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Top 5 Tips to Harden Your Linux VPS Against Attacks in 2025

hosteons June 24, 2025 Leave a Comment

In 2025, cyberattacks are more sophisticated than ever. Whether you’re hosting a personal project or critical business application, securing your Linux VPS is no longer optional—it’s essential. Thankfully, with just a few steps, you can drastically reduce your risk and keep your VPS locked down against the most common threats.

At Hosteons, we provide high-performance KVM VPS with root access, but security is a shared responsibility. Here’s how you can harden your VPS in minutes:

1. Use SSH Keys Instead of Passwords

Disable password login and use SSH key authentication for more secure, automated, and brute-force-resistant logins.

Steps:

Generate a key pair using ssh-keygen
Upload your public key to your VPS: ~/.ssh/authorized_keys
Disable password auth in /etc/ssh/sshd_config

👉 Read: Why You Should Use SSH Keys Instead of Passwords

2. Set Up a Firewall (UFW/iptables)

Block unnecessary ports to reduce your attack surface. Only open what’s required (e.g., 22 for SSH, 80/443 for web).

Example with UFW:

sudo ufw default deny incoming
sudo ufw allow 22
sudo ufw allow 80
sudo ufw allow 443
sudo ufw enable

3. Install and Configure Fail2Ban

Prevent brute-force attacks by banning IPs with too many failed login attempts.

Install Fail2Ban:

sudo apt install fail2ban

Create a jail for SSH and monitor logs like /var/log/auth.log or /var/log/secure.

👉 Full Fail2Ban Guide

4. Keep the System and Software Updated

Always run the latest security patches. Use tools like unattended-upgrades for automated updates.

Commands:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade
sudo yum update

Outdated software is one of the most exploited vulnerabilities.

5. Monitor Login Attempts and File Changes

Install tools to track unauthorized access and suspicious activity.

Use auditd to track system events
Use logwatch or logcheck to scan logs for anomalies
Monitor /var/log/auth.log for failed logins

👉 Read: How to Monitor Login Attempts and File Changes on Your VPS

Bonus: Disable Root Login

Prevent direct root access by using a non-root sudo user instead.

In /etc/ssh/sshd_config:

PermitRootLogin no

Final Thoughts

Hardened servers are happy servers! With these 5 simple steps, you’ll block the majority of attacks targeting Linux VPS.

At Hosteons, we give you the control, performance, and reliability — now it’s your turn to secure it.

🔐 Ready to deploy a secure VPS?

👉 Explore Our KVM VPS

👉 Premium Ryzen VPS

How to Monitor Login Attempts and File Changes on Your VPS

hosteons June 11, 2025 Leave a Comment

When you manage your own VPS, keeping it secure goes far beyond setting up a strong password or using SSH keys. One of the most important — and often overlooked — tasks is monitoring login attempts and file changes.

If someone tries to brute-force their way into your server or modifies system files without authorization, you need to know immediately. In this post, we’ll walk you through simple tools and methods to keep an eye on your VPS security 24/7.

🔍 Why Monitoring Matters

Cyberattacks aren’t always obvious. Hackers often:

Try to gain access via repeated failed logins
Modify configuration files to install backdoors
Inject malicious code into websites or scripts
Use rootkits to hide their presence

By monitoring login attempts and file changes, you can detect suspicious activity early and prevent damage before it escalates.

🛡️ Monitor Login Attempts with

Fail2Ban

✅ What It Does:

Fail2Ban scans your log files (like /var/log/auth.log) and bans IPs that show signs of malicious behavior, such as too many failed login attempts.

🔧 How to Install:

sudo apt update && sudo apt install fail2ban -y

📂 Basic Configuration:

The main config file is located at:

/etc/fail2ban/jail.local

A sample rule to monitor SSH:

[sshd]
enabled = true
port = ssh
filter = sshd
logpath = /var/log/auth.log
maxretry = 3

Fail2Ban automatically updates your firewall to block suspicious IPs.

🗂️ Monitor File Changes with

AIDE

(Advanced Intrusion Detection Environment)

✅ What It Does:

AIDE scans the file system and creates a baseline. It then alerts you when files are modified, added, or deleted.

🔧 How to Install:

sudo apt install aide -y

🛠️ Initialize the Database:

sudo aideinit
sudo cp /var/lib/aide/aide.db.new /var/lib/aide/aide.db

📊 Run Regular Checks:

sudo aide --check

For automation, schedule this via cron and configure it to email alerts.

🔁 Real-Time File Monitoring with

inotify-tools

For lightweight, real-time file monitoring (e.g., for specific web directories), use inotify-tools.

🔧 Install:

sudo apt install inotify-tools -y

Example: Watch for changes in

/var/www/html

:

inotifywait -m -r /var/www/html

This tool is great for developers and sysadmins wanting immediate feedback on file activity.

