Hardening the operating system refers to all of the following except?

Hardening the operating system involves implementing various security measures to reduce vulnerabilities and enhance the system’s defenses. The processes usually include actions that minimize the potential attack surface of the operating system.

Closing unused ports helps to prevent unauthorized access and protect the system from network-based attacks. Limiting administrator access restricts privileges to only those who need it, reducing the chance of accidental or malicious alterations to the system. Removing unnecessary services and libraries eliminates potential entry points that attackers could exploit, ensuring that only essential components are running on the system.

On the other hand, removing antimalware agents does not align with the goals of hardening an operating system. In fact, maintaining antimalware solutions is an integral part of security hygiene, helping to protect against a wide range of malware threats. Therefore, this action undermines the very purpose of hardening, which is to increase, rather than decrease, the security posture of the operating system.