Detections
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2.4.2 Ensure Show Bluetooth Status in Menu Bar Is Enabled

Information

By showing the Bluetooth status in the menu bar, a small Bluetooth icon is placed in the menu bar. This icon quickly shows the status of Bluetooth, and can allow the user to quickly turn Bluetooth on or off.

Rationale:

Enabling 'Show Bluetooth status in menu bar' is a security awareness method that helps understand the current state of Bluetooth, including whether it is enabled, discoverable, what paired devices exist, and what paired devices are currently active.

Impact:

Bluetooth is a useful wireless tool that has been widely exploited when configured improperly. The user should have insight into the Bluetooth status.

Solution

Graphical Method:
Perform the following steps to enable Bluetooth status in the menu bar:

Open System Settings

Select Control Center

Set Bluetooth to Show in Menu Bar

Terminal Method:
For each user, run the following command to enable Bluetooth status in the menu bar:

$ /usr/bin/sudo -u <username> /usr/bin/defaults -currentHost write com.apple.controlcenter.plist Bluetooth -int 18

example:

$ /usr/bin/sudo -u firstuser /usr/bin/defaults -currentHost write com.apple.controlcenter.plist Bluetooth -int 18

Profile Method:
Create or edit a configuration profile with the following information:

The PayloadType string is com.apple.controlcenter

The key to include is Bluetooth

The key must be set to <integer>18</integer>

Note: Since the profile method sets a system-wide setting and not a user-level one, the profile method is the preferred method. It is always better to set system-wide than per user.

See Also

https://workbench.cisecurity.org/files/4159

Item Details

References: CSCv7|9.2

Plugin: Unix

Control ID: 711be894aee9f5036ed6a3258a2ffa478b44300236ca47aeed53d9da5f5de852