I have had two WordPress blogs hacked into formerly. That was in a time when I was doing virtually no online marketing, and until I found time to handle the situation (weeks later), these sites were penalized at the major search engines. They weren't eliminated the ratings were reduced.
Cloning your website is another level in fix hacked wordpress site which may be useful. Cloning simply means that you've backed up your site to a totally different place, (offline, as in a folder, so as to not have SEO issues ) where you can access it at a moment's notice if necessary.
Strong passwords - Do what you can to use a strong password, alpha-numeric, with upper and lower case and special characters. Easy to remember passwords website link are easy to guess!
There is a section of config-sample.php that's headed"Authentication Unique Keys." There are four definitions which appear within the block. A hyperlink is inside find more info that section of code. You need to enter that link into your browser, copy the contents that you get back, and then replace the keys you have with the unique, pseudo-random keys provided by the site. This makes it harder for attackers to automatically create a"logged-in" cookie for your website.
You can create a firewall that blocks hackers. From coming into your own files, the firewall prevents the hacker. You also have to have updated version of Apache. Upgrade your PHP as well. It is essential that your system is filled with upgrades.
Always keep in mind that the safety of your sites depend on how you handle them. Make certain that you follow these tips to prevent hacks and exploits on sites and your own blogs.