cPanel Security Monitoring & Hardening

My production server runs on cPanel/WHM and I need a security-focused specialist to take over continuous protection duties. The priority is to keep the box clean, locked down, and fully recoverable at all times, so I’m commissioning an ongoing monitoring and troubleshooting arrangement rather than a one-off audit.

Scope of work
• Start with a comprehensive security audit: scan for existing malware, review logs, check permissions, and verify that all core services (Apache/Nginx, Exim, MySQL, SSH) follow current best practices.
• Implement layered defences aimed at the three concerns I flagged—malware detection & removal, unauthorized-access prevention, and data encryption/protection. Typical tools might include CSF/LFD, ModSecurity rulesets, hardened SSH policies, ClamAV or Imunify360, and full-disk or at-rest encryption where applicable. Feel free to bring in other proven utilities if they add value.
• Set up real-time alerts and dashboards so that suspicious activity or integrity failures reach me immediately by e-mail/Slack.
• Provide rapid incident response and clear remediation notes whenever something slips through.

Deliverables & acceptance criteria
1. Initial audit report documenting every test run, vulnerabilities located, and actions taken.
2. Hardened configuration files committed to my private Git repo (or an equivalent change-tracking method) with comments.
3. Monitoring stack deployed and verified through test alerts.
4. Monthly summary that shows malware scans, access-attempt statistics, patches applied, and any anomalies resolved.
5. Zero unresolved critical vulnerabilities after your first 30 days on the job.

I’ll grant root and WHM access through my VPN jump host once an NDA is signed. Please outline your proposed toolset, approximate timeline for the first audit, and any past experience with cPanel environments of a similar scale.