NorthernJourney.com: Linux for Newbies: Part 6 — Basic Security

“If you intend to connect your Linux system to the Internet
via telephone, ADSL, cable modem, ISDN or T1, you should give
serious consideration to the security of your system.”

“Good security starts with good passwords…”

“For convenience most of us install Linux from CD-ROMs. The
distribution on CD, however, is seldom as up-to-date as the version
on the distribution website. This has security implications.

“The open-source community is quick to find, announce and fix
security holes that are found in programs. All distributions have
an announcement mailing list you can subscribe to, or a website
page listing security updates. All distributions also maintain web
or ftp sites where updates are stored.”

“Linux distributions typically activate a number of services
during installation that you don’t actually need. The Unix
tradition is that you, as system administrator, know what you’re
doing and will adjust your system accordingly. Unfortunately, as a
new user, you may not even know yet what’s going on under the
hood.”

Complete
story.