SELinux (Security Enhanced Linux) is a version of Linux secured with advanced features developed by the NSA. Although these features enhance the security of the regular Linux kernel, it is not available in most Linux operating system versions. The main reason it has not been added to the kernel itself is due to the fact that the main aim of Linux is to focus on performance and reliability.
The following are some of the features of SELinux, although there are more.
- Mandatory access control (MAC)
- Role-based access control (RBAC)
- Type enforcement architecture
- Address space layer randomisation (ASLR)
Additional Information
Red Hat Linux uses SELinux.
The first open source release of SELinux was on December 22, 2000.
Last updated: 30 October 2017