1.146 ALMA-09-019160

Information

AlmaLinux OS 9 must not enable IP packet forwarding unless the system is a router.

GROUP ID: V-269249
RULE ID: SV-269249r1050131

Routing protocol daemons are typically used on routers to exchange network topology information with other routers. If this capability is used when not required, system network information may be unnecessarily transmitted across the network.

Solution

Configure AlmaLinux OS 9 to not allow IP packet forwarding, unless the system is a router.

Create a numbered *.conf file in /etc/sysctl.d/ with the following content:

net.ipv4.conf.all.forwarding = 0
net.ipv4.conf.default.forwarding = 0
net.ipv4.conf.lo.forwarding = 0
net.ipv6.conf.all.forwarding = 0
net.ipv6.conf.default.forwarding = 0
net.ipv6.conf.lo.forwarding = 0

The system configuration files need to be reloaded for the changes to take effect. To reload the contents of the files, run the following command:

$ sysctl -system

See Also

https://workbench.cisecurity.org/benchmarks/27039