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Security & Permissions
Security Model
Defense in depth — how rumahl protects your home: authentication, network security, encryption, threat detection and platform hardening.
6 min readUpdated: 20 August 2026
rumahl implements a comprehensive, defense-in-depth security model. Every layer has one job: making sure that a compromise at one level does not reach the next.
The five security layers
| Layer | Mechanisms |
|---|---|
| 1. Authentication & authorization | JWT tokens, API keys, PIN auth, RBAC |
| 2. Network security | Domain whitelist, IP access control, sandbox |
| 3. Data protection | AES-256-GCM encryption, hash-chained audit logs |
| 4. Threat detection & response | Intrusion detection, auto-lockdown, alerts |
| 5. Platform security | AppArmor, Docker isolation, read-only filesystem |
Core security services
| Service | Port | Role |
|---|---|---|
| rumahl-security | 8095 | Threat detection, intrusion prevention, lockdown |
| rumahl-secrets | 8093 | Encrypted secrets storage (API keys, passwords, tokens) |
| rumahl-watchdog | 8094 | Health monitoring, failover, circuit breaker |
Data protection
- Encryption at rest: AES-256-GCM for secrets and sensitive data
- Audit logging: hash-chained logs — tampering becomes visible immediately
- Local-first: by default, no data leaves your device at all
- Opt-in telemetry: diagnostics and cloud features require explicit consent
Permissions as the trust boundary
The permission system is the heart of the security model:
- Every API call is checked against an explicit permission at the gateway
- Apps request permissions at registration and at runtime (allow/deny dialogs)
- Destructive operations require explicit, typed confirmation — never autonomous
- AppArmor and the runtime sandbox limit what a compromised app can do
Platform hardening
- Buildroot LTS Linux with a read-only SquashFS root filesystem
- ZRAM for
/tmpand/var— reduced wear and attack surface
- RAUC A/B updates — atomic updates with automatic rollback
- AppArmor mandatory access control for all services
- The security monitor surfaces alerts, resource usage and anomalies
Tip: keep your system updated — security patches ship through the update center with a stable/beta/alpha channel choice.
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