{"id":2974,"date":"2025-12-17T11:18:21","date_gmt":"2025-12-17T11:18:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fadyanwar.com\/?p=2974"},"modified":"2025-12-17T11:20:55","modified_gmt":"2025-12-17T11:20:55","slug":"how-a-simple-vulnerability-scan-crashed-my-server-and-how-i-fixed-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fadyanwar.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/17\/how-a-simple-vulnerability-scan-crashed-my-server-and-how-i-fixed-it\/","title":{"rendered":"How a Simple Vulnerability Scan Crashed My Server &#8211; And How I Fixed It"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><em>How an automated hacking attempt brought down my WordPress site, and the step-by-step security hardening that prevented it from happening again.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Silent Crash<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>It started with a familiar WordPress error that every site owner dreads: <strong>&#8220;Error establishing a database connection.&#8221;<\/strong> My site was completely down. No warning, no gradual slowdown &#8211; just offline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Little did I know that this wasn&#8217;t a hosting issue or misconfiguration, but rather a security incident that had been brewing for hours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Investigation Begins<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 1: Immediate Diagnosis<\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-syntaxhighlighter-code \"><pre class=\"brush: plain; title: ; notranslate\" title=\"\">\nsystemctl status mysql\n# Output: inactive (dead)\n<\/pre><\/div>\n\n\n<p>MySQL had crashed. A simple restart brought the site back, but that was just treating the symptom. I needed the root cause.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 2: Digging into the Logs<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The MySQL error log revealed the smoking gun:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-syntaxhighlighter-code \"><pre class=\"brush: plain; title: ; notranslate\" title=\"\">\n2025-10-26T01:47:17.278972Z &#x5B;ERROR] &#x5B;InnoDB] Cannot allocate memory for the buffer pool\n2025-10-26T01:47:17.280154Z &#x5B;ERROR] &#x5B;InnoDB] Plugin initialization aborted with error Generic error\n<\/pre><\/div>\n\n\n<p>Memory exhaustion. But why?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Step 3: Connecting the Dots<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The system logs told the rest of the story:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-syntaxhighlighter-code \"><pre class=\"brush: plain; title: ; notranslate\" title=\"\">\nOct 26 01:45:15 server kernel: apache2 invoked oom-killer:\nOct 26 01:45:16 server kernel: out_of_memory: Killed process 21415 (mysqld)\n<\/pre><\/div>\n\n\n<p>The Out-of-Memory killer had terminated MySQL to save the system. But what consumed all the memory?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Real Culprit: Automated Vulnerability Scanning<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The Apache error log revealed the attack pattern:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-syntaxhighlighter-code \"><pre class=\"brush: plain; title: ; notranslate\" title=\"\">\n&#x5B;Tue Oct 28 07:20:46.385500 2025] script '\/var\/www\/html\/wp-content\/plugins\/xadm-log.php' not found\n&#x5B;Tue Oct 28 07:20:54.675026 2025] script '\/var\/www\/html\/wp-admin\/xadm-log.php' not found\n&#x5B;Tue Oct 28 08:41:37.862015 2025] script '\/var\/www\/html\/wp-plain.php' not found\n&#x5B;Tue Oct 28 17:49:47.870481 2025] script '\/var\/www\/html\/php-info.php' not found\n<\/pre><\/div>\n\n\n<p><strong>What was happening:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Automated bots were scanning for common backdoors and vulnerable files<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Each request spawned Apache\/PHP processes<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The 1GB RAM server couldn&#8217;t handle the concurrent load<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Memory exhaustion triggered the OOM killer<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>MySQL was the casualty<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Attack Pattern Analysis<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The attackers were probing for:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Information disclosure<\/strong>: <code>phpinfo.php<\/code>, <code>info.php<\/code>, <code>pinfo.php<\/code><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Common backdoors<\/strong>: <code>xadm-log.php<\/code>, <code>wp-plain.php<\/code>, <code>postnews.php<\/code><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Framework vulnerabilities<\/strong>: <code>app_dev.php<\/code>, <code>frontend_dev.php<\/code><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Geographical distribution:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>51.38.121.102 (France)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>45.138.16.215 (Russia\/Netherlands)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>43.157.203.73 (Hong Kong) &#8211; Most aggressive<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>And several others\u2026<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Security Hardening Solution<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">1. Immediate IP Blocking<\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-syntaxhighlighter-code \"><pre class=\"brush: plain; title: ; notranslate\" title=\"\">\nsudo ufw deny from 51.38.121.102\nsudo ufw deny from 45.138.16.215\nsudo ufw deny from 43.157.203.73\n<\/pre><\/div>\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">2. Fail2Ban Automated Protection<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Configuration:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-syntaxhighlighter-code \"><pre class=\"brush: plain; title: ; notranslate\" title=\"\">\nsudo nano \/etc\/fail2ban\/jail.d\/wordpress.conf\n<\/pre><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-syntaxhighlighter-code \"><pre class=\"brush: plain; title: ; notranslate\" title=\"\">\n&#x5B;wordpress-hard]\nenabled = true\nport = http,https\nfilter = wordpress\nlogpath = \/var\/log\/apache2\/error.log\nmaxretry = 2\nbantime = 86400\nfindtime = 600\n<\/pre><\/div>\n\n<p>[wordpress-soft]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>enabled = true port = http,https filter = wordpress logpath = \/var\/log\/apache2\/error.log maxretry = 5 bantime = 3600 findtime = 600<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Filter definition:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-syntaxhighlighter-code \"><pre class=\"brush: plain; title: ; notranslate\" title=\"\">\n# \/etc\/fail2ban\/filter.d\/wordpress.conf\n&#x5B;Definition]\nfailregex = ^.