Fedora® 8 and Red Hat® Enterprise Linux® Bible

Chapter 14. Computer Security Issues

In This Chapter

• Linux security checklist

• Using password protection

• Protecting Linux with iptables firewalls

• Service access control with TCP wrappers

• Checking log files

• Using secure shell package

• Understanding attack techniques

• Securing servers with SELinux

• Protecting servers with encryption and certificates

With the growth of the Internet, computer and network security has become more important than ever. Assaults on your Fedora or Red Hat Enterprise Linux system can come in many forms, such as denial-of-service attacks, break-in attempts, or hijacking your machine as a spam relay, to name a few.

In many cases, good practices for setting and protecting passwords, monitoring log files, and creating good firewalls will keep out many would-be intruders. Keeping up with critical security software updates will help patch vulnerabilities as they become known. The recent addition of SELinux adds another layer of protection on your Linux system. Sometimes, more proactive approaches are needed to respond to break-ins. This chapter will familiarize you, as a Linux administrator, with the dangers that exist and the tools necessary to protect your system.

Linux Security Checklist

While Linux offers all the tools you need to secure your computer, if you are careless, someone can (and probably will) harm your system or try to steal your data. The following checklist covers a range of security measures to protect your Linux desktop or server.

• Add users and passwords — Creating ...