Learn how to secure your Linux server and protect data from hackers
Server security describes the software, tools, and processes used to protect a business’ server from unauthorized access and other cyberthreats. It is a key requirement for most system administrators and cybersecurity teams.
Linux security is considered good, based on the operating system’s strong default permissions structure. However, you must still adopt best practices to keep your servers running safely and effectively.
Whether your Linux server is running Ubuntu, Debian, or some other distribution, follow these steps to strengthen your Linux server’s default configuration.
1. Only install required packages
You should only install the packages that your business needs to run in order to protect the functionality of your server.
Linux server distributions come with a variety of common packages already installed, such as adduser and base-passwd. During installation, users can opt to install additional packages, including an Open SSH server, a DNS server, a LAMP stack, and a print server.
You can also add further packages through the default package management system. Packages can be drawn from official repositories or by adding PPAs (Personal Package Archives), repositories created by Linux users, to gain access to a wider selection of programs.
However, the more packages you install, particularly from third-party repositories, the more vulnerabilities you could be introducing into the system. Keep installed packages to a reasonable minimum and periodically eliminate what isn’t needed.
2. Disable the root login
Linux distributions include a superuser called ‘root’ that contains elevated administrative permissions. Keeping root login enabled can present a security risk and diminish the safety of small business cloud resources hosted on the server, as hack ..
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