*script '.*\/.*\\.php' not found or unable to stat.*client &amp;lt;HOST&gt;\nignoreregex =\n<\/pre><\/div>\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">3. Resource Optimization<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>MySQL memory tuning:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-syntaxhighlighter-code \"><pre class=\"brush: plain; title: ; notranslate\" title=\"\">\n# \/etc\/mysql\/my.cnf\n<\/pre><\/div>\n\n<p>[mysqld]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>innodb_buffer_pool_size = 64M key_buffer_size = 16M tmp_table_size = 16M max_connections = 30<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Apache process limiting:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-syntaxhighlighter-code \"><pre class=\"brush: plain; title: ; notranslate\" title=\"\">\n# \/etc\/apache2\/mods-available\/mpm_prefork.conf\n&amp;lt;IfModule mpm_prefork_module&gt;\n    StartServers            2\n    MinSpareServers         2\n    MaxSpareServers         5\n    MaxRequestWorkers       30\n    MaxConnectionsPerChild  1000\n&amp;lt;\/IfModule&gt;\n<\/pre><\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Results<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Before Protection:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Downtime<\/strong>: could be for days unnoticed<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Manual intervention required<\/strong>: Yes<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Recurrence<\/strong>: Likely<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">After Protection:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Automatic blocking<\/strong>: IPs banned within minutes of detection<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Zero downtime<\/strong>: Attacks handled automatically<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Resource stability<\/strong>: No more memory exhaustion<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Fail2Ban in Action:<\/h3>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-syntaxhighlighter-code \"><pre class=\"brush: plain; title: ; notranslate\" title=\"\">\n2025-10-28 22:24:37,521 fail2ban.actions: NOTICE  &#x5B;sshd] Ban 134.209.200.154\n# WordPress bans now happen automatically for vulnerability scanners\n<\/pre><\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Monitor Your Logs<\/strong>: Regular log review catches attacks before they cause damage<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Security Through Obscurity Isn&#8217;t Enough<\/strong>: Even &#8220;failed&#8221; attacks can take down your server<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Automate Defense<\/strong>: Manual IP blocking doesn&#8217;t scale against distributed attacks<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Right-Size Your Resources<\/strong>: Know your server&#8217;s limits and configure services accordingly<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Defense in Depth<\/strong>: Combine Fail2Ban, firewall rules, and service hardening<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Prevention Checklist<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>[ ] Install and configure Fail2Ban<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>[ ] Set up log monitoring alerts<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>[ ] Harden MySQL and Apache configurations<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>[ ] Implement a Web Application Firewall (WAF)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>[ ] Regular security audits and updates<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>[ ] Resource monitoring with alerts<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Conclusion<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>What seemed like a random server crash was actually a security event. The attack wasn&#8217;t sophisticated &#8211; just automated, persistent, and resource-intensive enough to overwhelm an unprepared system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The solution wasn&#8217;t complex either: proper monitoring, automated defense, and resource management. The entire protection system was implemented with open-source tools and about an hour of configuration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Your server will get scanned. The question isn&#8217;t <em>if<\/em>, but <em>when<\/em> &#8211; and whether you&#8217;re prepared to handle it automatically.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>How an automated hacking attempt brought down my WordPress site, and the step-by-step security hardening that prevented it from happening again. The Silent Crash It started with a familiar WordPress error that every site owner dreads: &#8220;Error establishing a database connection.&#8221; My site was completely down. No warning, no gradual slowdown &#8211; just offline. Little [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2998,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_editorskit_title_hidden":false,"_editorskit_reading_time":0,"_editorskit_is_block_options_detached":false,"_editorskit_block_options_position":"{}","_vp_format_video_url":"","_vp_image_focal_point":[],"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2974","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>How a Simple Vulnerability Scan Crashed My Server - And How I Fixed It - Fady Anwar<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/fadyanwar.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/17\/how-a-simple-vulnerability-scan-crashed-my-server-and-how-i-fixed-it\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How a Simple Vulnerability Scan Crashed My Server - And How I Fixed It - Fady Anwar\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"How an automated hacking attempt brought down my WordPress site, and the step-by-step security hardening that prevented it from happening again. 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