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NIST 800-44 Version 2 Guidelines on Securing Public Web Servers

NIST 800-44 Version 2 Guidelines on Securing Public Web Servers

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GUIDELINES ON SECURING PUBLIC WEB SERVERS<br />

development, documentati<strong>on</strong>, and implementati<strong>on</strong> of policies, standards, procedures, and guidelines that<br />

help to ensure the c<strong>on</strong>fidentiality, integrity, and availability of informati<strong>on</strong> system resources. To ensure<br />

the security of a <strong>Web</strong> server and the supporting network infrastructure, the following practices should be<br />

implemented:<br />

Organizati<strong>on</strong>-wide informati<strong>on</strong> system security policy<br />

C<strong>on</strong>figurati<strong>on</strong>/change c<strong>on</strong>trol and management<br />

Risk assessment and management<br />

Standardized software c<strong>on</strong>figurati<strong>on</strong>s that satisfy the informati<strong>on</strong> system security policy<br />

Security awareness and training<br />

C<strong>on</strong>tingency planning, c<strong>on</strong>tinuity of operati<strong>on</strong>s, and disaster recovery planning<br />

Certificati<strong>on</strong> and accreditati<strong>on</strong>.<br />

Organizati<strong>on</strong>s should ensure that <strong>Web</strong> server operating systems are deployed, c<strong>on</strong>figured, and<br />

managed to meet the security requirements of the organizati<strong>on</strong>.<br />

The first step in securing a <strong>Web</strong> server is securing the underlying operating system. Most comm<strong>on</strong>ly<br />

available <strong>Web</strong> servers operate <strong>on</strong> a general-purpose operating system. Many security issues can be<br />

avoided if the operating systems underlying <strong>Web</strong> servers are c<strong>on</strong>figured appropriately. Default hardware<br />

and software c<strong>on</strong>figurati<strong>on</strong>s are typically set by manufacturers to emphasize features, functi<strong>on</strong>s, and ease<br />

of use, at the expense of security. Because manufacturers are not aware of each organizati<strong>on</strong>’s security<br />

needs, each <strong>Web</strong> server administrator must c<strong>on</strong>figure new servers to reflect their organizati<strong>on</strong>’s security<br />

requirements and rec<strong>on</strong>figure them as those requirements change. Using security c<strong>on</strong>figurati<strong>on</strong> guides or<br />

checklists can assist administrators in securing systems c<strong>on</strong>sistently and efficiently. <strong>Securing</strong> an<br />

operating system initially would generally include the following steps:<br />

Patch and upgrade the operating system<br />

Remove or disable unnecessary services and applicati<strong>on</strong>s<br />

C<strong>on</strong>figure operating system user authenticati<strong>on</strong><br />

C<strong>on</strong>figure resource c<strong>on</strong>trols<br />

Install and c<strong>on</strong>figure additi<strong>on</strong>al security c<strong>on</strong>trols<br />

Perform security testing of the operating system.<br />

Organizati<strong>on</strong>s should ensure that the <strong>Web</strong> server applicati<strong>on</strong> is deployed, c<strong>on</strong>figured, and managed<br />

to meet the security requirements of the organizati<strong>on</strong>.<br />

In many respects, the secure installati<strong>on</strong> and c<strong>on</strong>figurati<strong>on</strong> of the <strong>Web</strong> server applicati<strong>on</strong> will mirror the<br />

operating system process discussed above. The overarching principle is to install the minimal amount of<br />

<strong>Web</strong> server services required and eliminate any known vulnerabilities through patches or upgrades. If the<br />

installati<strong>on</strong> program installs any unnecessary applicati<strong>on</strong>s, services, or scripts, they should be removed<br />

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