An excerpt from http://www.sitepoint.com/more-tips-to-further-secure-wordpress/ , by @elioqoshi
WordPress has often been seen as the unofficial scapegoat to blame various security breaches on. Like many other popular web applications, WordPress is an attractive target for attack. Obviously, the security in WordPress, as with any application, needs to be put into context. Luckily, WordPress benefits from a wide variety of security configuration options and third party plugins to help satisfy those who are looking to increase their overall security.
In this article, I’m going to add to Tim Carr’s 10 Tips to Secure WordPress with even more ways you can help secure your site, starting prior to the WordPress installation.