SELinux

Preface

As a security researcher and author of computer books, I work hard to stay abreast of the latest technological developments. So, I’d been tracking Security Enhanced Linux (SELinux) on my technology radar for several years. But, frankly, it didn’t seem to me easy enough, or robust enough, for dependable use by Linux system administrators.

About one year ago, SELinux seemed to grow up suddenly. I now believe that SELinux is the most important computing technology for Linux users that I’ve seen in the last several years. Obviously, others agree that SELinux is important and useful: SELinux has been incorporated into Fedora Core, Gentoo, and SUSE Linux. And by the time this book is in print, it’s expected to be part of Red Hat Enterprise Linux.

Why the sudden popularity? In a nutshell, SELinux promises to change the way Linux users practice computer security from a reactive posture, based on applying patches intended to close published vulnerabilities, to a proactive posture that seeks to prevent even unpublished vulnerabilities from compromising systems. Properly configured and administered Linux systems already hold a well-deserved reputation for resistance to attack. SELinux significantly ups the ante on attackers and intruders by providing Linux system administrators with access to sophisticated security technology of a sort previously available only to administrators of high-security systems running expensive, military-grade operating systems.

Of course, as a good friend of ...