✉️ Optional: Email Alerts for Login & File Events

Combine these tools with email notifications or integrate them with your external monitoring system (Zabbix, Prometheus, or even a simple bash + mail setup) for real-time alerting.

🧠 Best Practices

🔐 Use SSH keys instead of passwords
🔒 Disable root login via SSH
🚫 Change default SSH port
📉 Monitor logs daily or automate alerting
🧾 Keep audit trails and backups

💡 All Hosteons VPS & VDS Plans Support These Tools

Whether you’re using a Budget KVM VPS, Ryzen KVM VPS, or Ryzen 7950X VDS, all of these monitoring tools can be installed and configured quickly.

We offer full root access and support popular Linux distributions like Ubuntu, Debian, AlmaLinux, and CentOS — perfect for custom security setups.

🔒 Secure Your VPS Before It’s Too Late

Don’t wait until something goes wrong. Set up login and file monitoring today — and stay in control of your VPS.

Have questions? Need help setting it up? Reach out to Hosteons Support — we’re here to help!

Why You Should Use a Private VPN on Your Own VPS While Traveling

hosteons April 9, 2025 April 9, 2025 Leave a Comment

When you’re traveling — whether for work, study, or leisure — using public Wi-Fi networks is often unavoidable. Airports, hotels, cafes, and coworking spaces all offer connectivity, but often at the cost of privacy and security.

While many people turn to commercial VPNs to protect their connection, the best and most secure option is to run your own private VPN on a VPS.

In this post, we’ll explain why that matters and how you can get started using a VPS from Hosteons.

🔐 Why Privacy Matters More When You Travel

When you use public networks, your data is at risk from:

🕵️‍♂️ Network sniffing and man-in-the-middle attacks
❗ Fake Wi-Fi hotspots
👁️ ISP or network logging and censorship
🚫 Location-based content restrictions

VPNs solve this by encrypting your traffic and routing it through a trusted server — but who controls that server matters a lot.

🤔 The Problem with Public/Commercial VPNs

While commercial VPNs are better than nothing, they come with some caveats:

❌ Shared IPs — may be flagged, banned, or blacklisted
❌ Limited trust — you’re trusting a third-party company with your traffic
❌ Logs and data retention — not all “no-log” policies are actually enforced
❌ Performance throttling — many commercial VPNs limit speeds or locations
❌ Overcrowded servers — inconsistent speeds and high latency

In short, you’re still handing over your traffic to someone else.

✅ Why a Private VPN on Your VPS is Better

Setting up a VPN on your own VPS solves most of these issues — and gives you full control.

✨ Benefits of Running a VPN on Your Own VPS:

Full Control
- You own and configure the server — no third-party snooping.
Dedicated IP Address
- No one else shares your IP, reducing chances of blacklisting or captchas.
Custom Configuration
- Choose your encryption, protocol (WireGuard, OpenVPN, etc.), DNS, and firewall rules.
Faster Speeds
- Avoid the bandwidth bottlenecks common with commercial VPNs.
Consistent Access While Abroad
- Appear to be at “home” and access region-specific services like banking or Netflix.
Bypass Local Censorship or Firewalls
- Secure access even in restrictive countries.
Affordable
- VPS plans from Hosteons start at just $1.75/month — often cheaper than VPN subscriptions.

🌐 Recommended VPN Protocols

You can install and run any of the following on your Hosteons VPS:

WireGuard – Lightweight, fast, and secure. Great for mobile.
OpenVPN – Highly configurable and widely supported.
Shadowsocks / V2Ray – Ideal for bypassing censorship in restricted regions.
IPSec / L2TP – Good compatibility with built-in OS VPN support.

Need help? Check out our tutorials for in our knowledge based articles for various types of VPN and Proxy on Hosteons.

🧭 VPS Locations for Best Travel VPN Experience

Choose your VPS location based on:

Your home country (to access region-locked services)
A neutral/nearby country for lower latency
High-bandwidth regions (like Germany, or Los Angeles)

Hosteons offers VPS in multiple locations globally, with inbound unmetered bandwidth and IPv6 support.

🔐 Bonus Tip: Add Your Own DNS & Firewall Rules

Once you’ve set up your private VPN:

Use custom DNS servers like NextDNS or AdGuard
Set firewall rules to block tracking domains or limit open ports
Enable kill switches on mobile and desktop to avoid leaks

🧰 What You’ll Need to Get Started

A Hosteons VPS (1 CPU, 512MB+ RAM is enough for VPN)
A domain (optional, for easier connection)
Basic Linux knowledge or follow one of our setup scripts
Your laptop or mobile devices

🚀 Ready to Travel Securely?

Don’t rely on sketchy free VPNs or overcrowded commercial services. Take control of your online privacy and performance with a self-hosted VPN on your own VPS.

🔗 Explore Hosteons VPS plans starting at just $1.75/month:

👉 https://hosteons.com

Need help setting it up? We’re always here → https://my.hosteons.com