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Port 554 RTSP

Real Time Streaming Protocol, used by IP cameras and video recorders.

Protocol
TCP/UDP
Service
RTSP
Exposing to the internet
Do not expose

Check if port 554 is open

Is it safe to open

Cameras and video recorders are among the most hacked devices. Do not forward their ports; use the vendor cloud with 2FA or a VPN, and update firmware.

How to open port 554

Open to everyone

# Linux iptables
iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 554 -j ACCEPT
iptables -A INPUT -p udp --dport 554 -j ACCEPT
# Ubuntu ufw
ufw allow 554/tcp
ufw allow 554/udp
# firewalld
firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=554/tcp && firewall-cmd --reload
firewall-cmd --permanent --add-port=554/udp && firewall-cmd --reload
# MikroTik
/ip firewall filter add chain=input protocol=tcp dst-port=554 action=accept place-before=0 comment="port 554"
/ip firewall filter add chain=input protocol=udp dst-port=554 action=accept place-before=0 comment="port 554"
# Windows (PowerShell)
New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "Port 554 TCP" -Direction Inbound -Protocol TCP -LocalPort 554 -Action Allow
New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "Port 554 UDP" -Direction Inbound -Protocol UDP -LocalPort 554 -Action Allow

Only for your addresses

# allow only one address or network (replace 203.0.113.0/24)
iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 554 -s 203.0.113.0/24 -j ACCEPT
iptables -A INPUT -p udp --dport 554 -s 203.0.113.0/24 -j ACCEPT
iptables -A INPUT -p tcp --dport 554 -j DROP
iptables -A INPUT -p udp --dport 554 -j DROP
ufw allow from 203.0.113.0/24 to any port 554 proto tcp
ufw allow from 203.0.113.0/24 to any port 554 proto udp
/ip firewall filter add chain=input protocol=tcp dst-port=554 src-address=203.0.113.0/24 action=accept
/ip firewall filter add chain=input protocol=udp dst-port=554 src-address=203.0.113.0/24 action=accept
/ip firewall filter add chain=input protocol=tcp dst-port=554 action=drop
/ip firewall filter add chain=input protocol=udp dst-port=554 action=drop

If the server is behind a router, you also need a port forward (dst-nat). Behind ISP CGNAT (100.64.0.0/10 on the WAN) forwarding will not help: you need a public IP or a VPN.

What is listening

Check on the server

# what listens on the port
ss -lntup | grep ':554 '
netstat -ano | findstr :554   # Windows
lsof -i :554   # macOS
# test from another machine
nc -vz example.com 554

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