How to enable mod security

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Overview

Starting in version 7.1.1, mod_security is available with a comprehensive set of rules to log or protect against web based attacks.  mod_security is an apache module that acts as a filter for http traffic and blocks traffic that match a set of rules that describe attack vectors exploited by malicious actors. GroundWork has added the ability to enable this feature in the product with a few easy steps.

Steps

Enable Mod Security

Because some of the traffic in GroundWork is of an administrative nature, mod_security is set to detection only mode when enabled. Detection only mode will only log traffic that matches rule violations. These violations could be evidence of an attack and should be sent to a log analysis tool for regular auditing and alerting. The rule violations are logged in the apache error log at /usr/local/groundwork/apache2/logs/error_log. To enable blocking, see section the below Enable Application Protection.

1. To enable mod_security, modify /usr/local/groundwork/apache2/conf/extra/httpd-ssl.conf.
2. Uncomment the following line:

   Include httpd-security.conf
   

3. Restart apache:

   /etc/init.d/groundwork restart apache
   

Enable Application Protection

Some environments have more strict requirements and need to have protection enabled. There is a risk that some features of the product or custom code will not work if protection mode is enabled. If you run into any problems you can open a support ticket and GroundWork Support will assist you.

1. To set mod_security in Protection Mode, modify /usr/local/groundwork/apache2/conf/extra/httpd-security.conf.
2. Comment out following line:

   #SecRule Engine DetectionOnly

3. Restart apache:

   /etc/init.d/groundwork restart apache