--- title: CIS-Harden your Ubuntu in Google Cloud description: CIS Benchmarks are best practices for the secure configuration of a target system. The Center for Internet Security, Inc. (CIS®) is the authority backing CIS Benchmarks. Ubuntu Pro is entitled to be CIS compliant and packaged with CIS toolings from Canonical. Let’s SSH into your Ubuntu Pro virtual machine. If you haven’t yet upgrade your […] url: https://canonical.com/blog/make-your-ubuntu-cis-hardened-in-gcp --- 1. [Blog](https://canonical.com/blog) 2. Article --- [Hugo Huang](https://canonical.com/blog/author/hugohuangtao "More about Hugo Huang") 9 November 2021 # CIS-Harden your Ubuntu in Google Cloud [CIS](https://canonical.com/blog/tag/cis) [Google Cloud](https://canonical.com/blog/tag/google-cloud) [In-place upgrade](https://canonical.com/blog/tag/in-place-upgrade) [Security Hardening](https://canonical.com/blog/tag/security-hardening) [Ubuntu Pro](https://canonical.com/blog/tag/ubuntu-pro) --- Share the article [CIS Benchmarks](https://www.cisecurity.org/cis-benchmarks/) are best practices for the secure configuration of a target system. The Center for Internet Security, Inc. (CIS®) is the authority backing CIS Benchmarks. [Ubuntu Pro](http://ubuntu.com/gcp/pro) is entitled to be CIS compliant and packaged with CIS toolings from Canonical. Let’s SSH into your Ubuntu Pro virtual machine. If you haven’t yet upgrade your Ubuntu LTS to Ubuntu Pro, please follow [this tutorial](https://ubuntu.com/blog/securing-the-open-source-supply-chain-with-ubuntu-pro-on-google-cloud). In less than One Minute, you will be able to get your Ubuntu Pro machine without losing any of your mission critical workloads. Once you SSH into your Ubuntu Pro, input: | | | --- | | ua status | You will see: | SERVICE | ENTITLED | STATUS | DESCRIPTION | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | cis | yes | disabled | Center for Internet Security Audit Tools | | […] | Let’s enable CIS for this VM: | | | --- | | sudo ua enable cis | You will see: | | | --- | | One moment, checking your subscription first Updating package lists Installing CIS Audit packages CIS Audit enabled Visit to learn how to use CIS | If you check the status: | | | --- | | ua status | You will see: | | | | | | | | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | SERVICE | ENTITLED | STATUS | DESCRIPTION || cis | yes | enabled | Center for Internet Security Audit Tools | | […] | With tooling packages installed, let’s harden your Ubuntu 16.04 Pro system with CIS Level 1 Server profile: | | | --- | | sudo /usr/share/ubuntu-scap-security-guides/cis-hardening/Canonic al\_Ubuntu\_16.04\_CIS\_v1.1.0-harden.sh lvl1\_server | In less than 3 minutes, your Ubuntu Pro will go through the whole process of hardening and you will get a CIS level-1 compliant environment with no more manual configuration. Let’s audit the system: | | | --- | | sudo cis-audit level1\_server | The output should be similar to: | | | --- | | Title   **Ensure mounting of cramfs filesystems is disabled** Rule    xccdf\_com.ubuntu.xenial.cis\_rule\_CIS-1.1.1.1 Result  pass […] CIS audit scan completed. The scan results are available in /usr/share/ubuntu-scap-security-guides/cis-16.04-report.html report. | The HTML report as shown above will also present your CIS score. For comprehensive CIS hardening instructions, you can check [Ubuntu CIS Compliance documentation.](https://ubuntu.com/security/certifications/docs/cis#manual-installation) [Get in touch Interested in running Ubuntu in your organization?](https://ubuntu.com/about/contact-us/form) ## Sign up for our newsletter Get the latest Canonical news and updates in your inbox. Work email: \*I agree to receive information about Canonical's products and services. In submitting this form, I confirm that I have read and agree to [Canonical's Privacy Notice](https://canonical.com/legal/data-privacy/contact) and [Privacy Policy](https://canonical.com/legal/data-privacy). Sign up ## Share on --- ## Related posts [### Securing open source software dependencies in the public cloud](https://canonical.com/blog/securing-open-source-software-dependencies-in-the-public-cloud) Building stable and secure software requires understanding build systems and having a plan for vulnerabilities in your software dependencies. [Aaron Whitehouse](https://canonical.com/blog/author/aaron-whitehouse) 5 October 2026 [### Beyond the 10-year mark: Extending Ubuntu Pro 16.04 LTS security coverage](https://canonical.com/blog/extending-ubuntu-pro-16-04-coverage) A decade ago, Canonical launched Ubuntu 16.04 LTS (codenamed “Xenial Xerus”). As a Long-Term Support (LTS) release, it comes with 5 years of standard security coverage, which... 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