Understanding Your Server's Attack Surface
Your server is constantly exposed to the internet, facing automated scans, brute-force attempts, and targeted attacks 24/7. The "attack surface" is the total number of points where an unauthorized user can try to enter or extract data.
Reducing your attack surface is the single most effective thing you can do to prevent a breach.
Essential Server Hardening Practices
Server hardening reduces vulnerabilities by configuring the OS and services to minimize the attack surface.
Use SSH key pairs instead. Brute-force attacks against key-based auth are computationally infeasible.
Moving SSH from port 22 to a non-standard port eliminates 99% of automated scanning bots.
Only allow traffic on ports you need (HTTP, HTTPS, SSH). Block everything else by default.
Configure unattended-upgrades to apply critical security patches automatically.
Automatically ban IPs that show malicious signs — failed login attempts, exploit scanning, etc.
Never allow direct root SSH access. Use a regular user with sudo privileges instead.
Continuous Port Monitoring with Watchling
Even with careful initial configuration, ports can become exposed over time. Watchling's server monitoring continuously checks your open ports and alerts you when unexpected services appear.
Beyond ports, Watchling monitors critical server health metrics:
- CPU usage: Sustained high CPU may indicate cryptomining malware or DoS attacks.
- Disk usage: Alerts at 80% capacity to prevent disk-full outages.
- Memory usage: Detect memory leaks that gradually degrade performance.
- Ping latency: Unusual latency spikes can indicate network-level attacks.
Harden Your Server and Stay Protected
Monitor open ports, track resource usage, and get alerted to security anomalies — all from one dashboard.