Simple steps for securing your Linux system
Safety First
A good reputation does not protect your Linux systems from attack. We'll show you some tips for detecting and warding off intruders.
Security is a problem for any computer that faces the Internet, and the solution can be as big and comprehensive as you want to make it. Firewalls, penetration testing, and Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS) are all important, but you can do a lot for securing your system before you even start adding these critical security layers. This article highlights some basic security steps that are so easy they are often overlooked.
If you are administering a Linux system that you can install from scratch, keep in mind that fewer services on the system means fewer avenues for attack, so one worthy approach is to leave out everything you don't really need. Many distributors offer specially designed minimal versions for reducing the attack footprint. You can then set up a miniature Linux and import only the packages you genuinely need.
Once the system is running, keep it up to date. Security updates, in particular, need to be checked daily and installed immediately. Many distributions have automated processes for installing security updates. On Debian and Ubuntu, for instance, the buzzword is "unattended upgrades " [1].
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
US / Canada
UK / Australia
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Linux Mint 20 Reaches EOL
With Linux Mint 20 at its end of life, the time has arrived to upgrade to Linux Mint 22.
-
TuxCare Announces Support for AlmaLinux 9.2
Thanks to TuxCare, AlmaLinux 9.2 (and soon version 9.6) now enjoys years of ongoing patching and compliance.
-
Go-Based Botnet Attacking IoT Devices
Using an SSH credential brute-force attack, the Go-based PumaBot is exploiting IoT devices everywhere.
-
Plasma 6.5 Promises Better Memory Optimization
With the stable Plasma 6.4 on the horizon, KDE has a few new tricks up its sleeve for Plasma 6.5.
-
KaOS 2025.05 Officially Qt5 Free
If you're a fan of independent Linux distributions, the team behind KaOS is proud to announce the latest iteration that includes kernel 6.14 and KDE's Plasma 6.3.5.
-
Linux Kernel 6.15 Now Available
The latest Linux kernel is now available with several new features/improvements and the usual bug fixes.
-
Microsoft Makes Surprising WSL Announcement
In a move that might surprise some users, Microsoft has made Windows Subsystem for Linux open source.
-
Red Hat Releases RHEL 10 Early
Red Hat quietly rolled out the official release of RHEL 10.0 a bit early.
-
openSUSE Joins End of 10
openSUSE has decided to not only join the End of 10 movement but it also will no longer support the Deepin Desktop Environment.
-
New Version of Flatpak Released
Flatpak 1.16.1 is now available as the latest, stable version with various improvements.