Jetpack Protect
by Automattic
Free vulnerability scanning against a maintained database of plugin, theme and core issues.
This link may earn us a commission. It never changes our rating.
What Jetpack Protect does
Free vulnerability scanning against a maintained database of plugin, theme and core issues.
It sits in the security part of a WordPress stack and is sold by Automattic on a freemium basis. We recommend it in our security guides because it does that one job well without asking you to rebuild the rest of the site around it.
Every plugin adds work to a page request, so treat this as a decision with a cost. Record a speed test before you install it and run the same test afterwards, on the same page, so you know exactly what it charged you.
Real user ratings
Score
4.6/5
Reviews
123
Active installs
100,000+
Downloads
2.6M
Latest version
6.1.0
Last updated
2026-08-12
These figures come straight from the public WordPress.org plugin directory API for version 6.1.0, not from us. Check them yourself on the WordPress.org listing. Our own editorial score is 4.3/5.
Where Jetpack Protect ranks elsewhere
Jetpack Protect does not appear in the published "best of" lists we track from WPBeginner, TechRadar, Kinsta, Themeisle and similar sites. That is not a mark against it - those roundups are short and skew towards the biggest names.
What changed in the latest version
Jetpack Protect does not publish a changelog we can read automatically, so check the vendor's own release notes before you update a live site.
Pros and cons
- Free vulnerability alerts
- A free tier you can trial before paying
- Actively maintained and used on production sites we test
- Alerts only unless you upgrade
- The features most sites need sit in the paid tier
How to use it
- 1Take a full backup before enabling any blocking feature.
- 2Turn on login protection and two-factor for administrator accounts first.
- 3Schedule scans outside peak hours to protect response times.
- 4Set alerts to a monitored inbox, not the default admin address.
- 5Re-run the speed test so you know what the protection costs you.
How it compares
Other security plugins we recommend, with their rating and pricing model.
| Plugin | Our rating | WordPress.org | Pricing | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jetpack Protect | 4.3 | 4.6 (123) | Freemium | Free vulnerability alerts |
| Akismet | 4.7 | 4.7 (1,186) | Freemium | Catches almost all comment spam with no tuning |
| Antispam Bee | 4.8 | 4.8 (226) | Free | Privacy friendly spam filtering with no account |
| Duo | 4.2 | 4 (1) | Freemium | Central policy control for teams |
| Limit Login Attempts Reloaded | 4.8 | 4.8 (1,483) | Freemium | Big protection for almost no overhead |
| Loggedin | 4.4 | 4.9 (111) | Free | Stops shared account credentials |
Guides that cover Jetpack Protect
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