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Default WordPress Compliance Standards Explained (GDPR, WCAG, Security & More)

WordPress Compliance Standards

WordPress is the world’s most popular CMS, powering over 40% of websites globally. One of the biggest reasons for its popularity is that WordPress follows several international compliance standards by default. These compliances help website owners meet security, privacy, accessibility, and coding standards without relying heavily on third-party plugins.

In this blog, we’ll explain how many compliance standards WordPress follows by default and which ones they are.

How Many Compliance Standards Does WordPress Follow?

By default, WordPress Compliance Standards follows 8 major compliance and best-practice standards, with additional compliance support available through themes and plugins.

1. GDPR Compliance (General Data Protection Regulation)

Status: Partially Compliant by Default

WordPress introduced GDPR-related features starting from version 4.9.6 to help website owners manage user data responsibly. These features include:

• Privacy Policy generator
• User data export and erase tools
• Consent support for comments
• Personal data management hooks for plugins

👉 Full GDPR compliance depends on plugins, hosting setup, and how user data is handled, but WordPress provides a solid base.

2. Accessibility (WCAG 2.1 – Web Content Accessibility Guidelines)

Status: Core Level Support

WordPress follows WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility guidelines to ensure websites are usable by people with disabilities. This includes:

• Semantic HTML structure
• Screen reader compatibility
• Keyboard navigation support
• An accessible admin dashboard

Many default WordPress themes, such as the Twenty Twenty series, are accessibility-ready.

3. PHP & Web Standards Compliance (W3C)

Status: Fully Compliant

WordPress strictly adheres to modern web development standards, including:

• HTML5 standards
• CSS3 guidelines
• PHP coding standards
• JavaScript best practices

This ensures cross-browser compatibility, clean code, and long-term performance stability.

4. Security Best Practices (OWASP)

Status: Core Security Compliance

WordPress follows OWASP security best practices to protect websites from common vulnerabilities, such as:

• Data sanitization and validation
• Nonce-based CSRF protection
• Secure password hashing
• Role-based access control

Regular core updates help strengthen WordPress against known security threats.

5. Privacy & Data Protection Compliance

Status: Built-in Support

WordPress supports major privacy regulations, including:

• GDPR (European Union)
• CCPA (California)
• LGPD (Brazil – partial support)

Key privacy-related features include:

• Data export and erase requests
• Privacy policy linking
• User consent management hooks

6. REST API Standards

Status: Fully Compliant

The WordPress REST API follows modern API standards, including:

• RESTful architecture
• JSON data formatting
• Secure authentication methods

This makes WordPress headless-ready, scalable, and integration-friendly.

7. Multisite & Enterprise Compliance

Status: Enterprise-Ready

WordPress is widely used by enterprises and government organizations because it supports:

• Multisite governance
• User role separation
• Scalable data handling
• Enterprise-level workflows

It is trusted by large-scale enterprise and government websites worldwide.

8. Open Source License Compliance (GPL)

Status: Fully Compliant

WordPress is licensed under the GNU General Public License (GPL v2), which provides:

• Freedom to modify the source code
• Freedom to redistribute software
• Complete transparency

This makes WordPress legally safe and future-proof for long-term projects.

Summary Table

Final Thoughts

WordPress is compliance-friendly by default, but full legal compliance ultimately depends on plugins, hosting environment, and how content and user data are handled. Even so, WordPress provides a secure, scalable, and compliant foundation for almost any type of website.

How to Increase Media Upload File Size in WordPress (Step-by-Step Guide)

How to Increase Media Upload File Size in WordPress (Step-by-Step Guide)

If you’ve ever tried uploading an image, video, or PDF in WordPress and seen an error like “file exceeds the maximum upload size”, you’re not alone. This is a very common WordPress issue, especially on shared hosting.

In this guide, I’ll show you multiple safe and working ways to increase media upload file size in WordPress, even if you’re not very technical.

Why WordPress Has an Upload File Size Limit

WordPress itself does not set a strict upload limit. The limit is usually defined by:

• PHP configuration
• Server settings
• Your hosting provider

You can check your current upload limit by going to:
WordPress Dashboard → Media → Add New

Method 1: Increase Upload File Size via .htaccess

If your site is running on an Apache server, this method works well.

Steps:

1. Connect to your site using FTP or File Manager
2. Open the .htaccess file
3. Add the following code at the end:

php_value upload_max_filesize 256M
php_value post_max_size 256M
php_value memory_limit 256M
php_value max_execution_time 300
php_value max_input_time 300

4. Save the file and refresh your WordPress dashboard.

Method 2: Increase Upload Limit Using wp-config.php

This is a safe method and works on most hosting providers.

Steps:

1. Open wp-config.php
2. Add this code before
   /* That's all, stop editing! */

define('WP_MEMORY_LIMIT', '256M');
define('WP_MAX_MEMORY_LIMIT', '256M');

3. Save the file and check the media upload limit.

Method 3: Increase Upload Size Using php.ini

If your hosting allows it, this is the most effective method.

Add or edit the php.ini file:

upload_max_filesize = 256M
post_max_size = 256M
memory_limit = 256M
max_execution_time = 300
max_input_time = 300

Then restart PHP (or wait a few minutes on shared hosting).

Method 4: Contact Your Hosting Provider (Recommended)

Some hosting providers lock PHP limits for security reasons.

In that case, simply ask them:

“Please increase my PHP upload_max_filesize and post_max_size to 256MB.”

This is often the fastest and safest solution.

Common Errors & Fixes

Changes Not Working?

• Your server might be using Nginx
• PHP values may be restricted by hosting
• Wrong file location

In such cases, only the hosting provider or a server-level fix will work.

Best Upload Size for WordPress Media

Final Thoughts

Increasing the media upload file size in WordPress is usually simple—but doing it the wrong way can break your site.

If you’re unsure or facing server restrictions, it’s best to get professional help.

Need Help with WordPress?

Having trouble increasing the media upload file size on your WordPress website?

If you’re not comfortable editing server files or your hosting provider has limitations, I can help you fix it safely and professionally.

Contact me for WordPress help