Total noob question here
 

This is a totally noob question to ask. Are distros like Fedora, Debian,
and Opensuse more secure than Linux Mint.

no. Security always depend on the configuration (= admin), not on the name of the distro.

Hi actinide,

I agree with pan64. How secure your linux system is depends mostly on the user's / administrator's configuration of the operating system and its environment (network, peripherals, etc. ..) and usage habits.

Cheers,

define secure...

well some distros have a reputation for being more secure, maybe alpine linux, and some for being less secure (personally i wouldn't use ubuntu)?

What you're reason for not using ubuntu.

All Linuxes are more secure than Windows, of course:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/20245...n_windows.html

All Linuxes are much the same in this respect. The Red Hat family (including Fedora) have Security Enhanced Linux features enabled, but the chances of that being useful to anyone who isn't running a web-server are slight. These have more information on security
http://www.techradar.com/news/softwa...-system-915651
http://www.linuxtopia.org/LinuxSecurity/

But basically the sort of threat you're likely to face would be avoided by common sense: note the section in the Linuxtopia article on wireless security, for example. Another example of good practice would be encrypting /home on a laptop, especially if you take it outside the home.

But all of that advice can be followed with any distro.

It depends how it is configured. What services are enabled by default, how knowledgeable the user is with security and some common sense like not being root to surf the web and such.

A hardened user is preferred.

Actually, Linux is not "more secure than Windows." :tisk: Not categorically, at least.

Security is a process, not a product, nor an operating system, nor a distro. Do a lot of reading about what sort of vulnerabilities computer systems are susceptible to, and look at practices (such as [Google® it] "The Principle of Least Privilege") which are recommended.

because it's commercial.
libzeitgeist.
amazon lens (granted, a thing of the past, but it makes one think what else is going on)

What you're reason for axin these questions?