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| Hosting > Virtual Private Servers > Administration > Security > | Thursday, August 28, 2008 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Increasing Server SecurityThe security of our servers is of paramount importance. We have a strict security policy that encompasses many areas including a security-hardened operating system, functional isolation of each VPS, and careful monitoring and updating of applications. However, our customers must also share in the responsibility of keeping each of their VPS accounts secure by using good passwords, avoiding insecure scripts and applications, and following other security best practices. Some of you may have seen reports of distributed server scans that are initiated by potential hackers. Essentially, these hackers scan Internet servers for vulnerable scripts and/or vulnerable users (users with weak passwords). One of the most popular of these scans is trying to login into SSH as common users like 'root', 'guest', 'admin', or 'test' and then attempting to crack weak passwords (it's even easier if no password has been configured for one of these users). We think it is important to make you aware of these scans and also provide you information that will keep you from becoming a victim of one of these attacks. One of the benefits of our VPS v2 plans is root access. Every VPS v2 account is provisioned with a root user. Because the root user has significant flexibility and power, it is important that this feature be used carefully. First, you should set a strong password for all users, especially the root user. Choose a password that uses a variety of characters on the keyboard. Specifically, choose a password that meets the following criteria:
Lastly, it is important to secure access to applications that are frequently the subject of scans (like SSH). Here are a few important tips for securing SSH:
For details on the above recommendations and other tips for securing your VPS v2 servers, please visit the following URLs: Increasing Server SecurityThe following steps should increase the level of security of your Servers.Please keep in mind security is a way of life and a life style. It is a set of procedures and policies that must be malleable, and yet followed consistently. Never allow yourself to feel too safe or too secure; always check things out, always be open to learning new ways, always be on the look out. Never blindly follow security instructions -- read, review, compare, apply as it fits your system.
IMPORTANT NOTE: This document is based on FreeBSD. The concepts should be similar across operating systems, but the commands will very likely be different. Also, never assume the directory structures exist in your system as written in the document. Never blindly follow security instructions -- read, review, compare, apply as it fits your system. |
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