My IP address keeps getting blocked when I am working on my website Print

If you are regularly getting your IP address blocked while developing, testing, or maintaining a website, this article explains what is triggering the blocks and how to set up a permanent whitelist so your work is not interrupted.

This is a particularly common issue for developers, agencies, and resellers who carry out tasks that naturally generate patterns the firewall interprets as suspicious activity.

Activities that commonly trigger IP blocks

• WordPress migrations: tools such as Duplicator, All-in-One WP Migration, or manual migration scripts hit the wp-login.php endpoint repeatedly, which looks like a brute-force attack to the firewall
• FTP or SFTP work: several failed login attempts in a row (for example, entering the wrong password or using outdated stored credentials) will trigger a block
• Testing contact forms or SMTP: repeated test sends with incorrect credentials cause failed SMTP authentication events to accumulate quickly
• Running automated tests or build scripts: any script making multiple authenticated requests will stack up failed-auth events if the credentials are wrong
• Changing account passwords: if you change a password in cPanel or DirectAdmin but an email client or script continues trying to connect with the old password, it will rapidly accumulate failed login events

The right approach: request a whitelist before you start work

Rather than waiting until you are locked out and raising an emergency ticket, the most effective approach is to request a whitelist for your IP address before beginning any significant development work.

A whitelisted IP is excluded from the automatic block rules, meaning failed authentication attempts from that IP will be logged but will not trigger a block.

To request a whitelist entry:

1. Find your current IP address by visiting whatismyip.com
2. Raise a support ticket with your IP address, the server or domain you need access to, and a brief note that you are carrying out development or maintenance work
3. We will add your IP to the server whitelist, usually within a few hours

Checklist before starting a migration or major update

• Confirm your FTP, SFTP, and cPanel credentials are correct before running any scripts
• Update any stored passwords in your FTP client, SSH client, and email clients before you begin
• If using a WordPress migration plugin, check whether it has a firewall bypass or whitelist option in its settings
• If running automated tests, ensure the test credentials are valid before triggering a run

If you are already blocked

If you have already been blocked, see our article My IP address has been blocked and I cannot access my website or control panel for steps to request an unblock. Once resolved, use the guidance above to prevent the same thing happening again.

Resellers: protecting your clients

If you manage hosting on behalf of multiple clients and frequently work across different accounts, it is worth requesting a whitelist for any fixed IP addresses used by your team as part of your initial setup. This is a one-time request that will significantly reduce day-to-day disruption. Raise a ticket with the IP addresses and the servers they need access to.