18.5.11.3 Ensure 'Prohibit use of Internet Connection Sharing on your DNS domain network' is set to 'Enabled'

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Information

Although this 'legacy' setting traditionally applied to the use of Internet Connection Sharing (ICS) in Windows 2000, Windows XP & Server 2003, this setting now freshly applies to the Mobile Hotspot feature in Windows 10 & Server 2016.

The recommended state for this setting is: Enabled.

Rationale:

Non-administrators should not be able to turn on the Mobile Hotspot feature and open their Internet connectivity up to nearby mobile devices.

Impact:

Mobile Hotspot cannot be enabled or configured by Administrators and non-Administrators alike.

Solution

To establish the recommended configuration via GP, set the following UI path to Enabled:

Computer Configuration\Policies\Administrative Templates\Network\Network Connections\Prohibit use of Internet Connection Sharing on your DNS domain network

Note: This Group Policy path is provided by the Group Policy template NetworkConnections.admx/adml that is included with all versions of the Microsoft Windows Administrative Templates.

Default Value:

Disabled. (All users are allowed to turn on Mobile Hotspot.)

See Also

https://workbench.cisecurity.org/files/4063