SE Linux

See also: Linux | Linux Distributions

Acronym: Security-Enhanced Linux

Home Page: http://www.nsa.gov/selinux/

A Linux distribution providing improved security features in Linux that would prevent malicious user, or crackers, from harming a system even if it was compromised at the root level, or a computer setting that gives the user full control over their computers. Crackers seek elevation to this status in order to gain full control over systems. It was a rare, publicly-viewable activity by the US National Security Agency, a group so secretive that NSA is joked to stand for “No Such Agency.”

Despite positive community feedback and some genuine security improvement, it is believed lobbying pressure from Microsoft hurt (but did not stop) development. The source code still available, benefits from the “SE” design surfaced in security-consious Linux Distributions and in other software. It is curently included in the 2.6 kernel, but is disabled by default. With it, Linux took a step closer to the high-end *nix security usually associated with OpenBSD.

Quoting Linux.com:

“SELinux is an extension to the Linux kernel that enforces mandatory access control. With an SELinux-enabled Linux distribution, you can define explicit rules about which subjects (users or programs) can access which objects (files or devices). You can think of it as an internal firewall, which gives you the ability to separate programs, thereby ensuring a high level of security within the operating system.” source (http://www.linux.com/article.pl?sid=05/09/23/1440254)

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TakeDown.NET -> “SE-Linux”