Chapter 9. UNIX and Linux Security
IN THIS CHAPTER
Focusing on UNIX/Linux security
Understanding physical security
Controlling the configuration
Operating UNIX safely
Hardening UNIX
UNIX, Linux, and other similar operating systems are gaining in popularity and market share. UNIX is still a dominant player in the server arena. Most of the growth in UNIX popularity has been in the workstation arena.
Most of the security issues raised in Chapter 8 apply to operating a UNIX workstation safely. However, some of UNIX's unique aspects are covered in this chapter.
The Focus of UNIX/Linux Security
UNIX, Linux, FreeBsd, AIX, and so on (all referred to as UNIX in this chapter) have great potential for both being very secure and being exploited. Some of the same features that make UNIX a good target for security attalks make it powerful enough to be operated safely.
UNIX as a target
There is an ongoing debate among system administrators as to whether Windows or UNIX is the more vulnerable operating system. This debate often degrades to a mere count of vulnerabilities applicable to one side or the other. The bottom line is that both systems are susceptible to attacks and need to be properly secured. In any case, it is useful to start with an examination of why UNIX and Linux might be a target of security attacks. The following lists the four main reasons that UNIX is a target:
Linux (and much of the other UNIX implementations) are open source.
UNIX installations are easy to obtain, both in terms of being ...
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