DOCUMENTATION
Enable WAF | Log Level | Default Action | Scan Request Body | Temporary File Path | Temporary File Permissions | Enable Security Audit Log | Security Audit Log | Use RE2 regex engine
Requests/Second | Outbound Bandwidth (bytes/sec) | Inbound Bandwidth (bytes/sec) | Connection Soft Limit | Connection Hard Limit | Block Bad Request | Grace Period (sec) | Banned Period (sec)
Enable reCAPTCHA | Site Key | Secret Key | reCAPTCHA Type | Max Tries | Verification Expires (secs) | Allowed Robot Hits | Bot White List | Connection Limit | SSL Connection Limit
This will enable bot detection and address them by denying or redirecting the client to reCAPTCHA. If firewall is enabled, the client IP will be denied at the firewall level.
Default value is Yes.
Select from radio box
Enable firewall modifications via iptables. iptables must be enabled on this system for this setting to take effect.
If ipset is also installed and enabled on this system, it will be used to more efficiently manage firewall rulesets for iptables.
Default value is Yes.
Select from radio box
ipset should be installed and enabled on the system to more efficiently manage firewall rulesets for iptables.
Specifies the action to be taken when the specified Allowed Login Attempts limit is reached within 5 minutes.
Throttle gradually slows down the speed of the server response, Drop severs the connection without any reply, Deny returns a 403 response, and CAPTCHA or Drop redirects to a CAPTCHA if reCAPTCHA Protection is enabled and drops otherwise.
WP Login CAPTCHA Full Protection can also be selected. This setting will redirect to a CAPTCHA if ReCAPTCHA Protection is enabled regardless of Allowed Login Attempts limit and falls back to use Throttle otherwise.
Default values:
Server level: Throttle
VH level: Inherit Server level setting. If Server level is set to Disable, Throttle will be used.
Select from drop down list
Trusted IPs or sub-networks are not affected.
This can be set at the Server level and overwritten at the Virtual Host level. If not overridden at the Virtual Host level, this setting can also be overridden in a user's docroot .htaccess file using Apache configuration directive WordPressProtect with value 0 (disabled), 1 (use server level setting), throttle, deny, or drop.
Specifies the maximum number of wp-login.php and xmlrpc.php POST attempts allowed by an IP within 5 minutes before the action specified in Protection Mode is taken.
This limit is handled using a quota system where remaining attempts = limit. Each POST attempt will decrease the number of remaining attempts by 1, with the number of remaining attempts increasing back to the set limit over time. An IP will be throttled once the number of remaining attempts for that IP falls to 1/2 the set limit, throttling more as the remaining attempts drops further below the 1/2 mark. When remaining attempts reaches 0, the specified action is taken toward the IP.
In addition to this, if Enable reCAPTCHA is also enabled, an additional per worker protection will be added. If wp-login.php and xmlrpc.php are visited by the same worker at a rate of 4x the set limit in a 30 second time frame, those URLs will be put into reCAPTCHA mode until the number of visits to these files decreases.
Resetting the server will clear blocked IPs.
Default values:
Server-level: 10
VH-Level: Inherit Server level setting
Valid Range: 3 - 1000.
Trusted IPs or sub-networks are not affected.
This can be set at the Server level and overwritten at the Virtual Host level. If not overridden at the Virtual Host level, this setting can also be overridden in a user's docroot .htaccess file using Apache configuration directive WordPressProtect with integer value between 3 and 1000.
Automatically set Jetpack IPs as VHost trusted. Jetpack IPs list is updated dynamically on a daily basis.
Default values:
Server level: No
VH level: Inherit Server level setting.
Select from drop down list
Specifies whether to enable request content deep inspection. This feature is equivalent to Apache's mod_security, which can be used to detect and block requests with ill intention by matching them to known signatures.
Select from radio box
Specifies the level of detail of the Web Application Firewall engine's debug output. This value ranges from 0 - 9. 0 disables logging. 9 produces the most detailed log. The the server and virtual host's error log Log Level must be set to at least INFO for this option to take effect. This is useful when testing request filtering rules.
Integer number
Specifies the default actions that should be taken when a censoring rule is met. Default value is deny,log,status:403, which means to deny access with status code 403 and log the incident in the error log.
Specifies whether to check the body of an HTTP POST request. Default is "No".
Select from radio box
Temporary directory where files being uploaded to server will be stored while request body parser is working. Default value is /tmp.
Absolute path or path starting with $SERVER_ROOT (for Server and VHost levels).
Global setting determining file permissions used for files stored in the Temporary File Path directory.
3 digits octet number. Default value is 666.
Specifies whether to enable audit logging and in what format (Native, JSON, or Pretty JSON). This feature is equivalent to Apache's mod_security audit engine.
If this setting is enabled and the Security Audit Log setting is set, detailed request information will be saved.
