Government agencies store classified data in their systems that can be potentially harmful if placed in the wrong hands. Hacking is a real issue today, which makes security a top priority for most government agencies. You want your servers to be secure so that malicious parties can’t access your files. If you’re using a CentOS server, how do you exactly protect your server from hackers? Here are three things you need to know about patching in CentOS server:
What is CentOS?
The Community Enterprise Operating System, or CentOS for short, is a community-supported Linux operating system that is functionally compatible with and is derived from the sources of Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL). It is what iOS is for Apple computers, and Windows OS is for Microsoft computers. However, unlike the more popular operating systems, it doesn’t cost anything to redistribute CentOS. Being free software, active Linux users act as system and network administrators, managers, and contributors, while a small core team of developers work towards improving it; hence, it is known as a community-supported software.
What is a server?
A server can actually mean different things, but it usually refers to a “web server”, a software that allows a web browser to access pages on the internet by sending and receiving data over a network. In a given network, it is possible to have multiple servers for specific tasks, like downloading text and images on a page, streaming videos, or uploading files on a cloud service.
Because there are multiple servers working to send and receive data over a network when you use the internet, it is not unlikely that there are vulnerabilities present in one of these servers. The most common vulnerabilities often affect security and performance. In fact, a trade-off between the two always seems to exist, i.e. with a better performing server; there is a hole in the security. Consequently, for a more secure server, performance may suffer a little.
What are patches?
One of the most common vulnerabilities in a CentOS server is a denial of service (DoS) attack, wherein hackers send unauthorized packets to your server so that it becomes unavailable to you. In 2000, several government sites were attacked in the United States, which caused their systems to be compromised. DoS attacks are really problematic since source packets are usually forged, making the source of the attack practically untraceable. In addition, vulnerabilities like this are especially troubling for government agencies because they carry highly sensitive information that hackers may be able to access once they found their point of entry.
To protect yourself from vulnerabilities like this, you need to patch your server. A patch is a software that attempts to fix any vulnerabilities and bugs that a computer program may have. With a CentOS server patch, you can prevent DoS and other hacking attacks that may compromise your system.
Note that patches aren’t free, even when your operating system is. However, when the stakes are high, you must be willing to pay the cost of making your servers more secure in order to protect your data.
To know more visit https://www.memset.com/docs/server-security/meltdown-and-spectre/patching-meltdown-centos/