The fix wordpress malware virus Codex has an outline of what permissions are okay. File and directory permissions can be changed through an FTP client or within the administrative page from the hosting company.
There are many ways to pull off this, and many of them involve copying and FTPing files, exporting and re-establishing more and databases. Some of them are very complicated, so it's imperative that you go for the best one. Then you might want to look into using a plugin for WordPress backups if you are not of the persuasion.
While it's an odd term, it represents a task that is essential : creating a WordPress copy of your website to work on offline, or in the event something should go amiss. We are not only being obsessive-compulsive here: servers go down every day, despite their claims of 99.9% uptime, and if you've had this happen to you, you know the fear is it can cause.
Now we are getting into matters. Whenever you install WordPress, you need to edit the file config-sample.php and rename it to config.php. You need to set up the database information there.
There are always going to be risks being online (or even just being alive!) Also it's easy to get caught up in the panic. reference We put the breaks on, when we get caught up in the fear. This isn't a fantastic reaction. Take some common sense precautions forge ahead. It will have to be dealt try this with then, if something does happen and no amount of quaking in your boots before-hand will have helped. If nothing does, all is good and you have not made yourself sick with worry.