Nginx Profile
Find out how the presence of Nginx is fingerprinted, associated security risks, and recommended configurations.
What is Nginx?
Nginx is a web server that can also be used as a reverse proxy, load balancer, mail proxy, and HTTP cache. It powers a huge portion of high-traffic sites.
Security and Vulnerability Footprint
Exposing Nginx version details (e.g. Nginx/1.18.0) allows attackers to identify specific known CVEs. Misconfigured configurations can also lead to issues like path traversal or folder escape exposures.
Defensive Best Practices
Hide the Nginx version by configuring 'server_tokens off;' inside the nginx.conf configuration file. Audit proxy configurations to ensure backend services are not unintentionally exposed to the public.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does our technology checker identify Nginx?
By parsing the HTTP 'Server' response header, which typically outputs 'Server: nginx' or details specific version banners if not disabled.
Why is exposing the Nginx version number dangerous?
It allows threat actors to look up specific CVEs (such as integer overflow or memory disclosure bugs) associated with that version.
How do I hide the Nginx version string?
You can turn off version broadcasting by setting 'server_tokens off;' within the HTTP block of your Nginx configuration.