Do I need to sanitize WordPress search query?

No. WordPress sanitizes the search query. To use the sanitized search query, use the_search_query() to echo, or get_search_query() to return, the search query. Edit Based on your edit: Don’t use $_GET[‘s’]. Use get_search_query(). Don’t use $_GET[‘cat’]. Use get_the_category(). All $_GET and $_POST data should be assumed to be inherently unsafe, and should be sanitized/validated accordingly.

Multiple ajax nonce requests

That is basically the way WordPress does it and pretty much the only way to do it, simply have your receiving PHP function create a new nonce add send it back with your response, then just update the value on your JS before the next round.

How to make media upload private? [duplicate]

Searching this Stack, I can see two possible solutions for this question (not tested). One The answer is not fully developed, but can provide some insight. Restricting access to files within a specific folder Two How to Protect Uploads, if User is not Logged In? Frank Bueltge’s answer seems interesting but the code is quite … Read more

Regular security checks – what steps should be included?

First: Remove those 777 permissions. You need this only in cases with conflicting ownership. Try to run PHP as FastCGI – for example per .htaccess: AddHandler php-cgi .php # or AddHandler php-fastcgi .php Set up a notification mail for every 404 request. You will be surprised how many attacks the average blog gets each day. … Read more