4.2 Enable "Show Wi-Fi status in menu bar"

Information

The Wi-Fi status in the menu bar indicates if the system's wireless internet capabilities are enabled. If so, the system will scan for available wireless networks to connect to. At the time of this revision all computers Apple builds have wireless, that has not always been the case, This control only pertains to systems that have a wireless NIC. Operating systems running in a virtual environment may not score as expected either. Enabling "Show Wi-Fi status in menu bar" is a security awareness method that helps mitigate public area wireless exploits by making the user aware of their wireless connectivity status.

Solution

Perform the following to implement the prescribed state: Open System Preferences Select Network Check Show Wi-Fi status in menu bar Alternatively run the following in the command line: Open /System/Library/CoreServices/Menu Extras/AirPort.menu/ Impact: The user of the system should have a quick check on their wireless network status available

See Also

https://workbench.cisecurity.org/files/299

Item Details

Category: CONFIGURATION MANAGEMENT

References: 800-53|CM-6b.

Plugin: Unix

Control ID: 01bb7ec4f620ea5439e92b7d761a489a5614f196edddaa1c6abf871600befa3f