Closing Security Vulnerabilities: Firewall, DDoS and WAF Setup

Understanding Security Vulnerabilities

Security vulnerabilities can pose significant threats in server environments. DDoS attacks can affect your website's accessibility, while a misconfigured firewall can increase the risk of unauthorized access to your content. In this article, I will guide you step-by-step on how to minimize these threats.

Step 1: Firewall Installation

First, let's check the firewall settings of your server. If you are using a Linux-based server, you can use iptables or ufw (Uncomplicated Firewall).

UFW Installation

First, install ufw:

sudo apt-get install ufw

Enable UFW:

sudo ufw enable

Block incoming traffic by default:

sudo ufw default deny incoming

Allow outgoing traffic:

sudo ufw default allow outgoing

Allow web traffic:

sudo ufw allow 80/tcp

sudo ufw allow 443/tcp

Check UFW status:

sudo ufw status

Step 2: DDoS Protection

To protect against DDoS attacks, you should use a DDoS protection service. Services like Cloudflare or Sucuri are effective in this area. However, you can take some precautions on your own.

First, enable mod_evasive on your Apache or use Nginx's rate limiting feature.

Installing Mod_Evasive for Apache

Install mod_evasive:

sudo apt-get install libapache2-mod-evasive

Edit the configuration file:

sudo nano /etc/apache2/mods-available/mod_evasive.conf

Add the following settings:

DOSHashTableSize 3097
DOSPageCount 10
DOSSiteCount 100
DOSPageInterval 1
DOSSiteInterval 1
DOSBlockingPeriod 10

Restart Apache:

sudo systemctl restart apache2

Step 3: Web Application Firewall (WAF) Installation

A WAF minimizes threats to your web applications. ModSecurity is a popular WAF solution.

Installing ModSecurity

Install ModSecurity:

sudo apt-get install libapache2-modsecurity

Edit the configuration file:

sudo nano /etc/modsecurity/modsecurity.conf

Find and change the following line:

SecRuleEngine On

Restart Apache:

sudo systemctl restart apache2

Conclusion

By following these steps, you can significantly enhance the security of your server. Remember that continuous updates and monitoring are crucial to maintaining your security.