Select from drop down list
Specifies the path of the security audit log, which gives more detailed information. This extra information can be useful if, for example, you wish to track the actions of a particular user. Use Enable Security Audit Log to turn on the logging.
Filename which can be an absolute path or a relative path to $SERVER_ROOT.
Use RE2 when evaluating regular expressions instead of PCRE.
Default value: No
Select from radio box
While PCRE provides more features than RE2, RE2 allows for a defined maximum memory usage and has a more predictable runtime than PCRE making it more suited for use in server applications.
Unlike PCRE, RE2 uses a fixed stack and guarantees that run-time increases linearly (not exponentially) with the size of the input.
Rules configured here only work for virtual hosts configured with a native LSWS configuration, not for virtual hosts using Apache httpd.conf.
Give a group of censorship rules a name. For display only.
String
Specifies the actions that should be taken when a censoring rule in current ruleset is met. If not set, Default Action will be used.
String. This action string uses the same syntax as Apache's mod_security SecDefaultAction directive .
Specifies whether to enable this rule set. With this option, a rule set can be quickly turned on and off without adding or removing the rule set. Default is "Yes".
Select from radio box
Specifies a list of censorship rules.
String. Syntax of censoring rules follows that of Apache's mod_security directives. "SecFilter", "SecFilterSelective", and "SecRule" can be used here. You can copy and paste security rules from an Apache configuration file.
For more details about rule syntax, please refer to the Mod Security documentation.
Rules configured here only work for vhosts configured in native LSWS configuration, not for vhosts from Apache httpd.conf.
These are connection control setting on a per client/IP basis. These settings help to mitigate DoS (Denied of Service) and DDoS (Distributed Denied of Service) attacks.
Specifies the maximum number of requests for dynamically generated content coming from a single IP address that can be processed in each second, regardless of the number of connections established. When this limit is reached, all future requests for dynamic content are tar-pitted until the next second. The per client request limit can be set at the server or virtual host level where virtual host level settings override server level settings.
Integer number
Trusted IPs or sub-networks are not effected
The maximum allowed outgoing throughput to a single IP address, regardless of the number of connections established. The real bandwidth may end up being slightly higher than this setting for efficiency reasons. Bandwidth is allocated in 4KB units. Set to 0 to disable throttling. Per-client bandwidth limits (bytes/sec) can be set at the server or virtual host level where virtual host level settings override server level settings.
Integer number
Set the bandwidth in 8KB units for better performance.
Trusted IPs or sub-networks are not affected.
The maximum allowed incoming throughput from a single IP address, regardless of the number of connections established. The real bandwidth may end up being slightly higher than this setting for efficiency reasons. Bandwidth is allocated in 1KB units. Set to 0 to disable throttling. Per-client bandwidth limits (bytes/sec) can be set at the server or virtual host level where virtual host level settings override server level settings.
Integer number
Trusted IPs or sub-networks are not affected.
Specifies the soft limit of concurrent connections allowed from one IP. This soft limit can be exceeded temporarily during Grace Period (sec) as long as the number is below the Connection Hard Limit, but Keep-Alive connections will be closed as soon as possible until the number of connections is lower than the limit. If number of connections is still over the limit after the Grace Period (sec), that IP will be blocked for the Banned Period (sec).
For example, if a page contains many small graphs, the browser may try to set up many connections at same time, especially for HTTP/1.0 clients. You would want to allow those connections for a short period.
HTTP/1.1 clients may also set up multiple connections to speed up downloading and SSL requires separate connections from non-SSL connections. Make sure the limit is set properly, as not to adversely affect normal service. The recommended limit is between 5 and 10.
Integer number
A lower number will enable serving more distinct clients.
Trusted IPs or sub-networks are not affected.
Set to a high value when you are performing benchmark tests with a large number of concurrent client machines.
Specifies the maximum number of allowed concurrent connections from a single IP address. This limit is always enforced and a client will never be able to exceed this limit. HTTP/1.0 clients usually try to set up as many connections as they need to download embedded content at the same time. This limit should be set high enough so that HTTP/1.0 clients can still access the site. Use Connection Soft Limit to set the desired connection limit.
The recommended limit is between 20 and 50 depending on the content of your web page and your traffic load.
Integer number
A lower number will enable serving more distinct clients.
Trusted IPs or sub-networks are not affected.
Set to a high value when you are performing benchmark tests with a large number of concurrent client machines.
Block IPs that keep sending badly-formatted HTTP requests for the Banned Period (sec). Default is Yes. This helps to block botnet attacks that repeatedly sending junk requests.
Select from radio box
Specifies how long new connections can be accepted after the number of connections established from one IP is over the Connection Soft Limit. Within this period, new connections will be accepted if the total connections is still below the Connection Hard Limit. After this period has elapsed, if the number of connections still higher than the Connection Soft Limit, then the offending IP will be blocked for the Banned Period (sec).
Integer number
Set to a proper number big enough for downloading a complete page but low enough to prevent deliberate attacks.
