2.5.14.3.9 (L1) Ensure 'Authentication with Exchange server' is set to 'Enabled: Kerberos Password Authentication'

Information

This policy setting controls which authentication method Outlook uses to authenticate with an on-premises Microsoft Exchange Server.

NOTE: - Exchange Server supports the Kerberos authentication protocol and NTLM for authentication. The Kerberos protocol is the more secure authentication method and is supported on Windows 2000 Server and later versions. NTLM authentication is supported in pre-Windows 2000 environments.

Policy setting options for controlling how Outlook authenticates with Microsoft Exchange Server:

Kerberos Password Authentication - Outlook attempts to authenticate using the Kerberos protocol only.

Warning: When configuring on Outlook clients that connect to Exchange Online (365), this setting must be set to Disabled or left unconfigured.

The recommended state for this setting is: Enabled: Kerberos Password Authentication

Exchange Server supports the Kerberos authentication protocol and NTLM for authentication. The Kerberos protocol is the more secure authentication method and is supported on Windows 2000 Server and later versions. NTLM authentication is supported in pre-Windows 2000 environments. By default, Outlook will attempt to authenticate using the Kerberos authentication protocol. If it cannot (because no Windows 2000 or later domain controllers are available), it will authenticate using NTLM.

Solution

To establish the recommended state via configuration profiles, set the following Settings Catalog path to Enabled: Kerberos/NTLM Password Authentication :

Microsoft Outlook 2016\Security\Security Form Settings\Outlook Security Mode > Authentication with Exchange Server

Warning: When configuring on Outlook clients that connect to Exchange Online (365), this setting must be set to Disabled or left unconfigured.

Important: For this setting to apply, the

Outlook Security Mode

setting must be enabled in

Microsoft Outlook 2016\Security\Security Form Settings

with Use Outlook Security Group Policy selected, as set in this benchmark.

Impact:

The recommended value for this setting in the Microsoft baselines enforces the default configuration and is therefore unlikely to cause significant usability issues for most users.

Warning: Testing of this setting is necessary before deployment as it could cause interruptions in service.

See Also

https://workbench.cisecurity.org/benchmarks/15808

Item Details

Category: SYSTEM AND SERVICES ACQUISITION

References: 800-53|SA-15

Plugin: Windows

Control ID: df64781a0039753f60310fb77c3b0b794c911499491702cab876633b13ae77dc