How to Add Security Questions to the WordPress Login Screen

A weak password is all it takes for a hacker to hijack your website. Without extra security, everything you’ve built is at risk.

One simple solution? Security questions. And setting them up is easier than you might think.

I’ve tested various authentication methods on WordPress websites and found that adding security questions is a simple way to help prevent unauthorized access. 🔑

By requiring unique answers that only you know, you add a layer of security to your website. It makes it much more difficult for hackers to gain access, even if they steal your password.

In this guide, I will show you how to add security questions to your WordPress login screen. You don’t need to be a tech expert—just follow along, and you’ll have an extra security layer in minutes.

Why Add Security Questions in WordPress?

Your WordPress login page is like your website’s front door. A password is a good lock, but adding security questions is like adding a deadbolt – it makes it that much harder for someone to break in.

Security questions add an extra layer of protection to your WordPress admin area, making it harder for attackers to sneak in. When this feature is enabled, users must answer one or more personal questions before they can log in.

Here’s how security questions can help:

🔒 An Extra Hurdle for Hackers: Even if someone guesses your password, security questions make it more difficult for them to get in

🤖 Prevents Automated Attacks: Hackers often use bots to guess passwords. But security questions require personal answers that bots can’t easily figure out, making automated attacks less effective.

🔑 Helps Recover Accounts More Securely: Forgot your password? Instead of waiting for a reset email (which can be intercepted), security questions provide a quick and safe way to regain access.

⚡ Quick and Easy Setup: Security questions are easier to set up than two-factor authentication (2FA), which requires an app or separate device. While convenient, security questions offer a lighter level of protection than 2FA, which I generally recommend for maximum security.

While helpful, security questions aren’t foolproof. Clever hackers might try to guess your answers or even trick you into revealing them (this is called ‘social engineering’).

So, it’s important to choose questions with answers that aren’t easily guessed or publicly available online.

Having said that, let’s see how you can easily add security questions to your WordPress login screen. In this tutorial, I will be showing two methods.

You can use the links below to jump to whichever method you prefer:

Method 1: Adding Security Questions to Your Admin Login Screen With WPCode

If you want a simple way to add security questions to your WordPress admin login, then this method is for you.

I’ve seen many other websites use this tactic alongside two-factor authentication and other login protection, and it’s worked really well for them as another hurdle for potential intruders.

To do this, you will need to add custom code to your functions.php file. This can be a bit overwhelming since the smallest error can break your website. That’s why I recommend WPCode, which is the best WordPress code snippets plugin on the market.

After thorough testing, my teammates and I have concluded that it is the easiest and safest way to add custom code to your website. To learn more, see our complete WPCode review.

First, you need to install and activate the WPCode plugin. For step-by-step instructions, you may want to see our guide on how to install a WordPress plugin.

Once you activate the plugin, visit the Code Snippets » + Add Snippet page from the WordPress dashboard.

Here, click the ‘Use Snippet’ button under the ‘Add Your Custom Code (New Snippet)’ option.

This will take you to a new screen, where you can add a name for your code snippet.

Keep in mind that this name won’t be shown to any users. It is simply to help you easily identify the code snippet you are creating.

Next, choose ‘PHP Snippet’ as the ‘Code Type’ from the popup.

Now, add the following custom code into the ‘Code Preview’ box:

add_action( 'login_form', function () {
	?>
	<p><label for="security_question">What is your favorite color?<br/>
			<input type="text" name="security_question" id="security_question" class="input" autocomplete="off"/></label>
	</p>
	<?php
} );

add_filter( 'wp_authenticate_user', function( $user, $password ) {
	$answer = isset( $_POST['security_question'] ) ? sanitize_text_field( wp_unslash( $_POST['security_question'] ) ) : '';
	if ( 'blue' !== strtolower( $answer ) ) { // Replace 'blue' with your expected answer
		return new WP_Error( 'security_question_error', '<strong>ERROR</strong>: Incorrect answer to the security question.' );
	}

	return $user;

}, 10, 2 );

By default, the custom code sets “What is your favorite color?” as the security question.

However, I strongly recommend you change it to something that isn’t easily guessed. It’s best to choose something personal to you that few people know.

For example, some common security questions are:

🐶 “What was the name of your first childhood pet?”

🏡 “What was the name of the first street you lived on?”

👩 “What is your mother’s maiden name?”

Just locate this line in the code and replace it with your desired question.

<p><label for="security_question">What was the name of your first childhood pet?<br/>

Once you do that, scroll down to this line in the code:

if ( 'spike' !== strtolower( $answer ) ) { // Replace 'spike' with your expected answer

You can now change the answer to the security question from here.

Once you’ve double-checked that your question and answer are as you want, simply toggle the ‘Inactive’ switch to ‘Active.’

Finally, click the ‘Save Snippet’ button to store your settings.

You can now visit your WordPress login screen to see the security question.

Method 2: Adding Security Questions For All Users With MelaPress

If you want to add security questions for all users on your membership website or multi-author blog, then this method is for you.

For membership sites, this can help protect user accounts from unauthorized access during actions like password resets, account recovery, or reactivation after being disabled.

I have seen this work well on several websites offering paid subscriptions, online courses, and private communities.

For multi-author blogs, adding security questions gives extra protection for contributors, editors, and admins who have access to your WordPress dashboard. It helps prevent unauthorized changes and keeps your publishing workflow secure.

MelaPress Login Security allows you to require users to answer security questions before performing sensitive actions, like resetting a password or reactivating a disabled account.

This ensures that only the rightful account owner can complete these actions.

First, you need to install and activate the MelaPress Login Security plugin. For details, see my team’s tutorial on how to install a WordPress plugin.

After you activate the plugin, head over to the Login Security » Login Security Policies page from the WordPress admin dashboard and check the ‘Enable login security policies’ option.

Once you do that, new settings will appear on the screen. From here, scroll down to the ‘Security Questions’ section and check the ‘Activate Security questions’ box.

Then, choose if you want to require security questions to initiate a password reset or to activate a disabled account. You can also select both options.

Now, go ahead and select the number of pre-saved security questions that each user must answer.

After that, click the ‘Enable’ link next to the security questions that you want your users to answer.

If none of the default questions seem suitable, then you can just click the ‘Add question’ button and add your preferred question in the field.

You can also configure the rest of the security settings according to your liking.

Once you are done, just click the ‘Save Changes’ button to store your choices.

Now that the security questions policy has been enabled, users on your website will get a notice on their dashboard asking them to provide answers to some security questions.

Once the users click on the ‘Visit your profile page’ button, they will be taken to their WordPress profile page.

Here, they can answer the questions that you selected and click the ‘Save Changes’ button.

Now, when a user on your website tries to reset their password or activate a disabled account, they will need to answer a security question first.

Here is a preview of how it will look on your login screen.

Bonus Guides for Login Screen Security

I hope this tutorial helped you learn how to add security questions to your WordPress login screen. You may also want to see some guides on other ways you can protect your login screen:

• How to Add CAPTCHA in WordPress Login and Registration Form
• How to Add Passwordless Login in WordPress with Magic Links
• Why and How You Should Limit Login Attempts in WordPress
• How to Disable Login Hints in WordPress Login Error Messages
• How To Add Social Login To WordPress (The Easy Way)
• Beginner’s Guide to Adding a Custom Login URL in WordPress (Step by Step)

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