- Wordfence
Import/Export Options
- ShieldPRO
Tools > configure Import/Export feature
- Wordfence
Diagnostics
- ShieldPRO
Tools > review Debug Info
Wordfence Feature: Login Security
- Wordfence
Two-Factor Authentication > 2FA apps
- ShieldPRO
Login Security Zone > configure 2FA: OTP & Passkeys options
- Wordfence
Settings > Allow remembering device for 30 days
- ShieldPRO
Login Security Zone > configure 2FA Remember Me option
- Wordfence
Settings > Disable XML-RPC authentication
- ShieldPRO
Firewall Zone > use Disable XML-RPC option
Also review XML-RPC Access setting under the Bots & IPs Zone > Bot Actions.
- Wordfence
Settings > WooCommerce integration
- ShieldPRO
Tools > Integrations > 3rd Party User Forms Bot Checking > select WooCommerce from the list
- Wordfence
2FA management shortcode
- ShieldPRO
Use the Shield's Custom 2FA Management Shortcode
- Wordfence
reCAPTCHA
- ShieldPRO
Bots & IPs Zone > configure silentCAPTCHA AntiBot Technology options
- Wordfence
General > Allowlisted IP addresses that bypass 2FA and reCAPTCHA
- ShieldPRO
Bots & IP Rules > use Create New IP Rule form to add IP(s) to the bypass list
- Wordfence
Settings > Delete Login Security tables and data on deactivation
- ShieldPRO
Dashboard > Plugin Defaults > use Delete Plugin Settings option
Wordfence: Global Options
- Wordfence
Wordfence License information section
- ShieldPRO
ShieldPRO License Management section
Please also read how to activate your ShieldPRO license.
- Wordfence
General Wordfence Options > Update Wordfence automatically when a new version is released?
- ShieldPRO
Dashboard > Plugin Defaults > configure Self AutoUpdate option
- Wordfence
General Wordfence Options > Where to email alerts option
- ShieldPRO
Reports > use Report Email option
- Wordfence
General Wordfence Options > How does Wordfence get IPs?
- ShieldPRO
Dashboard > Plugin Defaults > select your IP source from the IP Source drop-down list
- Wordfence
Dashboard Notification Options
- ShieldPRO
Dashboard > Plugin Defaults > enable/disable In-Plugin Notices option
- Wordfence
Email Alert Preferences (all options)
- ShieldPRO
Reports > configure Alert, info & Instant Alerts options
- Wordfence
Email Alert > Alert me when someone with administrator access signs in
- ShieldPRO
Users Zone > User Session Management > configure Admin Login Notification Email option
While we've highlighted equivalent features between Wordfence and Shield Security, it’s worth noting that Shield offers many additional features not available in Wordfence (review the comparison list here). For a complete overview of Shield’s capabilities,
- explore the full feature set within the plugin or visit our knowledge base here ; or
- reach out to us directly ; we are available 24/7 for you.
Note: All attempts have been made to ensure the information provided is as accurate as possible. There may be unintentional errors in this and if this is the case, at any time we receive notice of a correction, the information will be updated as soon as possible.
This information was last updated: 12th December 2024.