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Overview

Red Hat® Enterprise Linux® provides a pre-hardened foundation that helps reduce risk, minimize downtime, and support compliance. Built-in hardening, prioritized vulnerability guidance, and automated system roles help reduce operational burden, while capabilities like post-quantum cryptography in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 help you prepare for what’s next.

By the numbers

Red Hat Enterprise Linux has advanced security capabilities built-in from the start that help organizations to lower risk, save time, and mitigate downtime.

Save time

48%

faster on-premise, virtual server deployment after standardizing on Red Hat Enterprise Linux.1

Lower risk

98%

reduction in total time to detect and remediate Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs) in multiple hosts.2

Mitigate downtime

76%

improvement in mean time to repair in environments standardized on Red Hat Enterprise Linux.¹

Increase efficiency

46%

quicker to complete security updates.¹

Why choose Red Hat Enterprise Linux for security

Satisfy compliance requirements

Red Hat Enterprise Linux helps organizations satisfy compliance requirements without compromising deployment speed. Features like Red Hat Lightspeed help tailor policies and monitor deviations from those policies, while post-quantum cryptography (PQC) in Red Hat Enterprise Linux helps you prepare for future mandatory requirements. Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 also includes the new Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) cryptographic module and enables security fixes without requiring a new validation certificate. 

See how Red Hat Enterprise Linux helps reduce risk
Post-quantum cryptography for Red Hat Enterprise Linux

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CVE and CVSS explained | Security Detail. Video duration: 3:44

Mitigate Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs)

AI-accelerated vulnerability discovery tools have radically shifted the cybersecurity landscape, and defenders can’t rely only on traditional manual patching cycles to address common vulnerabilities and exposures (CVEs). Red Hat Enterprise Linux is the foundational element for security across the Red Hat portfolio, and it can help organizations: 

  • Detect, prioritize, and remediate CVEs with Red Hat Lightspeed (formerly Red Hat Insights).
  • Establish powerful, multi-layered defense with process isolation and access control. 
  • Build on a verified, security-focused software supply chain. 
  • Adopt the “shift left” approach with pre-hardening and image mode for Red Hat Enterprise Linux.
  • Save time and gain efficiency with automation and closed loop remediation 
Discover how to defend against AI-detected threats

Advance zero trust architecture maturity

Following the zero trust architecture security model can reduce risk, strengthen compliance, and protect critical assets. Red Hat Enterprise Linux can support these outcomes with features like: 

These features allow users to implement security from the beginning of the process, address future threats, and protect data from unauthorized access whether it is in use or at rest. 

Read about implementing zero trust architectures
zero trust

Security use cases

Prepare for “harvest now, decrypt later threats” with post-quantum cryptography

Bad actors are already capturing encrypted data today — planning to decrypt it once quantum computers make current encryption obsolete. Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10 is the first enterprise Linux distribution to be post-quantum capable, delivering standardized, quantum-resistant algorithms approved by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Test, deploy, and transition to PQC while maintaining support for traditional methods.

Learn more about PQC and Red Hat Enterprise Linux
4-step process to prepare for and test PQC (asset)

Strengthen software supply chain security

In 2025 alone, Sonatype identified more than 454,600 new malicious open source packages. Red Hat Enterprise Linux helps with software supply chain security from the start, encouraging resilience and trust across the enterprise by: 

  • Authenticating the integrity of software components from the source with content delivery network (CDN) via digitally signed packages to prevent tampering. 
  • Providing a software bill of materials (SBOMS), vendor exploitability exchange (VEX) and solutions for CVEs.
  • Supporting the integrity of software artifacts and providing quicker incident responses with Red Hat Trusted Artifact Signer. 
  • Prehardening with image mode for Red Hat Enterprise Linux. 
  • Automating security configuration and management with Red Hat Enterprise Linux system roles.

Red Hat and its partners help organizations implement software supply chain security throughout the development lifecycle for both traditional and containerized applications across an open hybrid cloud. 

Optimize Security with Red Hat

Shift left with security and automation

Red Hat treats security as a critical priority, not as an afterthought or add-on product. Red Hat Enterprise Linux has multiple tools available to proactively measure and improve application security by identifying and fixing defects before they move too far forward. Those tools include: 

Shift left with Red Hat Lightspeed

Gain comprehensive data protection

With confidential computing, users benefit from protections for AI and cloud workloads, even if the underlying platform or provider is compromised. Additionally, Red Hat Enterprise Linux:

  • Integrates with major hardware and cloud providers using trusted execution environments (TEEs). 
  • Includes confidential virtual machines (CVMs) designed to help secure sensitive workloads, like AI applications. 
  • Uses remote attestation in conjunction with TEEs to enable detection and remediation of unauthorized  modifications.

This represents an advanced level of data protection, establishing a more secure foundation against evolving threats and assisting organizations in progressing towards an optimal, zero trust architecture.

Build a zero-trust foundation

Manage security consistently

Containers and hybrid cloud technologies have proliferated in organizations, spreading data across workloads and adding complexity to existing security challenges. Implementing an automation strategy by adding Red Hat Ansible® Automation Platform makes it simpler to manage and configure workloads across multiple clouds. Red Hat Lightspeed and Red Hat Satellite, both available as additions, can both organize your infrastructure management to reduce complex operational tasks and help your Red Hat infrastructure run efficiently based on your security standards.

See the business value of Red Hat Satellite

Technical resources

For developers:

Learning Labs:

Next steps

Red Hat has spent over 30 years developing and helping secure open source software. Learn more about what our software can do for your security strategy.

Talk to a Red Hatter
Try Red Hat Enterprise Linux

  1. IDC White Paper, sponsored by Red Hat. “The Business Value of Standardizing on Red Hat Enterprise Linux.” Document #US52594324, Sept. 2024. 

  2. Principled Technologies, “Save administrator time with the automated remediation capabilities of Red Hat Insights.” Oct. 2024.

  3. Sonatype. “11th Annual State of the Software Supply Chain Report.” 2026.