Here is the eighth query about nulled WordPress themes and plugins this month. People want to ask if their use is safe or risky. Nulled themes and plugins, and pirated copies of premium WordPress products attract every website owner. So we decided to write this article. We will explain why you should not use nulled WordPress themes and plugins.
Nulled WordPress Themes & Plugins: Brief Introduction
People use and share these pirated copies of paid themes and plugins with each other on the internet. It would be fair to ask if this is ethical or even legal. Here is the logic they use to justify it. These plugins and themes are licensed under GPL. So copying and distributing them is not unethical.
GPL is a free and open-source license that WordPress uses. The license goes with the vision of WordPress. GPL is different from the end-user license you have to agree with at the end of any software installation. That license protects the rights of software companies, while GPL allows you to use WordPress freely.
Does Piracy Count As a Free Use?
No, it does not. Moreover, it is harmful to WordPress companies since they lose their money. On the other hand, it is worse for the security of your website. It destroys the integrity of the website and ruins the business’s image. Nulled WordPress themes and plugins can even lead to websites being hacked.
Why It Is Better To Avoid Nulled WordPress Themes & Plugins?
Let us tell you seven important reasons not to use such products.
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Compromised Security
Nulled themes and plugins can result in a lot of WordPress security issues. They are famous for distributing malware around. Such harmful codes are best at disguising. They quickly reach across files. It is tough to detect them after the hack. The hack can put your data at stake and de-index the website on search engines.
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Privacy Is In Danger
We have just talked about the high probability of malicious codes in the nulled WordPress themes and plugins. If it happens, these dangerous actors will read your information. They can share it on the dark web to make it accessible to hackers. So privacy will be gone. Your usernames, passwords, and email addresses will all be accessible to other parties. It will be a significant risk if you run an online store. The worst part is you may not even know that this is happening. Your WordPress will keep working like everything is normal. Such hacks are very hard to detect.
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SEO Will Suffer
Yes, such themes and plugins can even nullify your SEO efforts. They may add spam links on the website and redirect users to such links. These websites could be anything from just bad to highly harmful.
When you log in to your WordPress account, they will most probably not redirect you. Links smartly hide inside the code. The human eye cannot identify them, but search engines are experts at this. They will notice instantly and may penalize your website. So you will lose your rankings. Google will de-index your website. It may take months to recover. In some worst cases, you may have to develop a complete website again from scratch.
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They May Lead To Legal Consequences
The WordPress market is diverse. There are many open-source themes and plugins. On the other hand, some are sold with mixed licenses. What does it mean? Well, copyright laws protect some parts of these plugins or themes. You have no legal permission to use nulled themes or plugins. Violating the laws could bring legal consequences. Using them can also result in data theft, loss, and distribution of illegal material. This all may lead to legal consequences. If you still use these products, be ready to pay a considerable lawyer fee.
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No Update Access – No New Features
Updating is the routine of WordPress themes and plugins. They update fixes and add new features regularly. You do not have any valid license key when you use nulled products. Hence, you are not eligible for essential updates. As a result, you will have an outdated, buggy, and insecure WordPress website. You cannot reap the benefits of regular updates that enable you to equip yourself with changes. The website will behave suspiciously.
Moreover, when you do not update, you do not get new features. Most of the new features are necessary and help you earn more. You will not even know about the changes. You will be left with an outdated version.
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No Support – No Documentation
It would be best to have support and documentation to use premium plugins or themes. Even if you have high proficiency, you will need them at any stage. Developers invest time in making good documentation because it is required for support. They keep adding tutorials in the documentation. They also add new experts to the team who can answer questions briefly.
Moreover, you have to fix everything by yourself if something bad happens. There is no option of consulting developers. Moreover, documentation is not accessible to you. You are not a paid customer, after all.
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Innovation Compromises
The unethical use becomes a hurdle to innovation. Everyone may not agree with this. It is natural to argue that buying a tiny piece of software to reduce the budget would not cause such big problems.
But you must remember that this little code results from someone else’s skill. Developers work hard to write the code. It is their hard work and talent. We have just talked about their other efforts of providing support and creating documentation. They take the support staff on board and invest financial resources into their business. When you use nulled products, their businesses suffer. They lose money.
So developers will be discouraged. Their motivation to create something new will be gone. Innovation will suffer.
Putting It All Together
So these pirated themes and plugins may offer some impressive short-term benefits. But the long-term disadvantages are far more significant. Therefore, one should avoid them at any cost. Moreover, there is always a free and suitable alternative available, no matter what you need to do. For example, the free version of WPFormsLite is best if you need a contact form. Likewise, MonsterInsights is an excellent free alternative to Google Analytics.
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