Inherited Site Security Review¶

This is a checklist of steps to take when inheriting a site that JMA did not build. This list is not comprehensive, and we should add to it over time.

• Reset the passwords of server and CMS (encourage client to do latter)
• Disable unnecessary logins of server and CMS (encourage client to do latter)
• If CiviCRM, check civicrm_contact for API keys. Remove/change them.
• If CiviCRM, check for CiviConnect apps.
• Remove interactive shell login from legitimate server users who don't need a shell.
• Removing all unnecessary public RSA keys for ssh access
• Remove unnecessary software from the server. TODO: Explain how to find this (dpkg -l, ps -ef, etc.)
• Review all running services on the server with service --status-all or (preferably, if using systemd) systemctl
• check listening servers with # netstat -lp
• compare that output to an nmap scan of localhost # nmap -sT -O localhost
  • they should line up closely. if nmap shows a port open that netstat does not, run a rootkit checker and investigate further.
• Compare THAT output to an nmap scan from another computer (your own - or a dev server if your ISP blocks some ports): nmap -sT -O www.example.org
• install fail2ban if not already installed. Consider also tripwire and some iptables.
• Check for hacks. While this resource is incomplete, it suffices for now. Despite the name, it's useful for Drupal AND WordPress. Be sure to grep a dump of the database and not just the filesystem.