mirror of https://github.com/status-im/consul.git
34 lines
1.6 KiB
Plaintext
34 lines
1.6 KiB
Plaintext
---
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layout: docs
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page_title: Security
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description: >-
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Consul relies on both a lightweight gossip mechanism and an RPC system to
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provide various features. Both of the systems have different security
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mechanisms that stem from their designs. However, the security mechanisms of
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Consul have a common goal: to provide confidentiality, integrity, and
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authentication.
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---
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# Security Model
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Requirements and recommendations for operating a secure Consul deployment may vary drastically depending on your
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intended workloads, operating system, and environment. You can find detailed information about the various personas,
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recommendations, requirements, and threats [here](/docs/security/security-models).
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The [gossip protocol](/docs/internals/gossip) is powered by [Serf](https://www.serf.io/),
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which uses a symmetric key, or shared secret, cryptosystem. There are more
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details on the security of [Serf here](https://www.serf.io/docs/internals/security.html).
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For details on how to enable Serf's gossip encryption in Consul, see the
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[encryption doc here](/docs/agent/encryption).
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Consul provides an optional [Access Control List (ACL) system](/docs/security/acl) which can be used to control access
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to data and APIs.
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This means Consul communication is protected against eavesdropping, tampering,
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and spoofing. This makes it possible to run Consul over untrusted networks such
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as EC2 and other shared hosting providers.
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The Consul agent supports encrypting all of its network traffic. The exact method of encryption is described on the
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[encryption security page](/docs/security/encryption). There are two separate encryption systems, one for gossip
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traffic and one for HTTP + RPC.
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