How to Secure Your MongoDB App

1. Enable Authentication

Never run MongoDB without authentication. This was the cause of 47,000+ database breaches.

mongod --auth

2. Create Application-Specific Users

Don't use the admin account for applications. Create users with minimum required permissions.

db.createUser({
  user: 'appuser',
  pwd: 'strong_password',
  roles: [{ role: 'readWrite', db: 'myapp' }]
})

3. Restrict Network Access

Bind MongoDB to specific IPs, not 0.0.0.0. Use firewalls to restrict access.

# mongod.conf
net:
  bindIp: 127.0.0.1,10.0.0.5

4. Enable TLS/SSL

Encrypt all connections to MongoDB. Configure TLS certificates for production.

5. Prevent NoSQL Injection

Validate input types. Don't pass raw user input to query operators.

// Validate input type
const username = String(req.body.username);

6. Audit and Monitor

Enable audit logging. Monitor for unusual access patterns.