These quick-start security steps will help harden your CentOS VPS without introducing major complexity. These are ideal to apply immediately after your server is deployed.
Disclaimer:
These are general suggestions to help improve the security of your VPS. Enviroweb provides unmanaged VPS hosting and does not configure, manage, or audit the security of your server. You are responsible for securing and maintaining your system.
1. Keep the system updated
sudo yum update -y
This installs important bug fixes and security patches.
2. Enable the firewall
sudo systemctl enable firewalld --now
sudo firewall-cmd --permanent --add-service=ssh
sudo firewall-cmd --reload
This ensures your firewall is running and allows SSH access.
3. Install fail2ban (optional)
sudo yum install epel-release -y
sudo yum install fail2ban -y
sudo systemctl enable fail2ban --now
Fail2ban helps protect against repeated failed login attempts.
4. Set a strong password
passwd
Update your login user's password to something secure and unique.
These steps provide a basic layer of protection without altering critical system settings. You can expand on them as your server setup grows based on your needs and use case.
For further security guidance, see the official CentOS documentation: https://docs.centos.org/
