1. Request https://example.com/.htaccess without signing in. An access-denied or not-found response is appropriate; the contents should never be displayed or downloaded.
2. If the file is exposed, contact support and review other public configuration files immediately. Keep a copy of the current rules before making changes.
3. Where Apache 2.4-compatible per-directory authorization is supported, a narrowly scoped example is:

<FilesMatch "^\.ht">
    Require all denied
</FilesMatch>

This example targets names beginning with .ht. It does not deny the whole website. Placing an unscoped Require all denied in the website root can block all visitors. Preserve existing server and application protection rules rather than replacing the complete configuration.

1. Retest the protected URL and several normal pages. Confirm images, sign-in and expected downloads still work.
2. Look for stray files such as editor backups, old configuration copies and SQL dumps. Move sensitive material outside the document root instead of relying on one filename pattern.
3. Check that your deployment process preserves these rules. A rebuild that recreates .htaccess may remove a manually added section unless you maintain it in the deployment configuration.

Yes. A broad rule denying every dot-prefixed path can block legitimate validation paths unless the necessary exceptions are planned. Certificate validation and other standards can use /.well-known/. The example above targets .ht names only. On native NGINX, ask the server administrator to apply equivalent protection in the server configuration because .htaccess is ignored.

• Disabling directory listing and protecting private files
• Password-protecting a website folder with cPanel Directory Privacy
• Activating free SSL and resolving HTTPS warnings
• Activating SiteLock and checking your website protection

• Apache HTTP Server 2.4: access control
• Apache: FilesMatch