In the Suricata configuration file you provided, the user ID (UID) is not explicitly mentioned. However, it does specify the user as “suricata” under the “run-as” section:

run-as:
user: suricata
group: suricata

This indicates that Suricata will run under the “suricata” user and group.

When you checked the “/etc/passwd” file using grep "^suricata:" /etc/passwd, it shows the “suricata” user entry:

suricata:x:989:986:suricata unprivileged user:/var/empty:/sbin/nologin

The UID for the “suricata” user in this case is 989.
ok, what then the cause of permission issue? after your suggestions and command provided by you to set the permissions for suricata related folders, the all permissions shifted and got mispermitted. now I try to figure out what is wrong, because previously there were no errors before your interference. there’s also something weird in there: sudo find / -user suricata -exec ls -ld {} ;
drwxr-xr-x 2 suricata suricata 60 Jul 3 14:04 /run/suricata
srw-rw---- 1 suricata suricata 0 Jul 3 14:04 /run/suricata/suricata-command.socket
find: ‘/run/user/1000/gvfs’: Permission denied
dr-xr-xr-x 9 suricata suricata 0 Jul 3 14:23 /proc/7073
dr-xr-xr-x 10 suricata suricata 0 Jul 3 14:23 /proc/7073/task
dr-xr-xr-x 7 suricata suricata 0 Jul 3 14:23 /proc/7073/task/7073
dr-xr-xr-x 2 suricata suricata 0 Jul 3 14:23 /proc/7073/task/7073/fdinfo
dr-xr-xr-x 53 suricata suricata 0 Jul 3 14:23 /proc/7073/task/7073/net
dr-xr-xr-x 2 suricata suricata 0 Jul 3 14:23 /proc/7073/task/7073/attr
dr-xr-xr-x 2 suricata suricata 0 Jul 3 14:23 /proc/7073/task/7073/attr/apparmor
dr-xr-xr-x 7 suricata suricata 0 Jul 3 14:23 /proc/7073/task/7074
dr-xr-xr-x 2 suricata suricata 0 Jul 3 14:23 /proc/7073/task/7074/fdinfo
…find: ‘/proc/8493/task/8493/fd/6’: No such file or directory
find: ‘/proc/8493/task/8493/fdinfo/6’: No such file or directory
find: ‘/proc/8493/fd/5’: No such file or directory
find: ‘/proc/8493/fdinfo/5’: No such file or directory
drw-rwxrwx 3 suricata suricata 4096 Jul 3 13:45 /etc/suricata
Based on the output you provided, it appears that the permission issue may be due to the ownership or permissions being set incorrectly for some files and directories related to Suricata.

Here are a few things you can check:

1. Ownership and Permissions: Verify that the ownership and permissions for Suricata-related files and directories are set correctly. The ownership should be set to the “suricata” user and group, and the permissions should allow appropriate access. You can use commands like chown and chmod to adjust the ownership and permissions accordingly.

2. Configuration File: Double-check the Suricata configuration file (suricata.yaml) and ensure that the “run-as” section specifies the correct user and group for Suricata to run under. Also, verify that the file itself has the correct ownership and permissions.

3. Log Files and Directories: Check the ownership and permissions of the log files and directories that Suricata uses. These might include directories like “/var/log/suricata” or specific log files mentioned in the configuration file. Make sure that the “suricata” user has appropriate access to write to these log files and directories.

4. SELinux or AppArmor: If your system has SELinux or AppArmor enabled, they might be enforcing additional security restrictions. Check if any SELinux or AppArmor policies are blocking access to Suricata-related files and directories. You can adjust the policies or disable SELinux/AppArmor temporarily to test if it resolves the permission issue.

Remember, when modifying permissions, ensure that you only grant necessary access to maintain system security. Granting excessive permissions may pose a security risk.
I found the issue. the owner of all suricata related folders is incorrect. for “/var/log/suricata” it uses “suricatauser” while for “/etc/suricata/” it using “suricata unprivileged user [suricata]”. need to fix this issue through full root (sudo -i), right?
Yes, to fix the ownership issue for Suricata-related folders like “/var/log/suricata” and “/etc/suricata/”, you would need to use full root access.