Specifies how long new connections will be rejected from an IP if, after the Grace Period (sec) has elapsed, the number of connections is still more than the Connection Soft Limit. If IPs are getting banned repeatedly, we suggest that you increase your banned period to stiffen the penalty for abuse.
Integer number
reCAPTCHA Protection is a service provided as a way to mitigate heavy server load. reCAPTCHA Protection will activate after one of the below situations is hit. Once active, all requests by NON TRUSTED(as configured) clients will be redirected to a reCAPTCHA validation page. After validation, the client will be redirected to their desired page.
The following situations will activate reCAPTCHA Protection:
1. The server or vhost concurrent requests count passes the configured connection limit.
2. Anti-DDoS is enabled and a client is hitting a url in a suspicious manner. The client will redirect to reCAPTCHA first instead of getting denied when triggered.
3. WordPress Brute Force Attack Protection is enabled and action is set to 'CAPTCHA or Drop’. When a brute force attack is detected, the client will redirect to reCAPTCHA first. After max tries is reached, the connection will be dropped, as per the ‘drop’ option.
4. WordPress Brute Force Attack Protection is enabled and action is set to 'WP Login CAPTCHA Full Protection'. The client will always redirect to reCAPTCHA first.
5. A new rewrite rule environment is provided to activate reCAPTCHA via RewriteRules. 'verifycaptcha' can be set to redirect clients to reCAPTCHA. A special value ': deny' can be set to deny the client if it failed too many times. For example, [E=verifycaptcha] will always redirect to reCAPTCHA until verified. [E=verifycaptcha: deny] will redirect to reCAPTCHA until Max Tries is hit, after which the client will be denied.
Enable the reCAPTCHA Protection feature at the current level. This setting must be set to Yes at the Server level before the reCAPTCHA Protection feature can be used.
Default values:
Server-level: Yes
VH-Level: Inherit Server level setting
Select from radio box
The site key is the public key provided by Google via its reCAPTCHA service. A default Site Key will be used if not set.
The secret key is the private key provided by Google via its reCAPTCHA service. A default Secret Key will be used if not set.
Specify the reCAPTCHA type to use with the key pairs.
If a key pair has not been provided and this setting is set to Not Set, a default key pair of type Invisible will be used.
Checkbox will display a checkbox reCAPTCHA for the visitor to validate.
Invisible will attempt to validate the reCAPTCHA automatically and if successful, will redirect to the desired page.
hCaptcha can be used to support reCAPTCHA provider hCaptcha.
Default value is Invisible.
Select from drop down list
Max Tries specifies the maximum number of reCAPTCHA attempts permitted before denying the visitor.
Default value is 3.
Integer number
Sets the expire time of a successful reCAPTCHA submission, after which reCAPTCHA protection will re-trigger for that visitor.
Default value: 86,400 (1 day).
Integer value between 30 and 31,536,000 (1 year).
Number of hits per 10 seconds to allow ‘good bots’ to pass. Bots will still be throttled when the server is under load.
Default value is 3.
Integer number
List of custom user agents to allow access. Will be subject to the ‘good bots’ limitations, including allowedRobotHits.
List of user agents, one per line. Regex is supported.
The number of concurrent connections (SSL & non-SSL) needed to activate reCAPTCHA. reCAPTCHA will be used until concurrent connections drop below this number.
Default value is 15000.
Integer number
The number of concurrent SSL connections needed to activate reCAPTCHA. reCAPTCHA will be used until concurrent connections drop below this number.
Default value is 10000.
Integer number
Specifies what sub networks and/or IP addresses can access the server. At the server level, this setting will affect all virtual hosts. You can also set up access control unique to each virtual host at the virtual host level. Virtual host level settings will NOT override server level settings.
Blocking/Allowing an IP is determined by the combination of the allowed list and the denied list. If you want to block only certain IPs or sub-networks, put * or ALL in the Allowed List and list the blocked IPs or sub-networks in the Denied List. If you want to allow only certain IPs or sub-networks, put * or ALL in the Denied List and list the allowed IPs or sub-networks in the Allowed List. The setting of the smallest scope that fits for an IP will be used to determine access.
Server Level: Trusted IPs or sub-networks must be specified in the Allowed List by adding a trailing "T". Trusted IPs or sub-networks are not affected by connection/throttling limits. Only server level access control can set up trusted IPs/sub-networks.
Use this at the server level for general restrictions that apply to all virtual hosts.
Specifies the list of IPs or sub-networks allowed. * or ALL are accepted.
Comma delimited list of IP addresses or sub-networks. A trailing "T" can be used to indicate a trusted IP or sub-network, such as 192.168.1.*T.
Trusted IPs or sub-networks set at the server level access control will be excluded from connection/throttling limits.
Specifies the list of IPs or sub-networks disallowed.
Comma delimited list of IP addresses or sub-networks. * or ALL are accepted.
