How To Install rkhunter on Ubuntu 18.04

In this tutorial we learn how to install rkhunter on Ubuntu 18.04. rkhunter is rootkit, backdoor, sniffer and exploit scanner

Introduction

In this tutorial we learn how to install rkhunter on Ubuntu 18.04.

What is rkhunter

rkhunter is:

Rootkit Hunter scans systems for known and unknown rootkits, backdoors, sniffers and exploits.

It checks for:

  • SHA256 hash changes;
  • files commonly created by rootkits;
  • executables with anomalous file permissions;
  • suspicious strings in kernel modules;
  • hidden files in system directories; and can optionally scan within files.

Using rkhunter alone does not guarantee that a system is not compromised. Running additional tests, such as chkrootkit, is recommended.

There are three methods to install rkhunter on Ubuntu 18.04. We can use apt-get, apt and aptitude. In the following sections we will describe each method. You can choose one of them.

Install rkhunter Using apt-get

Update apt database with apt-get using the following command.

sudo apt-get update

After updating apt database, We can install rkhunter using apt-get by running the following command:

sudo apt-get -y install rkhunter

Install rkhunter Using apt

Update apt database with apt using the following command.

sudo apt update

After updating apt database, We can install rkhunter using apt by running the following command:

sudo apt -y install rkhunter

Install rkhunter Using aptitude

If you want to follow this method, you might need to install aptitude first since aptitude is usually not installed by default on Ubuntu. Update apt database with aptitude using the following command.

sudo aptitude update

After updating apt database, We can install rkhunter using aptitude by running the following command:

sudo aptitude -y install rkhunter

How To Uninstall rkhunter on Ubuntu 18.04

To uninstall only the rkhunter package we can use the following command:

sudo apt-get remove rkhunter

Uninstall rkhunter And Its Dependencies

To uninstall rkhunter and its dependencies that are no longer needed by Ubuntu 18.04, we can use the command below:

sudo apt-get -y autoremove rkhunter

Remove rkhunter Configurations and Data

To remove rkhunter configuration and data from Ubuntu 18.04 we can use the following command:

sudo apt-get -y purge rkhunter

Remove rkhunter configuration, data, and all of its dependencies

We can use the following command to remove rkhunter configurations, data and all of its dependencies, we can use the following command:

sudo apt-get -y autoremove --purge rkhunter

References

Summary

In this tutorial we learn how to install rkhunter package on Ubuntu 18.04 using different package management tools: apt, apt-get and aptitude.