You can switch to a full root shell using the command:

sudo -i

Once you have the full root access, you can adjust the ownership of the folders using the chown command. Here’s an example:

chown -R suricata:suricata /var/log/suricata
chown -R suricata:suricata /etc/suricata/

The -R flag in the chown command is used to recursively change ownership for all files and subdirectories within the specified directory.

By setting the ownership to “suricata:suricata”, you ensure that the “suricata” user and group have proper ownership over the Suricata-related folders.

Remember to replace “/var/log/suricata” and “/etc/suricata/” with the actual paths to the Suricata-related folders on your system.

Once you have made the ownership changes, you can exit the root shell by typing exit or pressing Ctrl+D.
can you tell why it tells in folder permission tab “suricata unprivileged user [suricata]”. can you fix this issue and make "suricata a privileged user in that case?
The message “suricata unprivileged user [suricata]” in the folder permission tab indicates that the Suricata user is configured as an unprivileged user. By default, this is the recommended setup for Suricata, as it restricts the permissions and access level of the Suricata process for security reasons.

If you would like to make the “suricata” user a privileged user, you can adjust the configuration by following these steps:

1. Open the Suricata configuration file (suricata.yaml) using a text editor.
2. Look for the run-as section in the file.
3. Update the user value to specify the username of a privileged user. For example, you can replace “suricata” with “root” or any other privileged user on your system.
4. Save the changes and exit the text editor.
5. Restart the Suricata service for the changes to take effect.

However, it’s important to note that running Suricata as a privileged user might introduce security risks. It’s generally recommended to run Suricata as an unprivileged user to limit the potential impact of any security vulnerabilities.

Before considering making Suricata a privileged user, it’s advisable to thoroughly evaluate the risks and ensure that proper security measures, such as regular software updates and system hardening, are in place to mitigate any potential security issues.
I don’t understand you. I need to replace in suricata.yaml username “suricata” to “suricata unprivileged user [suricata]” in that case? give me command to set suricata as privileged user.
I apologize for the confusion. The message “suricata unprivileged user [suricata]” in the folder permission tab indicates that the Suricata user is already configured as an unprivileged user.

If you want to make Suricata a privileged user by changing the configuration, you can follow these steps:

1. Open the Suricata configuration file (suricata.yaml) using a text editor:


   sudo nano /etc/suricata/suricata.yaml



2. Look for the run-as section in the file.

3. Update the user value to a privileged user such as “root” or any other privileged user on your system. For example:


   run-as:
     user: root
     group: suricata



4. Save the changes and exit the text editor.

After making this change, Suricata will run with the privileges of the specified user, which in this case is “root”. Remember that running Suricata as a privileged user may have security implications, so it is important to consider the associated risks and ensure that appropriate security measures are in place.

Once you have made the changes, restart the Suricata service for the modifications to take effect:


sudo systemctl restart suricata



Please note that running Suricata as a privileged user should be done with caution and in a controlled environment to minimize security risks.

no, I want to set suricata user itself as privileged user globally in the linux system, because I got problems with permissions on launch.
I apologize for the confusion. If you want to make the “suricata” user itself a privileged user globally on your Linux system, you can follow these steps:

1. Open a terminal and switch to the root user:


   sudo -i



2. Change the user’s group to a privileged group, such as “sudo” or “root”:


   usermod -aG sudo suricata



   Replace “suricata” with the actual username of the Suricata user.

3. Verify the group membership for the user:


   groups suricata



   This command should display the newly added privileged group (sudo or root) among the groups that the “suricata” user belongs to.

By adding the “suricata” user to a privileged group, you grant it certain privileges that are associated with that group. This allows the “suricata” user to perform actions that require elevated permissions.

However, please be aware that making the “suricata” user a privileged user globally on your system can have significant security implications. It is generally recommended to run Suricata with minimal privileges to limit potential security breaches.

# usermod -aG sudo suricata
usermod: group ‘sudo’ does not exist
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