How to Secure OpenSearch for Production

OpenSearch offers robust security capabilities—but misconfiguring them can lead to access issues, data leaks, or downtime. This post serves as a checklist for the key steps to harden OpenSearch for production while maintaining usability and stability.

Enable TLS for transport and HTTP layers

Encryption in transit is critical for securing internal broker communication and client access.

• Use self-signed or CA-issued certificates
• Separate internal and external certificates if needed

Configure role-based access control (RBAC)

Leverage OpenSearch’s security plugin to define roles, users, and index-level permissions:

• Use role mappings tied to LDAP, SAML, or OIDC
• Grant access to specific indices, fields, or tenants

Use audit logging

Enable audit logs to track who accessed what and when. Store logs in a secure, immutable system.

• Log authentication, index access, and permission changes

Set up tenants and access controls in dashboards

If you use OpenSearch Dashboards:

• Configure multitenancy
• Limit access to dashboards, visualizations, and saved queries

Harden node and network settings

• Disable anonymous access
• Bind to private IPs only
• Block external HTTP access on master-eligible nodes

Summing it up.

Production-grade OpenSearch security isn’t about enabling a single setting—it’s about layering encryption, access control, monitoring, and tenant isolation. Start with encryption and RBAC, then work your way toward full auditability and operational guardrails.

Need help securing OpenSearch without slowing your team down? Contact us to schedule a review.